Year of Living Dangerously Part II
by VanessaGalore
Summary: Now complete. Sequel to YLD1. If you don't deal with the past, it will deal with you. A future-fic about fatherhood, consequences, & redemption. Logan/Veronica, Ensemble, & everyone I haven't killed yet. Minor Character Death. Reviews contain spoilers.
1. Intro and Previously On

**CHARACTERS:** Logan/Veronica, Keith, eventual Wallace/OFC, Mac, Duncan, Weevil, Dick, everyone else you love / love to hate that I haven't already killed. 

** SUMMARY:** If you don't deal with the past, the past will deal with you. This is a future-fic about fatherhood, consequences, and redemption. Someone from Logan's past is murdered; angst ensues, and Veronica investigates. There's plot, quite a bit of it: in fact, I consider this an homage to Season 2. You say plot hole and red herring; I say opportunity.

**RATING:** NC-17 (please see warnings).

**SPOILERS:** All of Veronica Mars is spoiled. You are expected to be familiar with all three seasons.  
**  
WARNINGS:** My previous fic, 'The Year of Living Dangerously', was 'broadcast' on the Teen FX channel. The censors were not happy with Chapter 47. Therefore, 'The Year of Living Dangerously' is now being 'broadcast' on Showtime (woot, woot) and IS INTENDED FOR MATURE AUDIENCES. Well, maybe not MATURE, but 18 AND OVER PLEASE. There is NC-17 material here: graphic sex, violence, and perversion. Now you're really interested! Plus, my characters curse...A LOT. Angst warning: there is a massive amount of angst in this fic, mostly dealing with the fallout from events in season 2. Not much fluff–sorry, I'm not a fluffy person, deal with it. I tried to spike it with enough humor and smut that no one will become suicidal. Contains references to past relationships V/D and HaLo. MINOR CHARACTER DEATH.

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?"

**A/N:** This is truly a sequel to my previous fic. If you read it and just need a refresher, see below for what you need to know. If you never read it, why the hell not, and go read it right NOW (please). [Click on my name up there on the left and find my story at the bottom of my profile under 'Stories Authored'

A note to nitpickers about characters' birthdays: I'm sure someone has figured out when everyone's birthday is, and supposedly the writers' bible contains that information. But I don't have the writers' bible, and I was not able to determine everyone's ages. If I got the ages wrong according to your calculations, try to just go with it: the ages I picked have certain legal ramifications that are important to the plot and essential to my retconnage.

A big thanks to my beta reader, poniesforall. All errors are my responsibility.

Here's something you may not have realized: writers LIVE for reviews. Seriously, we'll just mope in bed if we don't get reviews. In fact, I'd even rather have reviews than my favorite adult beverage...well, maybe not Ketel One, but I'll definitely take reviews over Svedka or Skyy. Send me a review-tini and let me know what you think, and I'll buy the next round when you're in town.

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**PREVIOUSLY ON...  
'THE YEAR OF LIVING DANGEROUSLY'**

The story begins fall of junior year at Hearst College. Veronica has done the FBI internship twice. Veronica's mother has been killed, and a witness comes forward identifying the killer as Clarence Wiedman. Wiedman is himself killed and forensic evidence is found that points to Veronica, supposedly avenging her mother's murder; Logan bails Veronica out of jail and hires attorneys to help with her defense. The evidence is found to have been planted, but Veronica is not completely exonerated and must clear her name.

Keith lost the sheriff's race (like duh); he has written a steamy fictional novel called 'Neptune Undercover'. After the book was published, he started to receive threatening letters.

Both Veronica and Logan have moved on in their lives and started new romantic relationships: Veronica with a somewhat older FBI agent and Logan with a fellow student at UCLA, where he has transferred to pursue a degree in film studies, primarily focusing on screenwriting. Logan has become friendly with Keith and is in therapy with a Dr. Leah Friedman. As part of his effort to reinvent himself, he creates a charity called 'The Bridge', a shelter for battered wives and children.

Mac and Veronica are roommates on campus at Hearst; they develop a web site called 'YourCheatingHeart•com' which vets potential matches for internet dating. Mac also goes to Las Vegas frequently and has become a proficient card counter.

Wallace has been working at Mars Investigations and is still a slamming B-ball god; Weevil still works in the maintenance department at Hearst College but has been promoted to a supervisory position. It is not known if Weevil is completely following the letter of the law, but he is still susceptible to the siren call of Veronica's head tilt. Vinnie Van Lowe is sheriff and seems to be purposely targeting Veronica in the investigation of Wiedman's death. Leo D'Amato, still working at the sheriff's department after Keith had rehired him, has advanced in the department to chief deputy and runs for sheriff. Deputy Leo is instrumental in helping the investigation.

Veronica discovers her FBI boyfriend, Mike Fields, is married and breaks up with him; Logan's girlfriend Carrie Murray dumps him. Mac and Dick plot to get Veronica and Logan back together, somewhat unsuccessfully; Dick is intrigued by Mac's gambling prowess and manages to get in her pants.

Veronica, along with Keith, Wallace and Mac, investigates the murders of Wiedman and her mother; the suspects are the Kanes, the Fitzpatricks, the Mannings, and the writers of the anonymous threatening letters received by Keith. Along the way, Duncan Kane shows up; he's had massive amounts of plastic surgery and is played by a much hotter actor. While on the run, Duncan has taken the name of 'Daniel' and Lilly has become 'Jane'. The Kanes are trying to get amnesty for Duncan so he can return to the U.S. Celeste Kane is still a bitch.

Veronica gets a gun (after all she's had two summers of weapons training at the FBI internships). As usual, she takes chances and doesn't keep Keith informed. Logan rats out Veronica to Keith; she pulls the plug on their fragile resumed friendship, and Logan spirals into an alcoholic binge.

Logan's ex-girlfriend Carrie turns out to be an undercover investigative reporter who does an exposé of Logan and Veronica, focusing on Veronica's status as chief suspect in the murder of Wiedman. Logan, still half in the bag from his alcoholic binge, expresses his anger at Carrie inappropriately by putting his hand through a glass shower door. The cuts on his hand require medical attention, and Dick takes Logan to the hospital. They are pursued by a lunatic reporter who causes an auto accident. Logan is seriously injured, with a badly broken leg and head trauma. Dick, as always, is relatively unscathed by the events around him.

Veronica rushes to Logan's bedside and realizes that she was a heartless bitch in season three /wait, scratch that!!/ Veronica realizes she is still in love with Logan. Logan recovers, but does not immediately fall into Veronica's arms. To try to reverse the bad publicity from the muckraking journalist Carrie, Logan and Veronica give an interview of their own.

Veronica offers to let Logan do his recovery and rehab at the Mars apartment. He reluctantly agrees, wary of their volatile relationship. Animal attraction ensues anyway, and they end up DOING IT, like whoa. Veronica says "I wuv you". (Aww!)

**THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE TO AVOID THE MAIN SPOILER.**

**CLICK ON 'VANESSAGALORE' UP ABOVE IF YOU WANT TO READ 'THE YEAR OF LIVING DANGEROUSLY' FROM THE BEGINNING. (YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO!!)**

**CLICK 'NEXT' TO READ THE SPOILER.**

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	2. Previously on cont'd

**HERE'S WHAT HAPPENED!!**

The villain, Harmony Chase, is frustrated that Veronica still hasn't been indicted for Wiedman's murder and decides to take things more directly in hand: she cuts Veronica's brakes and confronts Keith and Logan at the Mars apartment. Through a somewhat incredible series of events, Veronica manages to escape her doom in the sabotaged car and saves Keith and Logan by shooting Harmony. (A/N: I realize now, I missed a great opportunity by not having Harmony say, "Just shoot me!")

In a subplot, Vinnie Van Lowe, Liam Fitzpatrick, and Father Patrick Fitzpatrick are indicted on racketeering charges. In yet another subplot, we find out that deceased Sheriff Lamb had been blackmailing prominent Neptune families and had video and audio tapes proving the Mannings were abusing their youngest daughter.

At the end, we see Kendall Casablancas (now Katerina Beversdorf) and Gory Sorokin taking an interest in the happenings in Neptune. Vinnie Van Lowe blackmails Keith into helping with his defense by threatening to reveal Veronica's involvement in the Faith Manning babynapping. Logan tells Veronica that he is sure that Leo D'Amato had to have stolen the videotapes for Aaron; otherwise there would have been no reason to steal ALL the copies. Veronica gives the Manning blackmail tapes to the Kanes to help Duncan get permanent custody of baby Lilly/Faith.

**NOW CLICK 'NEXT' TO GO ON TO THE PROLOGUE...**

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	3. Chapters 1 to 3

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?"

* * *

**PROLOGUE:**

**Veronica sits on the thin mattress on the floor, hugging her knees to her chest in a vain attempt to keep warm. A threadbare blanket is draped around her shoulders and she tries again to stretch it to cover her lower legs completely. The darkness of the room is complete; not even a speck of moonlight penetrates the blacked-out window.**

_**How many girls spent lonely nights in this room before me? I can get through this, **_**she thinks, trying to talk herself into being courageous. She shivers again, uncontrollably, and she accidentally knocks her bruised shoulder against the wall, wincing from the unexpected pain. Remembering last night's vicious fight, she wiggles her loose tooth with her tongue, hoping it will eventually tighten in its socket again; she smiles grimly, thinking that at least her opponent got the worst of it. Veronica stands up and resumes pacing the length of the room, flailing her arms to try to keep warm. **_**One, two, three, four, five, turn around, one, two, three, four, five, turn around...**_** Finally, she gives up and curls up in a fetal position on the mattress, huddled under the blanket. She whispers, "I'm going to make these bastards pay. I'm not giving up."**

**Two months earlier...**

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Boy's Got Game**  
Veronica and Logan have a study break;  
Wallace meets the new girl.  
Veronica: Kristin Bell. Logan: Jason  
Dohring. Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
Candice Pauling: Toy Connor.  
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE: "BOY'S GOT GAME"

Mon. 1/19/09 MLK Day: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA  
  
Veronica pauses in her studying and considers Logan sitting across the room on the couch, his feet propped up on the coffee table. He is staring out the floor-to-ceiling windows of his beach house at the Pacific Ocean, ostensibly writing. On the stereo, the Coldplay song 'Don't Panic' plays over and over, set to repeat ad infinitum.

Veronica has asked him about this. After the tenth time through a song, she is ready to scream, but he sits there staring at the ocean, thinking. He tells her that the repetition almost hypnotizes him while he sits there figuring out what he wants to write in his head. Usually after several hours of thinking, he grabs his laptop and types furiously for an hour or so. Then he begins to edit, slashing and burning, rewriting, reconsidering.

Now, he feels her eyes upon him; his eyes focus on her and he smiles.

Veronica removes the headphones she's been wearing to avoid listening to 'Don't Panic' for the last hour, and says, "Hey, you."

"Tonight's our last chance to have kinky sex in the wheelchair," he replies, using the remote to shut off the stereo.

"Almost makes you feel sorry for Anna Nicole, considering how much trouble we've had."

"I wouldn't say trouble, I would say creative," he retorts. In the last two and a half months, the cast on Logan's leg has forced the couple to experiment with position and leverage. He's getting the cast off tomorrow, and he can't wait.

She stands up, smiling broadly, and pulls off her T-shirt, revealing bare skin underneath. "I think I know what you have in mind."

"Looks like you're the one who has it in mind," he muses, noting her erect nipples. He watches her in amusement, an appreciative smile on his face.

Veronica shucks off her jeans and walks over to the kitchen in the corner of the large room. She moves a footstool next to the kitchen counter, wiggling her ass provocatively at Logan as she adjusts it. Deliberately seeking out his eyes, she then shucks off her panties, and hops onto the end of the kitchen counter, facing the footstool located directly below her. She crosses her legs and says in a kittenish voice, "I thought it seemed a little warm in here so I took my clothes off. I saved a spot for you, right here in front of me. Why don't you come over here?" She motions to the footstool, then leans back, keeping herself propped upright with her hands on the counter, which makes her breasts slightly more prominent. She bounces her foot a little and looks enticingly at Logan.

Logan chuckles and grabs his crutches. He propels himself over to the kitchen area and seats himself on the ottoman in front of Veronica, stretching out his right leg in its cast. Logan strokes her foot and caresses her calf, kissing a small childhood scar. He gently uncrosses her legs.

"Oh my goodness, look what we have here," he says throatily. He breathes in the heady aroma of Veronica's arousal. His fingers slide smoothly over her thighs, and she sighs appreciatively, "mmm". He leans in and kisses her just above her right knee. He looks up questioningly.

"Oh, that's nice. Maybe...just a little higher," she suggests.

"Up here?" he says, stroking her inner thigh, so lightly, kissing her again in the same place on the other knee.

"Mmm, hmm," she agrees, arching her back a little.

"Maybe...this is what you had in mind." He trails kisses up her thigh, and pretends that he is going to kiss her center, when he teasingly pulls back to look up at her again.

"Loooo-gahhhhn..." she pleads.

"Oh, you want me to stop," he says.

"Noooo, please..."

"All right," he says, resuming his kisses on her upper thigh, coming so achingly close, that she involuntarily scooches closer to the edge of the counter, trying to make contact. "Veronica, you're such a dirty girl."

"God, Logan, please..."

He takes pity and caresses her pussy, just for a moment, ever so lightly, with the back of his index finger. She pushes into him, trying to increase the pressure. He laughs, saying, "Don't be in such a hurry, let me enjoy you." He touches her again gently, watching her reaction. He speeds his finger's motions and is gratified when she sighs "Ahhh..." She throws her head back, enjoying the moment, and Logan gently pushes the finger in her pussy, indulging in the incredible feeling of her dampness. She grabs the edge of the counter and moans again, rocking against him, as he adds a finger and increases his pace. He kisses his way up to her center, then roughly grabs her ass with both hands, pressing his tongue into her. He flicks his tongue furiously against her clit, and she grabs his head, stroking his hair, muttering incomprehensibly, "Logan, god, Logan..."

As he feels her trembling begin, he clutches her ass with his left arm, maintaining the pressure and intensity of his tongue, and brings his right hand back to her, plunging two fingers in again. She lets out a gasp and launches into her orgasm, clutching her legs around him in desperation. He gently bites on her clit, and she moans loudly, bucking against his mouth and fingers. He holds her firmly against him, loving the control she has given over to him. Awed by the abandon of her release, he thinks every minute of every day about how close they came to losing each other forever.

As her shuddering slows, he gently pulls away to look at her smiling down at him. Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, he tilts his head questioningly toward the bedroom, and she nods. Logan pushes the footstool far enough away that she can drop down to the floor. She retrieves his crutches for him, then walks toward the bedroom saying "Coming, dear?"

"Soon enough, sugarpuss," he replies, following her, moving quickly on the crutches. When he enters the bedroom, he almost loses it when he sees her already kneeling on the bed, playing with her breasts.

"Are my babies feeling ignored?" he whispers, seating himself on the bed and swinging his legs up. "Veronica, help me get my clothes off." It kills Logan every time he has to ask her for help. He quickly takes off his shirt while she pulls off his sweats and boxers.

She runs her fingers along his leg, enjoying watching his cock jerk in anticipation of her approach. She straddles him and he reaches for her breasts, saying insolently, "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to ignore these."

He rolls her nipples between her fingers and watches her sway in front of him. She is drunk with her enjoyment, and moans delightedly as he leans in and licks her nipple, nipping at it gently with his teeth. He sucks greedily, as he continues to roll and gently pinch her other nipple.

She lowers her hips and gently begins to drag her pussy along Logan's hard length, and he moans in appreciation at the sensation. "Veronica, wait...wait...let me get a condom."

Veronica holds his head in her hands and kisses him deeply. "No, I trust you, we don't need one..."

"Are you sure, Veronica?" he asks, looking into her eyes. "I know you're on the pill, but..." He has never suggested going without a condom, knowing Veronica's history and her fear of std's and pregnancy. _You don't have to do this, Veronica..._

"I love you, Logan, I know...I can trust you."

Logan pulls her closer and kisses her back, feeling as if he can just kiss her deep enough, he'll touch her soul and she'll finally be his forever.

Before he can protest further, Veronica slides herself one last time along Logan's cock and when it jerks in response, she engorges him in her.

"God, Veronica, so wet, you're so tight around me. It's so incredible to feel you," he murmurs. She begins to move her hips furiously, and he grabs her, holding her in place.

"No, slow down," he begs her. "I want to feel you, I want it to last, the first time I've _felt_ you, god." With the strength of two months of upper-body workouts and six weeks of supporting himself on crutches, he takes control of her hips. He slowly moves her up and down and she mewls in frustration. "Touch yourself, baby," he whispers. She licks her finger, reaches down and begins to finger her clit.

As Logan watches, he gradually loses control and allows Veronica to set the frantic pace she desires. The strange new sensation of skin on skin is overwhelming in its intensity. He releases her hips and grabs her breasts again, furiously kneading her nipples as she pants and moans. With a supreme effort, he pulls himself to a seated position, and Veronica screams with pleasure as his cock hits her in an extreme angle. He grabs the back of her head and kisses her as he surges inside her, glorying in coming inside her without a barrier, loving the feeling of her muscles clenching uncontrollably around him.

- • -

Mon. 1/19/09 MLK Day: Hearst College, Neptune, CA  
  
Wallace adjusts the collar of the new suit his mom had bought him for Christmas as he enters the common room of the engineering building. He looks around the room and realizes that he might be overdressed, noting that he's surrounded by pocket protector types. He muses, _What else would you expect at the induction ceremony for the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society?_

He recognizes a classmate from his engineering classes, and greets him with his fist extended. "We made it," Wallace says.

"Never had a doubt," his friend replies, bumping fists.

"Don't think I'd go that far," Wallace responds.

His faculty advisor, Professor Winkler, joins them. He claps Wallace on the back, and says, "Mr. Fennel, congratulations. You've worked really hard for this."

"Got in by the skin of my teeth, Professor Winkler," Wallace says, smiling.

"Nice suit, Wallace," the professor comments.

"Just trying to spread a little of that fine Fennel magic around." Wallace looks around the room and notices a woman standing by the bar. He adds, "Speaking of Fennel magic, do you know who that is?"

"Oh that's Candice Pauling. She just started in the MSE program."

"The master's program? That's a hard program to get into," Wallace comments.

"She's a brilliant scholar. Candice had her choice of programs across the country," Professor Winkler explains.

_And a really beautiful woman besides, _Wallace muses. "Can I get you a drink, professor?"

"No, Wallace," the professor laughs, "Good luck." He motions for Wallace to go.

Wallace presses his way through the crowd, keeping his eyes trained on Candice. She has chocolate-colored skin, and elaborate hair, woven into a multitude of messily curled braids, with some of her hair colored red and gold. The overall effect is one of exotic charm that contrasts with the unfashionable engineering crowd. Best of all, as Wallace draws closer he notes that even with high-heeled shoes, she is only slightly taller than he is. He pushes through the last few bodies and reaches the bar, standing directly next to Candice. Wallace catches the bartender's eye and asks for a Coke. He turns to Candice and asks, "Do you need a refill?"

She smiles, and shakes her head no.

"Just the Coke, then," Wallace says. As the bartender gets his drink, Wallace watches her peripherally. He notes her unusual jewelry and, screwing up his courage, asks her, "Your jewelry is beautiful. Is it from Africa?"

"Oh, thank you, the earrings are from Mali. They are called fula earrings," she explains. "I just returned from a year working in Mali with the Peace Corps. It was a life changing experience."

Wallace, surprised, replies, "I know what you mean. I spent a summer working in Uganda with the Invisible Children Project."

She is about to comment when another student sidles up to the bar intending to order a drink. He notices Wallace, and says, "High five, man, great game last night!" Wallace obligingly high-fives and returns his attention to Candice.

"Great game?" she queries, looking from the student to Wallace.

"I'm on the basketball team."

The student turns and says, "He's being modest. He is the basketball team. This year, Fennel is averaging .660 in True Shooting Percentage, and he leads the league in rebounds."

"Aren't you a little...um...height-challenged to be a basketball player?" she says in a slightly surprised tone.

"What I lack in height, I make up with stamina and hustle," Wallace retorts. He extends his hand. "Wallace Fennel, nice to meet you."

"Stamina and hustle," she repeats, thoughtfully. "Well, Wallace Fennel, nice to meet you too. I'm Candice Pauling."

- • -

Mon. 1/19/09 MLK Day: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA  
  
Logan and Veronica lay on the bed panting and recovering. Veronica gently extricates herself and lays next to him. Logan reaches for the nightstand and grabs the notebook and pen there for the purpose of writing down ideas in the middle of the night. He rolls onto his left side and begins writing.

"What are you writing?" Veronica can't help asking.

"Nothing," he says, turning a little more so she can't read what he's writing.

"Logan! What are you writing?" She tickles his side and he jumps, but keeps the notepad obscured. "Don't make me hurt you, lover," she says dramatically.

"Like you could...You are so nosy."

Veronica rolls out of the bed and runs over to Logan's side. She grabs the notebook after a tussle. She sits on the edge of the bed and reads aloud.

'1. In the shower, from behind, while soaping her breasts  
2. Against the wall, with her legs wrapped around me  
3. Doggy style  
4. In the backseat of the BMW  
5. In the backseat of the Saturn  
6. Missionary, missionary, missionary  
7. On the kitchen counter after I lick her  
8. With her legs flipped up and wrapped around my neck  
9. In the Hearst library on the third floor--the Congress of the Cow  
10. Tie her to the bed and make her come ten times'

"Oh my god, what is this?" she laughs.

"It's the top-ten list of the ways I'm going to fuck you when I get this cast off." He reaches around and grabs her breast.

She screams and giggles, turning to kiss him on the lips. "You know, you're still going to have a cane, and you're not going to be as limber as you used to be," she says mock-solemnly.

"Don't worry, I'm going to see a special physical therapist to help me with this. I'll show you limber," he says, kissing her neck. "Come on, let's try it on my side again."

She stands up to move to the other side of the bed, and the doorbell rings.

"Shit," Logan says.

"Are you expecting someone? Dick, perhaps?" Veronica suggests. After the last time that Dick walked in on them, with Veronica moaning uncontrollably on top of the kitchen counter, Dick swore that he would always ring the doorbell in the future.

"I don't know. Maybe."

Veronica grabs Logan's white fluffy bathrobe, monogrammed 'Neptune Grand' on the pocket, and wraps it around herself. "I still can't believe you stole a bathrobe."

"They got enough of my money; they can afford it," he snarks.

Veronica pads toward the door, trying futilely to smooth her just-fucked hair. She looks through the peephole, then excitedly flings open the door. "What the hell are you doing here?"

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Daddy/Daughter Time**  
An old friend visits and pisses off Logan;  
Keith reluctantly takes on a new assignment.  
Veronica: Kristin Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Cliff: Daran Norris.  
Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack. Vinnie Van Lowe:  
Ken Marino.  
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER TWO: "DADDY/DAUGHTER TIME"

Mon. 1/19/09 MLK Day: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA  
  
Veronica flings open the door, saying, "What the hell are you doing here?" She grabs Duncan Kane in a hug.

Duncan folds his arms around her and kisses her cheek. _God, what is that smell... she smells like Kendall used to, how can that be...oh my god...they were making love, she smells like LOGAN...look at her hair, he's been running his fingers through her hair...they were FUCKING, they were FUCKING..._Duncan feels as though he was sucker-punched. _This must be what Logan felt...whenever Veronica was over._

He clears his throat, pulling back from her. "Veronica, I've been trying to call you. You never pick up. Finally I called your dad. He said you were here for the long Martin Luther King Day weekend, studying." He stares at her.

Veronica blushes, and says, "We were just taking a little break." She walks into the living room and picks up her iPhone, scrolling through the missed calls list. "I don't answer calls without a caller ID. We still get a lot of reporters trying to get an interview." She spies her clothes scattered on the floor, and picks them up, saying, "We really weren't expecting company. I'll tell Logan you're here. He hasn't seen you since you...changed." Duncan has had numerous plastic surgeries and his appearance is completely altered. His hair is blond, and even his voice has changed due to a surgery on his voice box.

Veronica disappears into the bedroom, and Duncan hears murmurs, and a loud "Who?" from Logan. Five minutes later, Logan and Veronica emerge, having hastily dressed themselves. Veronica's hair has been pulled back into a messy ponytail, Duncan notes.

Logan stumps over on his crutches. "Duncan, is that you? I wouldn't have recognized you if I passed you on the street."

"In fact, you didn't. You saw me one time when you were in Veronica's parking lot, and you didn't look at me twice," Duncan comments. He hesitates, then crosses the short distance to Logan and grabs him in a bear hug. "I've missed you, man. It's been so hard."

"It hasn't been so easy for us here either," Logan replies, looking closely at Duncan to see if he can find anything recognizable in this blond stranger's appearance.

"I heard about Harmony Chase. How's the leg?" Duncan asks.

"I'm getting the cast off tomorrow. I can't wait. I'll still need a cane for awhile but I won't need as much help. It's probably going to be four more months of physical therapy before I'm one hundred percent again," Logan says. "Did you see the TV interviews? The media is never going to leave us alone."

"I know..." Duncan agrees. The three of them move into the living room and sit down.

Duncan continues, "The reason why I'm here...I'm going to surrender myself into custody in three weeks. Then there will be a hearing about the kidnapping two days later. We have a deal in place, I will plead guilty to a misdemeanor, endangering the welfare of a child, and serve five hundred hours of community service. My mother insisted that I not be charged with a felony, since she still has her heart set on me becoming a lawyer. The district attorney has also agreed that he will not charge me in my sister's murder, since my attorneys made it clear that there is sufficient reasonable doubt that I would not be convicted." He glances at Logan, the unspoken thought that _'your dad killed my sister and got away with it'_ passing between them.

"When I surrender myself, I will hand Lilly over to the child welfare authorities. Then there will be another hearing to determine Lilly's placement. Veronica, I know you're responsible for providing the tapes of the Mannings abusing their daughter Grace, and I thank you for that. If my mother and father could form a coherent sentence without spitting your name, they would thank you as well."

"They still blame me for helping you flee the country," Veronica says, nodding.

"Yes. My mother is...not very rational about all this," Duncan comments.

He continues, "When the plea deal was first negotiated, the Mannings agreed to relinquish their claim on Lilly. After all, I can prove conclusively that I am her father, and if I am cleared of felony kidnapping charges, their claim that I am an unfit parent will be hard to prove, especially since there is equally damaging evidence about their family."

Duncan sighs. "But now at the last minute Stewart has found a new attorney and they are disputing the evidence on the blackmail tapes. They are claiming that the tapes have been manufactured, and, since they were obtained without a warrant, are not admissible. This is juvenile court, so the standards of evidence are lower, but my attorneys are warning me that the Mannings may be successful in getting the evidence excluded. If it is excluded, the Mannings will bring up my seizure problem. My seizure problem alone isn't enough to deny my custody, but in conjunction with the kidnapping–it might be enough to cause me to lose custody. We have to find a way to force them to drop their custody suit, or else I'm going to have to reject the entire deal and go back overseas."

"I don't understand, Duncan. Why can't I just testify to what we saw at the Mannings house?" Veronica asks.

"Veronica, the statute of limitations for felony burglary is three years, so you would be in the clear. But unless you perjure yourself and say that I was not there, you would be exposing me to prosecution. There's a clock on the statute of limitations, and it doesn't run if you are not living in the state where the crime was committed. For me, the clock has only run for several months, so I can still be prosecuted for breaking into their house," Duncan explains.

"So I'll perjure myself and say that I broke into their house alone. It's their word against mine," Veronica says impulsively. "You can't stay on the run forever, Duncan."

Logan glances at her, wishing she wasn't offering to help so quickly.

"No, Veronica. It's an unacceptable risk. I might not win custody if I'm convicted of a felony. You yourself could be convicted of perjury; Manning will certainly contradict your story," Duncan says, shaking his head.

Veronica thinks, _I was just cleared of manslaughter charges in the shooting of Harmony Chase. Okay, that was a formality, but still...I need a nice safe profession, like race-car driver, or Alaskan crab fisherman._ "Let me speak to Cliff and see what he says. Maybe he can arrange some kind of a deal for me. But Duncan, you know I promised Meg...to keep Lilly away from her parents. I have to find a way to help you," Veronica muses.

Duncan adds, "Veronica, there's one more thing. We have to be careful how we proceed. No one can know that you helped me to flee the country. There's no statute of limitations for kidnapping."

"The only people who know for sure about the kidnapping are the three of us and my dad." _And Astrid and...Vinnie,_ she realizes, horrified.

At her expression, Logan turns to her and says, "What?"

"Vinnie Van Lowe knows. He helped us get across the Mexican border. Oh my god. That's why...that's why my dad's been helping his defense case in his racketeering trial. Vinnie must have threatened to tell what he knows about the kidnapping. I couldn't figure out why Dad was helping him, after Vinnie targeted me in the Wiedman murder investigation. Dad just said 'Everyone deserves a defense' and wouldn't discuss it," she explains.

- • -

Mon. 1/19/09 MLK Day: Lompoc State Penitentiary, Lompoc, CA

In Lompoc State Penitentiary, Keith Mars and Cliff McCormick wait in the attorneys' interview room to see Vinnie Van Lowe. When the guard opens the door, they are shocked to see Vinnie shuffle in, obviously in pain, and sporting a black eye. The guard escorts Vinnie to the table where Keith and Cliff are already seated and discreetly moves a distance away.

"Vinnie, what happened?" Keith asks.

"Liam's boys got to me last night. They heard I was going to be speaking to you today, and they wanted to warn me to keep my mouth shut," Vinnie explains morosely.

Cliff clears his throat. "We can request that you be moved to solitary confinement."

"I'm not sure it would help; Liam owns a couple of the guards," Vinnie says. "Let's just face it, I'm screwed. I'll just plead guilty and spend the rest of my life in prison, focusing on keeping my mouth shut. Do you think you could arrange for some conjugal visits?"

"Vinnie, I don't understand why you're refusing to take the deal the prosecution has offered. If you testify for the prosecution against Liam, they'll have to provide a new identity and relocation," Cliff asks.

Vinnie sighs. "You're my attorney. You can't be forced to repeat what I'm telling you, right?"

"Well, if you tell me something, I can't allow you to commit perjury when you testify, and if it involves a future criminal act, I'm required to report it..." Cliff reiterates, having gone over this with Vinnie numerous times.

"And Keith, he could be compelled to testify..." Vinnie says nervously.

Keith quickly says, "Vinnie, you and I know I won't divulge anything you tell me." He stares at Vinnie, thinking about what Vinnie knows about his daughter's misdeeds.

Vinnie slowly nods. "All right, I trust you, Keith." He fiddles with his hands, delaying his words. "When I was just a kid, about nineteen, before I went in the army, I held up a liquor store." Vinnie looks at Keith and Cliff to see how they are reacting; they motion that he should continue. "I was pointing my gun at the kid behind the cash register. He made a move like he was going for a gun. He scared the crap out of me, and I shot him without thinking. I didn't mean to hurt anybody, but the kid was dead. I panicked and called my high school buddy, Liam. He and a couple guys came right away. They hot-wired the kid's car, put his body in it and took it away, then cleaned out the liquor store. I don't know what they did with the body, but I imagine they stashed it somewhere in the desert, or buried it. I was in shock, and I gave Liam my gun. I didn't even think about it at the time, but I found out later he kept the gun, with my fingerprints on it. I joined the Army the next day. The police thought that the kid had taken off with all the cash and the premium liquor from the store."

Keith looks at Cliff, then says to Vinnie, "No statute of limitations on murder."

Cliff adds, "And manslaughter committed in the course of a felony is automatically charged as murder in the first degree."

Keith comments, "We see your problem. You're positive that Liam kept the gun, with DNA and fingerprints on it?"

"Yes, he showed it to me, when he convinced me to run for sheriff. Liam laughed and said, 'And Vinnie, don't forget I'm the only one that knows where the body was buried.'"

"And it's not just that," Vinnie continues. "Even if I could somehow get out from under a murder rap, I can't even consider witness protection. Liam has a contact in the FBI. He'll know my new identity before I do."

- • -

Mon. 1/19/09 MLK Day: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA  
  
Duncan and Veronica endlessly rehash the problem of the Mannings' custody suit. Logan observes their conversation with growing aggravation. Finally he comments, "I don't see a solution here. I really don't like Veronica getting involved in this."

Veronica says, "I'm already involved." She looks at Logan quizzically, "There's a right thing to do, and I'm doing it." She excuses herself to go to the bathroom.

"What is your problem, man?" Duncan says to Logan once they are alone. "We used to be friends. I let you live with me after your house was burned down."

"My problem? My problem is that you put Veronica is jeopardy by asking her to help you kidnap Lilly." Logan stares at Duncan. "And you played me. You needed me to witness Kendall coming out of your room and Veronica having a freak out. What was the plan? You had Veronica wait by the elevator, then she just happened to come up to the room at the same time as me?"

"Something like that," Duncan replies.

"Did she tell you what I said? I was joking; I said, 'Time to fake the donut.'" Logan looks at Duncan, who avoids his gaze. "She jumped a mile high, must have thought for a sec I knew what was going on. But you know Veronica. She kept her cool and had her scene with Kendall. And I did my part, I reported the whole thing to Dick, and he did his job, told the whole school. Geez, Duncan, you never even said goodbye to me," he says, only half sarcastically.

Logan pauses, then plunges ahead. "Why are you coming back now, Duncan?" He adds to himself, _why are you coming back now that things are good between me and Veronica?_ Aloud, he says, "Why didn't you just stay overseas? It seems like that would be the smartest move here."

"It's not easy being on the run, Logan. It's hard on Lilly. She has to lie all the time. More and more schools require fingerprinting, which obviously I can't allow. And as soon as Lilly and I would settle in somewhere, the Mannings' private detectives would start to catch up with us. The Mannings have backed off now, but I'm still on a U.S. watch list. There's always a danger the federal agents will find us, and it's expensive to keep moving all the time. If my mother hadn't relented and started sending me money, I don't know what I would have done. The amnesty deal is my opportunity to put all that behind me and have some semblance of a normal life," Duncan explains.

"I still don't understand why you didn't just get a lawyer and sue for custody when Meg died. You're the dad. You would have won custody," Logan insists.

"My mother said she wouldn't let me ruin my life like that."

_FLASHBACK: Celeste and Duncan are arguing in the old Kane house. Celeste says, "I was always terrified that Lilly was going to get pregnant. I never worried about you; I always thought you had more sense than that."_

_Duncan replies, "The condom broke, Mother. Accidents happen. Deal with it. I'm going to keep the baby."_

_Celeste turns and screams at him, "You can't let one mistake ruin your life, Duncan. We have plans for you: Harvard, law school, Congress. I won't allow it. I'll testify for the Mannings. I'll testify that you have violent seizures and hurt your sister without even knowing it. I'll say that the medication doesn't fully control your fits. I won't allow you to keep this baby."_

_Across the room, Jake sips at a drink, unhappy but resigned._

_Celeste continues, "If you sue for custody, we're going to cut off all your funds. No more trust fund to pay for your attorneys and your dirty diapers. You haven't even graduated from high school. How will you support your bastard child? You will do as I say, Duncan."_

_Duncan turns to his dad and yells, "And you're okay with this? You'd let your granddaughter live with those monsters?"_

_Jake says quietly, "I'm not okay with any part of this. I'm not okay with you being stupid enough to knock up your girlfriend. I'm not okay with you making sure we're featured in the tabloids again." His voice begins to rise in anger. "And I'm definitely not okay with you giving up your life because of one drunken night at prom."_

_Duncan flushes in anger and leaves, slamming the door behind him._

Duncan continues, "Veronica and I went to see a lawyer in Los Angeles. He said that as a seventeen year old there was a real danger I would lose custody at least temporarily if my mother testified for the Mannings. The fact that Lamb didn't arrest us the night we broke into the Mannings' house actually made it worse. The lawyer said it would support the Mannings' contention that there was no abuse, and we made it all up to try to get custody. The Mannings are churchgoers with a reputation for supporting charities and good works."

Veronica comes back into the room and says, "And they threatened Lizzie. I know it. She wouldn't even see us. She was afraid of what her parents would do to her if she testified for us. Duncan told me he was going to run with or without my help."

Logan thinks, _He did it before. It's what he does. He's a fucking coward._

"Astrid came to me and offered to help. She overheard my parents talking, and she was furious at them. Veronica realized we could use the fact that Astrid looks a little like her in our plan," Duncan adds.

Logan says aloud, "So what changed? Why are you back?"

Duncan explains, "When Aaron tried to throw suspicion on me for Lilly's murder, my father realized that it was too dangerous to say that I had violent fits. He told my mother he would support my custody petition. He set up a fund that funneled me money overseas and began speaking with attorneys about amnesty. That's actually one of the reasons my parents separated. Celeste finally relented just this past year."

"That's why your parents reconciled?"

"One big happy family," Duncan says sarcastically.

Veronica, Logan and Duncan continue to talk for hours, endlessly discussing the upcoming custody battle. Throughout the evening, Veronica keeps catching Logan staring at Duncan with a bleak look. As the hour becomes late, Veronica suggests that Duncan should crash in the guest room and go back to Neptune in the morning. There is an awkward moment as the three say goodnight, with all three remembering the different sleeping arrangements at the Neptune Grand three years earlier.

In the master bedroom, Veronica undresses and joins Logan in his bed, settling herself under the covers. He turns on his side, ignoring the discomfort from his cast. Leaning on one elbow, he reaches for Veronica. With the back of his fingers, he caresses her cheek, then runs his fingers through her hair, massaging her scalp lovingly. Her eyes half-closed, she turns her head and places a kiss against his wrist. He trails his hand across her neck and down between her breasts. Watching her reactions intently, he languishes caresses on her stomach, and slowly strokes the side of her breast, so gently that for once she doesn't feel ticklish. Logan lovingly palms her breasts, circling her pebbled nipples with his thumb, then returns to caressing her face, gently touching her lips as if to memorize them. He strokes down her torso, causing her to shiver. Veronica sucks in her breath in a quiet 'oh!'. Logan slowly slides his hand down below her waist. She opens her legs invitingly as he gently strokes the juncture of her thighs. He whispers to her, "Turn on your side."

She complies, sighing and pressing her ass against him, loving the feel of his arousal.

Logan begins to stroke her pussy. He whispers in her ear, "He's laying in the next room thinking about what I'm doing to you. He knows I'm making you come right now."

Veronica turns her head in shock. She gasps, as Logan lovingly probes her sensitive areas; she tries to keep silent, mindful of Duncan next door.

Continuing to caress her, Logan murmurs into her ear, "He's listening right now, the way I used to listen. Whenever I used Kendall to get me off, I was always thinking about you next door...thinking about how much I loved you and wanted you. I just wanted to be touching you the way I'm touching you right now. I hated that he was your first." He is still touching her, languidly, loving that he, and only he, knows exactly what she wants.

She stiffens, thinking _my first?_

He notes her reaction and whispers, "I mean, I hate it that he's the first guy you gave yourself to. I wanted it to be me. It should have been me." He begins to stroke her violently, making her shudder.

Veronica turns her head questioningly, seeking his eyes. She tries to talk, but she can only whimper, breathless from Logan's ministrations. "Logan..." she tries, but her words dissipate into incoherent moans.

"Veronica, I love you so much. I loved you since the first day I saw you. It should have been me," he repeats, his lips brushing her ear.

She is thrashing under his stroking hand, and reaches back to touch him.

He says, "No...don't...this is about you. This is about me making you come, and he can't do a goddamned thing about it. You are mine, Veronica." He leans to her mouth, turning her head to him with his insistent lips, and kisses her hungrily. He fills her mouth with his tongue as he fills her with his fingers. He pulls her to him desperately as she comes, hard, shaking uncontrollably. She is crying soundlessly, her tears smearing on Logan's face as he kisses her. She bucks against him one last time, and begins to calm down, trembling as the aftershocks of her orgasm dissipate. Finally, Logan breaks his kiss, pulling away and looking into her eyes.

She says quietly, "Logan?"

He caresses her face gently. "No, Veronica, we're not going to talk about this," he replies, with finality, rolling onto his back.

She turns over to cuddle against him and closes her eyes, wishing futilely for the oblivion of sleep as the tears run down her face.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Nimbus**  
Mac is contacted about a new case;  
Logan gets his cast off; there's bad news  
about someone from the past.  
Veronica: Kristin Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Hsiang Chu: Parry Shen.  
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER THREE: "NIMBUS"

Tues. 1/20/09: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA  
  
Veronica gives up on sleep at 6 am and decides to go for a run on the beach. The recent events with Harmony have reinforced her commitment to training. Whenever she stays with Logan and is unable to attend her Neptune jujitsu classes, she makes a point of running every day and working out with the lightest set of Logan's weights. He teases her about using the baby barbells but she just smiles, saying it's technique more than strength.

She runs that morning as if she's trying to pound the feelings out of herself. Winded, she walks up onto Logan's deck, where Logan is sitting sipping his coffee, staring at the ocean. "Any more of that coffee?" she asks, slightly out of breath.

He nods and she goes inside to get a cup.

She rejoins him on the deck. She caresses his arm and says, "Did Duncan leave?"

Logan just nods again.

"I'm glad," she replies. She sets down her cup and moves behind Logan. She puts her arms around him, and leans down to whisper in his ear, "I was listening too...It should have been you."

- • -

Tues. 1/20/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA  
  
Charleston Chu knocks on the door of Mac's and Veronica's dorm room. When Mac opens the door, she recognizes Dick Casablancas' Pi Sig fraternity brother. She frowns and says, "Uh, Charleston, right?"

"Yeah, that's what they call me. I'm looking for Veronica," he replies. "The Pi Sigs sent me over."

"She's not here."

"You're her friend Mac, right? The one who was going out with–"

"Don't say it. I'm trying to forget that I ever went out with _him_." Mac grimaces, just thinking about her ill-advised dalliance with Dick Casablancas.

"Umm, yeah, right. Well, he's still totally in love with you."

"Funny, I see him with a different girl every day," Mac says sarcastically.

"We all deal with the pain of rejection differently," Charleston muses.

Impatient, Mac blurts out, "What do you want?"

"Somebody screwed up all the computers at the Pi Sig house. Chip Diller thinks someone is trying to bring down the frat again, maybe Nish and her society of frigid bitches," Charleston explains.

"And you think Veronica's going to help you?" Mac laughs. "I think she's more likely to call up Nish and congratulate her."

"We're willing to pay the Pi Sig rate," Charleston replies.

At Mac's puzzled expression, Charleston explains, "Di–, I mean one of the frat brothers said Veronica was willing to help us before when we paid double." He pulls a wad of cash from his pocket. "This is a thousand dollars for a deposit."

Despite her reservations, Mac is tempted by the cash. "I don't know. Are you sure this isn't some scheme of _Dick's _to try to get me back?"

"No way."

"Keep the cash for now. I'll talk to Veronica and see what she says."

- • -

Tues. 1/20/09: UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA  
  
At the orthopedist later that day, Veronica sits in the waiting room trying to get some studying done. Even Logan couldn't maintain his dour mood when faced with the prospect of being liberated from his cast.

The orthopedist, Dr. Remick, examines the final set of x-rays, and confirms that he will remove Logan's cast that day. "So, Mr. Echolls, what's the first thing you're going to do when you get this off?"

Logan looks through the doorway at Veronica and smiles. The orthopedist catches his drift and laughs. "Nothing too strenuous at first, okay? I don't want to have to recast this."

After the cast is removed, the orthopedist writes a new prescription for physical therapy. Veronica accompanies Logan to the physical therapist, who replaces Logan's temporary cane with a permanent one perfectly fitted to his height. The therapist teaches Logan the proper way to use the cane, then continues by assigning exercises and stretches. He then reviews techniques to help Logan perform everyday tasks safely. Logan, grinning at Veronica, asks about any limitations on physical activities. The physical therapist is slightly dense and says that Logan should be careful until he has completely healed.

Logan goes to change into street clothes, ecstatic to be back in his customary jeans. When he has finished changing, he looks for Veronica in the waiting room. She is pacing back and forth, watching the waiting room television, which is showing a CNN news anchor speaking grimly.

"Veronica?" Logan asks.

"Logan...it's..." she tries to speak.

On the television, a photo replaces the talking head. It's a school photo of Hannah Griffith. The graphic under the photo reads 'Saturday Night Slasher Serial Killer Strikes Again'.

The physical therapist's exercise pamphlets drop to the floor forgotten. Logan stares at the television in shock. Finally, he stammers, "The Saturday Night Slasher? Doesn't he only target...?" He can't bear to say the word.

"Yes, he targets prostitutes." Veronica grabs Logan's arm and leads him to a chair, forcing him to sit down. "They're saying that she ran away from boarding school in the summer of 2006 and her family lost contact with her. Apparently, she ended up in Los Angeles on the streets...Logan, I'm sorry."

Logan looks at her, finally focusing his eyes. "She ran away?"

Just then, the CNN news anchor is shown interviewing Dr. Tom Griffith, who says, "She took up with a bad element in high school, and we sent her to boarding school..." His voice begins to shake, and he continues, "She ran away and we haven't heard from her since. We hired private detectives, but they hadn't been able to find any trace of her. Please, if anyone knows anything...the FBI would like to speak to anyone who's been in contact with her in the last two and a half years."

"Logan?" Veronica asks.

He looks at her, the pain evident in his eyes. "She called me a few summers ago, just after Beaver...after we got back together. I told her I was sorry, but you and I were...a couple again, and...Damn it, why didn't she tell me she ran away? She told me she hated the boarding school and...How could she become, she was...Veronica, she was so...inexperienced." His voice trembles, and he struggles for control. Finally he says, "I would have helped her."

"Logan, it's not your fault," Veronica says.

"I'm not so sure about that," he replies.

* * *


	4. Chapters 4 to 7

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?"

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy, Poniesforall, and Aly88. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

* * *

**Veronica is pushed into the hard plastic chair. "Sit, and pay attention." The woman grabs Veronica's hands and forces them to her thighs. "Don't move, and LISTEN!" the woman screams in Veronica's ear. Veronica flinches, and the woman shakes her shoulder roughly; Veronica mimics the girls around her and stares straight ahead and listens to the speeches.**

**After an hour of rambling, interminable lectures, Veronica begins to feel sleepy from the lack of sleep the night before. She sees that the girls around her are listening with rapt attention, but Veronica's head starts to nod, and her eyes close part way. Suddenly, her neighbor pokes her, and Veronica jumps, startled, accidentally striking the girl next to her. The speaker behind the podium points at her, screaming, "YOU!"**

**The girls around Veronica hastily stand up and drag her to the floor; Veronica kicks and fights against the sudden onslaught, but she is quickly pinned, with a girl sitting each leg and others holding her arms outstretched to the sides. Veronica yells and fights against the restraint, and the speaker comes to her and places one hand over her mouth and pinches Veronica's nostrils so she can't breathe. Veronica's vision clouds as she hears the speaker say harshly, "ACCEPT THAT WE LOVE YOU AND KNOW WHAT'S BEST FOR YOU!"  
**  
**Two months earlier...**

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Non Dolce Vita**  
An old enemy decides to exploit the bad  
news, and she gets help from a familiar  
face; Logan grieves.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Carrie: Amber Heard. Madison: Amanda Noret.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FOUR: "NON DOLCE VITA"

Tues. 1/20/09: San Francisco, CA

In a sleazy bar in San Francisco, Carrie Murray, the disgraced former _Dateline _reporter, notorious for her discredited exposé on Logan Echolls and Veronica Mars, serves one of her regulars his beer with a whiskey chaser before he can open his mouth to request it. "Thanks, sweetie," he says, slurring his words just the tiniest amount. Carrie leans on the counter, giving the man a good view of her cleavage as he pulls out his wallet. He rewards her with a ten dollar tip and a wink. She winks back and deposits the ten in her cleavage as her customer avidly follows its progress.

Carrie turns her back on the customer and rolls her eyes at her fellow bartender. He motions to the television screen in the corner and says, "That serial killer struck again. Some hooker in L.A." Carrie looks at the silent television and reads the closed captioning. _'Eighteen-year old Hannah Griffith grew up in Neptune, California...'_ Carrie sees the word 'Neptune' and grabs the television remote control, turning off muting.

The CNN news anchor is droning on about Hannah's early life as the screen shows a montage of family candid photos of ballet recitals, camping trips in the Sierra Nevada, and school portraits. Carrie listens intently. She calculates quickly, and realizes that Hannah Griffith was three years younger than Logan Echolls and Veronica Mars.

Carrie lifts the bar divider and makes her way to the back office where Frank, the bar's owner, is working on this week's payroll. She sits down in front of his desk and says, "Frank, I need a couple weeks off from work."

Frank frowns. While Carrie isn't the best bartender he's ever employed, her good looks have brought in more than a few new customers. She makes up for her inexperience behind the bar with a quick wit, and she has quickly caught on to the strategies Frank showed her for maximizing the bar's revenue which, not incidentally, have also increased her own tips. "A couple weeks? Carrie, you know I took a chance on you when I hired you. You had no experience and your resume was pretty questionable. Now you pay me back like this? I can't get along without you for two weeks."

Carrie stands up and walks behind Frank. She pulls his rolling chair backwards away from the desk and then moves in front of him. "Frank, I would really appreciate it if I could get a couple weeks off." She kneels in front of him and proceeds to convince him in the same time-honored way that she initially procured her position.

Frank is completely on board with Carrie's leave of absence before she has his zipper halfway down.

Tues. 1/20/09: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA

Veronica had intended to return to Neptune that evening so she could attend a seminar, but Logan begs her to stay, and she agrees. She's seen Logan at his worst before, but this despair is suffused with guilt and shame, and he is completely gutted. Veronica orders dinner for the two of them from Logan's favorite restaurant, but he merely picks at his food before pushing it away.

"I really want a drink," he says abruptly. He stands up and limps over to the couch.

Veronica doesn't know how to respond.

"I know it won't help. I just keep thinking that I want a drink."

Veronica joins him on the couch, sitting turned toward him with one hand on his shoulder. "Logan, tell me about her. You've never talked about her at all," she improvises, uncertain how to help him. She tries to soothe him by caressing his arm, but it appears to have no effect.

"You don't want to hear it," he says. He remembers what Veronica said at the time: _'Toying with a sweet little girl's heart just to screw with her dad?...I get it, San Quentin isn't quite as enticing as, say, college, but damn, you've really plumbed new depths, Logan.'_ He flushes in embarrassment and shame at the memory.

"If it helps, I do want to hear it," she responds, becoming more certain that this will help him.

He turns to look at her in surprise, then looks away, not wanting to meet her eyes. "Veronica, she was you...Hannah was you before Lilly was murdered and you got raped, before you turned into warrior Veronica," Logan says hesitantly. "She was innocence and romance and purity, and she was naïve enough to believe in me, when all I was doing was using her."

"Logan, did you care for her at all?"

"Yes, of course I cared for her," he responds.

"Then you didn't just use her."

"Veronica, it was the most despicable thing I've ever done! Worse than bum fights, worse than setting fires. To set out to corrupt a human being in order to compel her father to withdraw his testimony..." he cries out bitterly.

"No, Logan! You didn't set out to..." she lies quickly, afraid of his anger and bile.

"I absolutely did, and you knew it at the time," he contradicts. "I was desperate. I was certain that I would go to prison if her father testified."

"So isn't he the true villain here, the man who perjured himself? And then sent his daughter away?" Veronica asks.

"He wouldn't have had to if I had kept my word to him. I promised him I would leave Hannah alone if he withdrew his testimony. But she wanted..." His voice trails off.

"Logan, she cared about you. She knew what you had intended but still saw someone worth loving. Logan, she saw what I see. You were in a fight for your life."

"No, Veronica. I was willing to sacrifice her for my life, my freedom. I am my father's son after all."

Veronica stares at him, aghast. She moves closer and folds him into her arms, murmuring, "Logan, you're not your father."

"Don't run out on me this time," he says desperately. "I can't do it without you."

_This time?_ Veronica realizes he's trembling.

"Please don't abandon me again when I need you the most," he repeats, almost begging.

"I'm not leaving," she replies, rocking him in her arms. But she can't help thinking, _Oh god, oh god,_ as she remembers the violent carnage that Logan left in his wake after being accused of Felix's murder.

Tues. 1/20/09: Interstate Highway #5, near Bakersfield, CA

On the way to Neptune, Carrie Murray has an idea. She pulls to the side of the road and looks up a name in her notebook. She dials the phone number. "Madison Sinclair, please?" After a brief conversation, she decides to head for USC instead to meet with Madison the next morning.

Late Tues. 1/20/09-Wed 1/21/09: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA

For the first time since they reunited, Logan and Veronica spend the night together without making love. Veronica holds him in her arms, worrying, trying to come up with a strategy to help him. Just the day before, Logan's grand obsession had been his plans for steamy sexcapades after getting his cast removed. The past several months, even with the fallout from the accident and the shooting, have been close to idyllic; they have rediscovered each other, with the time they spent apart during their sophomore year giving them the space to forgive and, more importantly, to miss each other. She remembers her complaints that Logan was indifferent and unmotivated freshman year; this new Logan who has finally found something to be passionate about is vibrant and compelling. And yet, from the moment that this new tragedy surfaces, the old obsessive, self-hating Logan emerges, wallowing and self-destructive. She finally falls asleep in exhaustion.

She wakes some time later on her side with Logan pressed up against her back. He whispers, "Veronica?" She leans back against him sleepily, and he murmurs "Make love to me?" She hears him, and knows he means, _'Love me...do you love me? Please...love me.'_ He gently pushes her top leg forward, spreading her. He nudges his cock between her legs, sliding smoothly, stimulating and exciting her, even in her drowsiness, _god feelssogood_. She reaches down and strokes him as he presses into her more urgently, and he thrusts a little harder into her hand, exhaling a huff of pleasure into her ear. He insinuates his hand across her arm and runs the back of his fingernails gently across the sides of her breast. She matches his breaths, panting and suddenly gasping as he flicks his fingertip against her impatient nipple and cups her breast possessively. "Love you," he breathes into her ear, "Love you so much, Veronica. Want to make love to you."

He subtly changes the angle of his thrusts, seeking, striving, diffusing her moist arousal over himself. Logan urges her to roll over, and she shifts onto her hands and knees. He sighs, "Fuck, Veronica... have I told you today that you have a legendary ass?" He bends down to her and begins to kiss her ass, reaching around and between her legs to stroke her as he slowly drags his tongue along the cleft between her rounded cheeks. She sways helplessly under his touches, shivering as he fitfully hits her engorged nub.

He maneuvers himself so that he covers her back, rubbing his pelvis against hers as she moans and pushes back into him. He momentarily seems to stumble a little, and she suddenly stiffens and says, "Logan, your knee, be careful," but he merely grabs her hair, turning her head to him, and kisses her, thrusting his tongue into her mouth deeply as his cock persistently assails her. She reaches down and guides him to her entrance, angling her pussy for him, and he pushes in swiftly as he feels himself connect. She moans aloud at the ferocity of his movement and pushes back against him, urging him on, "Oh please, Logan, god, fuck me..." Logan places a palm on her back; she looks back at him and sees the arousal and the intensity and _need need need_ in his eyes. He gently encourages her downward, and she acquiesces, leaning on her elbows, her ass in the air, spreading herself more for him, as he drives mercilessly, thoroughly. He pulls out and pauses, and she groans, "No, please don't stop," and he suddenly drives the length of himself into her; she gasps "Logan" and arches into him with the pain and oh-my-god-the-pleasure-of-it: _him, inside me_. She leans onto one elbow and reaches down to touch herself; he growls, "Yeah, come on, Veronica" and she shudders. "Come on, baby, yeah, come for me, fuck! Veronica," he moans, driving relentlessly into her as she bucks and trembles, stroking herself frantically.

She jolts awake suddenly to the sound of the alarm and sees that it's five a.m. Logan has finally fallen asleep beside her. She quickly turns off the alarm before it can wake him and dresses quietly, hoping he can get some much needed sleep. Veronica spends a moment watching him sleep, thinking about who needs who in this relationship. Before she leaves, she writes him a note.

_Dear Logan,_

_I have to go to class today. Please call me when you get up. I am only a phone call away if you need to talk. I love you._

_Veronica  
_  
She thinks a minute, then adds,

_You're the best thing in my life.__  
_

Wed. 1/21/09: near USC, Los Angeles, CA

Madison Sinclair opens the door to her well-appointed off-campus apartment. "Come in," she almost purrs to the waiting reporter.

Carrie Murray enters the apartment, glancing around at the luxurious trappings. She reflects that Logan Echolls is not the only spoiled Neptune brat now living in Los Angeles. She sits down on the comfortable white sofa that Madison indicates and gets out her digital recorder and notepad.

"So you're doing an article on Hannah Griffith?" Madison asks. "I loved your report on Logan and Veronica, by the way. I think you're the only reporter that got it right. It's ridiculous that she got away with murder. Veronica always was a lying tramp, and Logan couldn't help but fall under her spell."

"Yes, I'm working on an article about Hannah. I was wondering if she was friends with Logan or Veronica," Carrie explains. "There doesn't seem to be much that happens in Neptune that those two aren't involved in."

"Well..." Madison stalls. She looks at Carrie, calculating.

"I'd be prepared to make you the focus of my story if you know something. As told by...with a large photo. And of course, I can offer you a large payment." Carrie crosses her fingers, knowing that she has no money to offer Madison until she sells the story.

"I wouldn't want to..._profit_...from Hannah's terrible tragedy," Madison muses, thinking that the money is completely beside the point. "But, the photo...I am trying to break into newscasting myself. This could be helpful."

"Absolutely. Do we have a deal?" Carrie extends her hand, and Madison shakes it, nodding.

"Well...for some reason, Logan took an interest in Hannah Griffith his senior year. Everyone knew that Veronica had dumped him for her old boyfriend Duncan at the beginning of the year," Madison begins.

Carrie nods, urging her on.

"And then–oh it was so grossthe gossip was that Logan was screwing his best friend's stepmother."

"Really?" Carrie says, taking notes.

"Logan was out of control. He was living in the Neptune Grand Hotel, no parental supervision you know. He was accused in the murder of a local gang member and was wearing an ankle monitor at the time. Of course, he was still allowed to go to school functions, and that's where he met Hannah. She was three years behind us, really too thin and not very pretty at all if you ask me, but for some reason Logan was smitten. He tried to keep the relationship quiet, but I saw them making out by the soda machine in the lunch area."

"Oh, these details are wonderful," Carrie comments. "It really makes the story sing. You'll see when you're a newscaster yourself," she adds, buttering up her source.

Madison smiles, then continues, "I heard through the grapevine that Hannah told her friends that her parents tried to split them up. Of course, everyone always let me know what was going on, because they knew that Logan and I had been friends forever, and I had been dating his best friend Dick."

"Really? You used to date Richard Casablancas, Jr.? The one who was driving in the accident last fall?" Carrie scribbles a note.

"One and the same. I can tell you stories about Dick..." Madison comments. Realizing from Carrie's lack of reaction that she is not very interested in Dick, Madison returns to telling the story of Logan and Hannah, leaning conspiratorially toward Carrie. "I heard that Hannah's father stormed into Logan's suite at the Neptune Grand and found Logan in the process of deflowering his precious daughter. Dr. Griffith shipped Hannah off to boarding school the very next day, and no one ever heard from her again."

"No one? Not even her friends?" Carrie asks.

Madison shakes her head no. "The word was that it was a very strict school. To Logan's credit, he did seem to be upset about it, at least for a few days. Then he started pursuing Veronica again."

"Hmm. So Hannah was just...a dalliance for him," Carrie comments.

"He can be very callous," Madison replies, thinking about Logan not returning her phone calls after their tryst in Aspen.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**What Tangled Webs We Weave**  
The complications of Vinnie's defense and  
Duncan's custody battle; the FBI pursues  
leads on Hannah's murder.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Cliff: Daran Norris.  
Agent Morris: Lucy Lawless. Agent Carney:  
Jason Isaacs.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FIVE: "WHAT TANGLED WEBS WE WEAVE"

Wed. 1/21/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

"Knock, knock?" Cliff calls out as he enters Mars Investigations.

"In here," Keith answers from his inner office.

Cliff enters Keith's office and takes a seat facing Keith. "Have you had any brilliant ideas regarding Vinnie's defense?" Cliff asks.

"The only choice is for him to turn state's evidence, and he can't do that if Liam still has the evidence from the liquor store murder. I've been looking up the old newspaper reports from the robbery. It was well before my time here at the Sheriff's department. The kid's name was Matt Dannon. It seems that no one doubted that the kid whom Vinnie killed ran off with the money; he was a kid who'd been in trouble with the law before."

"You know, Keith, if you're thinking about tampering with the evidence from that crime, I can't hear it." Cliff puts his fingers in his ears and sings 'la, la, la, la'.

Keith waves his hand in front of Cliff's face, and when Cliff is listening again, continues, "Cliff, if you could concentrate on getting Vinnie a deal, I'll take care of the rest of it. Rest assured, I would never tamper with evidence in an ongoing investigation."

Cliff, noting that Keith is splitting hairs, says, "Ongoing investigation, my ass. What about the witness protection angle?"

"Vinnie said that he doesn't trust the FBI to make him disappear, but let's let them think that he's going to take advantage of their offer. I'll work on setting up a new identity for him somewhere overseas. Cliff, if Liam had evidence, where do you think he would keep it?"

"Unh, unh, unh," Cliff says, waving his finger 'no, no' in Keith's face. "I'm not telling you that Liam would probably have one of his many relatives hold evidence like that. Oops. I would never tell you that."

Veronica enters the office, calling, "Dad?"

"In here, Veronica." Keith stands up to meet his daughter halfway. He is shocked by her expression. "Honey, what's wrong?"

She hugs him and he holds her tight. "Dad, didn't you hear about the serial killer?"

"The Neptune girl who was killed? Veronica, was she a friend of yours? You never mentioned her to me."

"She was a few years behind me in school. But Dad...Logan dated her for a while. Her dad was the false witness in Felix' murder case, and Logan pursued her to get her dad to withdraw his testimony. When Logan didn't break it off after Dr. Griffith recanted, her parents sent her away to boarding school to break them up. Logan's completely devastated; he feels like her murder is his fault."

"Oh honey," Keith says.

Cliff comments, "So that's why Dr. Griffith recanted? I was certain Logan was going to go away on that charge."

Veronica wipes some tears from her eye, and sits down. "There's no way the tabloids will miss this. Someone will dig this up, and it will start all over again, just when the publicity over Harmony was starting to die down."

"Veronica, it'll be okay" Keith starts to reassure her.

"That's not all," Veronica interrupts. "Duncan's back. The Kanes' attorneys finally reached an agreement with the district attorney on the kidnapping and murder charges."

Cliff and Keith exchange a glance.

"He's going to plead guilty to misdemeanor child endangerment and be sentenced to community service. But he still has to win custody of his daughter. The Mannings have found an expert witness who will testify that Lamb's blackmail tapes were manufactured. Duncan has to provide evidence that the Mannings abused their daughter Grace."

"Veronica, you can't be thinking of testifying. They'll charge Duncan with felony breaking and entering, and you could be charged with aiding and abetting in the kidnapping," Cliff comments quickly. "I've heard about the plea arrangements down at the court house. The Mannings are gearing up for a big fight over custody, and they're not going to take this lying down."

"I know. Cliff, can you help with this? There's got to be a way to help Duncan. Can we get immunity from prosecution for testifying?"

"No," he shakes his head, "There's no benefit to the prosecutor's office. They won't be offering any kind of deal like that."

"What else can we do? We can't let the Mannings have custody of little Lilly," Veronica cries.

"Maybe Duncan shouldn't come back," Keith says, thinking, _This is exactly the wrong time for this, with Vinnie threatening to tell about Veronica's part in the kidnapping._

Veronica looks at her dad in shock. "You can't mean that. Duncan's been on the run for three years."

Keith spreads his hands and shrugs. "Veronica, it might have been the right decision at the time for Duncan to run with baby Lilly, but his actions have had far-reaching consequences, for himself and for you. I'm not going to let you do anything that will jeopardize your future. I'm hoping you learned something from that experience. I'm already concerned that the Harmony Chase shooting will have an impact on your future with the FBI, and I don't think you want to have another felony charge on your record. The FBI has already questioned you regarding the kidnapping, and you were lucky to escape charges at the time, and even more lucky that they overlooked it when you applied for your internships."

Veronica is silent, thinking about living with the consequences of her actions. Then she finally replies, "I'm not giving up. There's got to be something I can do to help Duncan."

Wed. 1/21/09: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA

Logan hears the doorbell and a incessant pounding on his front door through the haze of his exhausted sleep. He rolls over and puts the pillow over his head, but the pounding continues. "Echolls? Open up! FBI. We need to speak to you. Logan Echolls!!" The doorbell rings again. The words 'FBI' penetrate his semiconsciousness, and he reluctantly rolls out of bed, grabbing his bathrobe. He shrugs into the bathrobe and takes his cane from next to the bed.

He walks to the door, leaning on his cane. The pounding continues, and Logan realizes that he's developing a splitting headache that's sure to get worse when he faces what's behind the door. Logan disengages the alarm system and opens the door, wincing against the bright light of the Los Angeles late morning sun.

"Late night, Mr. Echolls?" a blonde woman asks. "I'm Agent Morris, Federal Bureau of Investigation." She flips open an ID case so that Logan can see her identification. "This is my partner, Agent Carney. We'd like to speak with you about the murder of Hannah Griffith. May we come in?"

Logan recognizes Agent Morris as one of the two agents who searched the Neptune Grand Suite after the Faith Manning kidnapping and is momentarily panicked that the agents somehow know Duncan was there two days before. He takes a breath to steady himself, looking at Morris' and Carney's ID's briefly, then steps aside to allow them to enter the beach house. He follows them in to the living room and proceeds to the adjoining kitchen area as they settle in on his couch. "D'you mind if I make some coffee?"

"Do you always sleep until eleven in the morning?" Agent Carney asks.

"Only when I can't sleep until noon," Logan quips. He grinds coffee beans and adds water to the coffee maker. "I had some bad news yesterday and had some trouble getting to sleep," he adds, more seriously.

Agent Morris clears her throat. Consulting her notes, she begins to speak. "Mr. Echolls, we've been informed by Tom Griffith that you had a relationship with his daughter Hannah three years ago. He also said that you had promised to break off the relationship, but continued to see his daughter against his wishes; he stated that that was the primary reason his daughter was sent to boarding school."

"Well, I guess that's essentially correct. I tried to break it off with her, but she still wanted to see me. She was persistent, and I did care for her; so, yes, I did continue to see her against her father's wishes. Her father, by the way, is a lying cokehead, in case you didn't know." Logan gets out three coffee cups as the coffee brews.

"So you admit that you had a relationship with her? A sexual relationship?" Carney probes.

"Is that illegal now? What was it Hoover said? 'I regret to say that we of the FBI are powerless to act in cases of oral-genital intimacy, unless it has in some way obstructed interstate commerce.' I'm not seeing any interstate commerce issues at play here." Logan's sarcastic words are belied by the slight tremor in his voice.

"The FBI Behavioral Science Unit is involved as a matter of course in serial crimes," Morris says. "Let's get this out of the way. Mr. Echolls, where were you on Saturday night, January 17th?"

Logan breathes out a sigh. He brings the three coffee cups to the living room, placing them on the table in front of the couch, then returns to the kitchen for the coffeepot and a container of cream, holding them awkwardly with one hand as he leans on his cane. "I was with my girlfriend, Veronica Mars, the entire weekend." Morris looks at Carney with an 'I told you so' expression. Logan sits down, pouring himself a cup of coffee and adding cream. He motions to the agents that they should do the same, and continues speaking. "Veronica came up for the long Martin Luther King Day weekend to study. Both of us are behind in our school work due to the events of last semester. I had to write a sample screenplay treatment, and she was working on her final statistics project from last fall. On Saturday we went to hear some music. Several of my friends saw us there. In addition, our picture was taken by one of the paparazzi. I'm sure if you contact the good people at E! Online, they'd be happy to lend you a copy."

Logan sips at his coffee, then adds, "And by the way, until January 20th, I had a cast covering my entire right leg, and I could only walk with crutches. So, unless I'm mistaken about the modus operandi, I'm not sure how I could have kidnapped Hannah and slashed her throat while using crutches." As he makes this last remark, his voice strengthens, knowing that it clinches his innocence. "I'm not really sure why the FBI would be looking at a boyfriend from three years ago in this case. I don't think I have much confidence in your ability to find this serial killer."

Carney looks at Logan angrily. "We follow every lead in every case. These questions have to be answered. And after all, this is the second girlfriend of yours that was murdered"

Morris interrupts as Logan stares balefully at Carney. "Mr. Echolls, we know that your relationship with Hannah was some time ago. Have you had any contact with her since then? Were you aware that she had run away from school?"

"I heard from Hannah once, in the summer of 2006. She asked if I still felt the same way about her. I had recently got back together with my girlfriend Veronica, and I told Hannah that of course I cared about her, but Veronica was the woman I intended to spend my life with." Logan's voice drops, as he talks about spending his life with Veronica. "Hannah was upset, but she said she understood."

"How did she make contact?" Carney asks.

"She called my cell phone."

"Do you remember the date?" Morris presses.

Logan thinks a minute. "I think it was in July. I remember Veronica and I were at the beach when she called."

"We'll check your cell phone logs for that month. It sounds like she called you not long after she ran away," Morris muses.

"Why was she still in boarding school in the summer?" Logan asks. "Shouldn't she have been on summer break?"

"Apparently, she was a recalcitrant participant in the school's therapy programs, and the school recommended that she remain at the school over the summer for more intensive work," Carney explains.

"Recalcitrant? I'll bet. What a crock. Hannah was a sweet girl. She didn't have any emotional problems, never drank or took drugs, never was in trouble any day of her life," Logan insists.

"Perhaps you never really knew her. Her records at the school indicate she was in trouble almost constantly from the day she got there," Morris says, consulting her notes. "She was diagnosed with a borderline personality disorder, with a tendency to sexual addiction. She was engaging in 'cutting' and other self-destructive behaviors."

"That's absolutely impossible," Logan says vehemently. He looks at the agents, hesitating, then plunges ahead. "Hannah and I...we made out, a lot...I saw her entire body. She definitely was not a cutter."

"Perhaps she was depressed that her father broke you two up," Morris suggests.

"I don't believe it."

"She did become a prostitute, Mr. Echolls. I think it's fair to say that you don't really have any idea what Hannah became after she left Neptune," Carney states. "We'd like to get your statement in writing. We're going to take a trip down to the LAPD. Of course, we'll be looking at your phone records to see if we can determine where she was calling from when she contacted you."

"I don't understand how all this is relevant to the serial murder investigation anyway," Logan protests.

"The profilers working on the case always want to know every fact available about the victims," Morris says. "You never know what piece of information might break the case. Get dressed, Mr. Echolls."

"I need to call my attorney first. I'd like him to meet us at the police station."

"Your choice, Mr. Echolls. You're not under arrest," Carney says.

"You'll excuse me if I don't want to take a chance in that regard," Logan comments bitterly.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Tabloid Reality**  
Veronica back at Hearst; Carrie aims  
for the money shot; Mac checks out the  
Pi Sig's problem.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Wallace: Percy  
Daggs III. Carrie: Amber Heard. Mac:  
Tina Majorino. Dick: Ryan Hansen.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SIX: "TABLOID REALITY"

Wed. 1/21/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

In the Neptune food court, Veronica checks her messages, frowning at Mac's text explaining about the possible case for the Pi Sig fraternity, then chuckling when she reads 'offered to pay Pi Sig rate'. She texts back, 'ask for triple'. She surfs to a news web site on her laptop in order to catch up on the latest online newspaper reports on Hannah Griffith's murder while eating her lunch.

'The body of Hannah Griffith, 18, was discovered late Sunday night in an alley on Olive Street in downtown Los Angeles. The area is known to police to be a popular spot for prostitutes soliciting clients. Ms. Griffith's body was concealed behind a dumpster, but police stated that, as in all of the other murders attributed to the Saturday Night Slasher, the murder is believed to have been committed elsewhere, and the body was placed in this location afterwards. No weapon was found at the scene of the crime.

'The Los Angeles County Coroner's office has stated that the cause of death was a knife wound to the neck. "It appears that the victim's wounds are similar to the wounds of the previous victims of the so-called Saturday Night Slasher," said Scott Carson, a spokesman for the coroner's office. "Preliminary toxicology reports indicate that a large quantity of heroin was ingested not long before the victim's death."

'A spokesman for the FBI Behavioral Science Unit also confirms that certain elements of the crime are similar to those of the previous victims of the Saturday Night Slasher.

'The Los Angeles Police Department reports that Ms. Griffith did not have a police record, and they have not been able to locate the victim's place of residence. They are asking anyone with knowledge of Hannah Griffith's recent whereabouts and activities to call 1-800-555-TIPS.

'Hannah Griffith resided in Neptune, California with her parents, Dr. Thomas Griffith, and Ms. Stephanie Denenberg, until three years ago, when her parents arranged for her transfer to the Briar Hill Academy in Manchester, Vermont. Hannah Griffith left the school against her parents' wishes in June of 2006. Ms. Griffith's whereabouts from 2006 to present are not known. Anyone with any information is asked to call the hotline number listed above. A memorial service for Ms. Griffith will be held in Neptune on Saturday, January 24 at 2:00pm.'

Veronica dials Logan's cell, and is surprised to have the call go directly to voicemail. She smiles at the chipper tone of his outgoing greeting, but then frowns, realizing that he hasn't changed it from two days ago when his mood was considerably brighter and more hopeful._ 'Hello, you've reached Logan Echolls with today's inspirational message. "What matters the false directions in life if a few fervent and luminous hours give meaning to a lifetime. Emile Zola." Leave a message after the beep.'_

"Hey Logan, just called to say I'm thinking of you and wondering how you're doing. Call me later. Love you." She terminates the call, refusing to think about the irony of Logan referring to the 'false directions in life'.

Wallace joins her at the table. He sees the online newspaper article about Hannah Griffith and says, "You heard?"

She nods.

Wallace exclaims, "I can't believe another one of Logan's girlfriends was murdered...as if he didn't have enough issues."

"There's going to be another shitstorm when that comes out," she comments.

"Maybe it won't be so bad," Wallace says hopefully.

"Not a chance in hell...what's going on with you? How was the honor society dinner?" she replies, trying to change the topic.

"Funny you should ask. I was hoping you could do me a favor."

"Wallace..." she says warningly.

"We're still BFF, last I checked, and I need you to do your girly-girl detective thang." Wallace leans in and hands her a slip of paper. "You're going into the office today right? Can you check out this woman for me? I met her at the dinner, she's...well, I need an in with her, and I don't want to be the one looking her up on PryingEyez."

"Oh my god, are you in wuv?? That's so sweet. And you want me to check her out for you so you don't feel like a perv." Veronica says teasingly.

"Don't mock the love, Vee. I'm just afraid she's a little out of my league."

"No such thing, Fennel. All right, let me see what I can come up with."

Wed. 1/21/09: Venice Beach / Los Angeles, CA

After leaving Madison's apartment, Carrie Murphy drives to Logan's Venice beach house. She hasn't made up her mind whether she intends merely to spy on him or if she's going to ring his doorbell and try to get him to react to her planned story. She sits in her car just watching for a few moments. The front door opens, and Logan, escorted by a man and a woman in dark clothes, leaves the house. When the woman turns slightly, Carrie reads the letters FBI on the back of her jacket. She gasps and grabs her camera. She adjusts the zoom and rapidly takes a series of shots of Logan walking with the agents and then being helped into the backseat of the agents' car.

Carrie follows the car as it proceeds to downtown Los Angeles. At a stoplight, she rummages in her camera bag and locates a telephoto zoom lens, realizing it might be necessary for the shot she's hoping to get. Her suspicions are confirmed when the agents' car pulls into the LAPD parking lot. She quickly parks at a meter within one hundred feet of the main entrance. Carrie can't believe her luck when she manages to get a clear telephoto shot of Logan Echolls being escorted into LAPD headquarters by two FBI agents.

Wed. 1/21/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Mac looks through the peephole of her dorm room door at Dick Casablancas and sighs. Through the door, she calls out, "Dick, I told you. I don't know what I was thinking. We have nothing in common except our friendship with Logan and Veronica, and that's just not enough to have a relationship." _Or even a friendship_, she adds in her head.

"I know, I fucked up bad. I got drunk and kissed that girl at the Delta Tau party," he replies morosely. "Wish you'd give me another chance. You know we had fun together. C'mon, Mac, let me in."

Ignoring his pleas, she says, "What do you want? I'm trying to study here; you know, that's why we're here at college."

"Speak for yourself; I'm here for the parties," he can't help joking.

"Dick, please. Find some sorority girl to harass, willya?"

"Okay, but a sorority girl is not going to be able to help the frat with our computers. Did you talk to Veronica? Please, Mac, will you help us? The brothers told me they would kick me out of the frat if I couldn't get you guys to look into this."

"Will you promise to leave me alone if we help you with this?" she says hopefully.

"I promise."

She opens the door. Dick wisely refrains from speaking and hands her a laptop computer. She sighs and takes it from him. Mac puts it on the desk and opens it; when she recognizes the web site, she exclaims scornfully, "A porn site? I'm not going to help you guys download porn. Besides, what do you even need porn for? I heard you were back to sleeping your way through the freshman class and posting your ratings on Facebook."

"It's research." At her withering expression, he continues, "Hey, even the reverse cowgirl was new at one point. People are inventive." Dick points at the screen. "Check out the chat program."

On-screen, a window shows the last few lines of an online instant-messaging conversation.

ANYA35: is anyone there  
DICKSTER: hey baby  
ANYA35: are you looking for fun  
DICKSTER: always  
ANYA35: come to my website babesluvchat•com i want to meet you  
DICKSTER: tell me more  
ANYA35: live girls chatting online  
ANYA35: r u still there dickster  
ANYA35: i want to meet you

Mac regards Dick quizzically. "So?"

"That's not the first time it's happened. And ever since the first time, my computer's been acting crazy."

Mac looks at the screen and says, "Is babesluvchat a site you've seen before?"

"No, I've never heard of it. But when I asked Chip Diller about it, he said that he's gotten these chat invites all over the place recently. Sometimes they direct you to a site with downloads, and sometimes it's one of these chat sites."

Suddenly worried, Mac types in the URL for the website YourCheatingHeart•com that she and Veronica had created in the fall for cyberdaters to check out their potential matches. She is shocked to see a chat screen pop up on their site as well despite the security icon that is displayed in the corner.

LARA77: hi there

As Dick, Mac types:

DICKSTER: hi yourself  
LARA77: are you looking for love  
DICKSTER: of course what do you look like  
LARA77: i'm blonde eighteen years old

Dick looks at Mac and says, "Maybe I should be doing the typing."

Mac shrugs, and says, "Go ahead. Just let me read it before you hit enter."

Dick takes Mac's seat at the desk and types:

DICKSTER: how big are your boobs

Mac sighs, but shrugs "ok" when Dick looks to her for permission to hit enter.

LARA77: substantial  
DICKSTER: can i see them  
LARA77: come to my website superhotgirls•com

Mac says, "Wait!" as Dick starts typing. He holds the delete key down, erasing what he was typing, and waits for Mac to instruct him. Finally she says, "Type, 'what does it cost? I don't have a credit card'." Dick looks at her, then types her request.

DICKSTER: what does it cost i don't have a credit card

The pop-up box disappears. Dick says, "What happened?"

"I think it's a scam. Let me see," Mac replies, motioning Dick to let her sit at the keyboard. She types furiously, and Dick watches as she scrolls through command line codes. At one point, she mutters, "What the hell?", and suddenly the screen fills with a weird graphic typed over and over.

((. . .))  
.x x.  
(' ')

"What the hell is that?" Dick asks.

"It's the logo for the Cult of the Dead Cow. They're a bunch of hackers who find the weaknesses in computer programs and then publish them on the internet. They wrote a program called 'Back Orifice' that allows any user to operate another user's computer as long as Microsoft Windows is installed on the target computer."

"So they're evil computer hackers?" Dick says, slightly confused.

"Not really. They're more like activists. They have an agenda, but it's usually not for their own financial gain. That's what doesn't make sense," Mac replies. "Dick, did you go to one of these web sites and click on anything?"

"Of course!" he says. "Free porn, how could I resist?"

"I'm pretty sure you inadvertently downloaded a malware program." At Dick's continued look of confusion, she explains. "When you clicked on something, it downloaded files into your computer, probably to try to get any financial information you might have stored on your hard drive. When I tried to get information on this messaging program, it triggered a command in the program that overwrote your hard drive."

"Shit, is my laptop wiped out?" Dick says, panicking.

"You still have the automatic backup program installed that I put on there, right?" Mac asks. Dick nods, and she takes pity on him, "All right, I'll help you. I should be able to restore everything. And you took all your financial information off like I told you?" He nods again. "Okay, I want to take this hard drive to an expert. I need to find out what's going on on our site; the way that I programmed it, there shouldn't be any way for this chat program to initiate itself. You'll have to buy a new hard drive for your laptop." At his expression, she continues, "Don't worry, I'll write down the specs for you. I'll help you get everything restored. Dick, I'm pretty sure this isn't directed at the frat house."

"So then why did everyone start having problems?"

"Because you're all downloading porn, apparently. I can check all the computers at the house and either try to get rid of the malware or help you guys set up new hard drives with better virus protection. For a rather substantial fee, of course."

"What about this Cult of the Dead Cow? Are you sure it's not Nish and her psycho Amazons?" Dick asks.

"I doubt that Nish would use such a convoluted scheme to bring you guys down. Her style is newspaper exposés and Take-Back-the-Night rallies. But I want to find out more about the Cult of the Dead Cow. I'm sure my computer expert friend can help. In the meantime, I'll have to shut down the YourCheatingHeart website until I can figure out how to upgrade our security," Mac muses. She pulls out her cell phone and sends Veronica a text message explaining what she's doing and why. Then she sends another text to Max, asking to meet with him, '911'.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Peccavi, Mea Culpa**  
Logan and his shrink; Keith plants  
some bugs; Veronica worries.  
Logan: Jason Dohring. Dr. Friedman:  
Lorraine Bracco. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SEVEN: "PECCAVI, MEA CULPA"

Wed. 1/21/09: Los Angeles, CA

Logan sits in the waiting room at his psychiatrist's office, his head down, staring at his feet. He fumbles nervously with his cane, occasionally checking the time on his cellphone, which shows '5 missed calls' on the display. When the door opens, he looks up anxiously.

"Logan? Did we have an appointment?" Dr. Friedman says. She notes the dark circles under his eyes and walks over to him. "Are you all right?"

"Not really. Your service said you had an available time now; is it okay to talk?" he says hesitantly.

"Let me just finish up with my patient." She returns to her treatment room, shutting the door; Logan hears murmuring voices. A middle-aged woman exits the inner office and leaves, avoiding Logan's eyes. Dr. Friedman calls out that Logan can come in now.

He stands up, and, leaning on his cane for more than physical support, enters her treatment room and takes his usual seat. Now that he is here, he is uncertain how to begin. Logan meets Dr. Friedman's eyes, then drops his gaze to the floor as he ruffles his hair.

"I see you got your cast off. I'm sure that's a significant improvement in your life," she starts, innocuously.

He huffs a quietly sarcastic laugh. "Yeah, my life is really improving."

"Did something happen? Is Veronica all right?" Dr. Friedman presses.

"The latest victim of the Saturday Night Slasher is, I mean was, an old girlfriend of mine. From high school," he finally says.

Dr. Friedman sucks in her breath. Inwardly cursing her inadvertent reaction, she says, "What was her name? Can you tell me a little about her?"

"Hannah," he says quietly. "She was..." His voice trails off; he has no idea where to begin.

"Start at the beginning, Logan."

He tells her the whole sordid tale, from targeting her at the carnival to the vicious scene at the Neptune Grand when her father drags her away, half-dressed, still protesting her love for Logan.

_FLASHBACK: Logan is kissing Hannah's stomach below her pink undershirt as she caresses his head and arms. He looks at her, and she smiles. He unbuttons her jeans and kisses her below the waist. Dr. Tom Griffith and a Neptune Grand employee burst into the suite. Griffith yells, "Hannah!...Get dressed!" To Logan, he says, "I told you to stay away from her. You're lucky I don't kill you."_

_Logan confronts Griffith, saying, "Don't speak to her like that...There's nothing you can do that'll stop me from seeing her."_

_Griffith gets in Logan's face and spits out, "You want to bet?" He grabs Hannah and drags her out of Logan's room._

Logan quotes the recent news reports. "So I'm the 'bad element' that her dad was getting her away from when he sent her to that boarding school. I'm the 'corrupter of innocents' that set her on her path to destruction." This last phrase is a direct quote from the televised Gracie Jane interview that he couldn't help hearing as he sat at LAPD headquarters waiting for his statement to be typed. He continues, "The FBI told me she was cutting herself at the boarding school. What I did to her...she must have...I ruined her life."

"Tell me again why you pursued her," Dr. Friedman asks.

"Her father gave false testimony that he witnessed me stab Felix Toombs. When Veronica investigated him for me, I noticed that he had a daughter at Neptune High. So I thought I would, you know, play to my strengths," he snorts derisively. "Exploit my bad boy reputation for all it was worth. She was a few years younger than me and had never even had a date before. All I had to do was turn on the Echolls charm, and she came running, begging for me to corrupt her."

"This was to pressure her father to retract his testimony?"

"Fucking lying cokehead," Logan says bitterly.

"And you say that Hannah was willing to continue to date you even though you told her the truth about why you originally went out with her?"

Logan nods.

Dr. Friedman continues, "Did you ever do anything to Hannah against her will? For instance, did you pressure her to have sex with you?"

"Of course not. She suggested it. It's a talent I have; the girls just seem to line up and throw themselves at me, even if they know better." His sarcastic tone is vicious, shocking Dr. Friedman with its intensity.

She remains quiet, looking at Logan with concern.

Finally, he can't stand the silence, and yells, "Say something! Tell me I'm a fucking degenerate, or that you can't stand to be in the room with me. Fucking say something!"

She responds quietly, "Logan, you told Hannah why you had pursued her. And she forgave you."

He pushes himself up out of his chair violently, leaning on his cane and pacing around the room. "Goddammit, that's the same shit that Veronica said. I know that's not how she feels either. Why can't you just tell me that I don't deserve to live? That I'm responsible for Hannah becoming a hooker? That I caused her death?"

"Do you truly feel that you don't deserve to live, Logan?" Dr. Friedman says quickly. "Haven't you been working hard to make your life better? You've been happy lately. You have a healthy relationship with Veronica for the first time ever. I've seen her with you. She cares about you deeply."

Logan continues to pace angrily around the room. "I don't deserve her. Every woman that I love gets hurt eventually just because they're around me. Lilly got killed BY MY FATHER! Why do you think he first noticed her? Because I brought her around the house. Veronica was raped because of me and my great GHB plan. And now, Hannah is killed because I couldn't keep my promise to her father to stay away." He throws himself back down in the chair, wincing when he lands awkwardly on his right leg. "Do you know what Veronica said to me at the time? 'You've really plumbed new depths, Logan.' I keep hearing her say it, over and over. I can't even stand to look at her, knowing what she thinks of me."

"Is it possible that Veronica said that at least partially out of jealousy?"

He doesn't respond.

"Logan, you are not responsible for Hannah's death. You are possibly responsible for her going to boarding school, which was almost three years ago. In those three years, she had contact with perhaps thousands of people who influenced the course of her life. Do you truly claim responsibility for every event that happens to every person you have had contact with throughout their lifetime?"

Logan exhales sharply, but does not answer.

"Have you thought about hurting yourself, Logan?"

He nods 'yes'.

"Have you thought about how you would do it?" She watches him closely, hoping that he will say no. Dr. Friedman is immensely relieved when Logan shakes his head 'no' without looking at her. "What is stopping you from hurting yourself, Logan?"

He shrugs, then says, almost inaudibly, "It would hurt Veronica. I can't do that to her."

Wed. 1/21/09: St. Mary's Church, Neptune, CA

Keith waits in his car outside St. Mary's. He has gone over the possibilities in his head compulsively since his meeting with Vinnie in Lompoc. Although Vinnie swore that the shooting was an accident, Keith knows that there is no escaping his culpability. He imagines the grief and worry of the boy's family, who thought he had committed a crime and disappeared forever, to live god knows what kind of life on the run. Keith can't conceive of not knowing where Veronica is, of not being able to pick up the phone and talk to her. He is certain that Vinnie will carry out his threats and testify that Veronica was involved in the Manning baby kidnapping if Keith doesn't help him; he can't see a solution except to do as Vinnie wishes. He finally decides that he can't bring the boy back to life, but he can spare his own child from prosecution for a crime that was in essence a selfless act of charity for another child.

The bells ring signaling the start of the 5:00 p.m. mass. The service appears to be sparsely attended but Keith decides to wait another ten minutes for latecomers. While he waits, he pulls on a pair of latex gloves and removes his gun from the glove compartment, placing it in his shoulder holster under his jacket. A short middle-aged woman exits the priest's residence. Keith observes her through his camera's telephoto lens and confirms that she is Mrs. O'Grady, Father Patrick Fitzpatrick's cleaning lady. She pulls the door shut behind her, checking to see that it is locked. At 5:15, Keith exits his car and quickly walks to the back of the priest's residence. Holding the screen door with his shoulder, he picks the relatively simple lock on the rear door and enters the residence. He makes his way through the house, searching for an office.

Keith enters Father Patrick's office. Spying a computer, he turns it on. While he waits for it to boot up, he looks around the office for suitable locations for the video and audio transmitters he has brought with him. The miniature video camera, hidden in a compact disc jewel case, is easy to hide among Father Patrick's collection of The Three Tenors and Frank Sinatra cd's. He puts one audio transmitter behind a large decorative cross high on the wall behind the desk, hoping that the diminutive Mrs. O'Grady will be lax about dusting up there. Keith pries open the cordless handset for the telephone and hides another among the electronic components.

He replaces the phone and looks at the computer monitor. A login screen confronts him. He frowns and tries a couple obvious passwords with no success. Keith notes the wireless keyboard and mouse and remembers that Mac told him that these devices were relatively susceptible to hacking via a Bluetooth connection. He comments to himself that this humble parish priest has a surprisingly expensive computer system. Checking his watch, he then takes a cursory look at the papers on the desk. There is a substantial amount of correspondence between Father Patrick and his lawyers. Of all the people indicted in the recent racketeering scandal, Father Patrick was the only conspirator who was released on bail, due to his lack of a criminal record and his upstanding reputation. _No criminal activities that we know of,_ Keith thinks. He turns off the computer, reminding himself to call Mac about the wireless keyboard, and double-checks that his surveillance devices are not visible and that he has left no trace of his intrusion.

He returns to his car and drives to a diner for dinner, killing time before returning later that night to place several more transmitters in the church itself, including one in the confessional booth.

Wed. 1/21/09: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA

Logan checks the screen on his cell phone and realizes that Veronica is not going to give up. He hits the talk button, saying, "Hey."

"Logan, I've been so worried. Where have you been all day?" she says quickly. "Are you okay?"

"The FBI questioned me about Hannah. I had to give a statement about the time she called me a couple years ago," he says quietly.

"A statement? Are they..." she says hesitantly.

"No, they don't think I did it. I told him we were photographed by one of the paparazzi on the night Hannah was killed, and I pointed out that I still had a cast on my leg at the time. They seemed to be satisfied, but they'll probably want to talk to you anyway. It's that same FBI agent, the woman who investigated Duncan when he kidnapped baby Lilly."

Veronica sucks in her breath. She remembers that Agent Morris was pretty smart.

Logan continues, "They're trying to identify the phone number Hannah was calling from. I don't know what that has to do with her murder."

"They're probably trying to create a profile in case the killer isn't selecting his victims at random."

"I thought...I thought this guy was just picking prostitutes," Logan queries.

"From what I read today, he's what the FBI calls an organized killer. He kills the woman, then stages the crime scene later, so he can control the evidence and forensics. Sometimes organized killers have a convoluted reasoning that determines the identity of their victims and other aspects of the crime," she explains. "The profiler takes all the information about all the victims and tries to predict the characteristics of a likely killer. A disorganized killer doesn't have the mental capacity to have a complicated process where he picks a victim, and he usually can't keep it together to control the crime scene the way that the Saturday Night Slasher does."

"That's just great, he's organized. Where did you learn this stuff? Is that what you did at your internship?" he says morosely.

"No, we learned about this in my Intro to Criminology class freshman year and also in my Abnormal Psych class. Logan, the fact that the killer is organized makes it more likely he'll be caught. A truly random killer is far more frightening because there's no underlying pattern to be discovered."

"I'm sorry, I'm not finding that very comforting."

"Logan...are you all right? Do you want me to come stay with you? I can skip class tomorrow–"

"No. Veronica, I kind of need some time alone right now. I know I'm not...responsible for what happened...but I'm pretty upset. I just need...I don't know what I need but I think it's something I need to go through by myself."

_What happened to 'please don't leave me'? What has changed?_ she thinks. She says aloud, "If you're sure...I'll come up if you change your mind."

"I'm coming to Neptune for the memorial service on Saturday. Will you go with me?" Logan asks.

"Of course. I love you, Logan." She ends the call, thinking, _I'm not sure going to the funeral is a great idea._


	5. Chapters 8 to 10

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?"

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy, Poniesforall, and Aly88. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

_ If you have any questions about the legal issues I'm referring to in this fic, go to my profile page where I've posted a summary of my legal research._

**

* * *

Veronica is roused from a deep sleep. She is shaken roughly, and when she doesn't move fast enough, she is slapped twice on the face and hears, "Do you think you're special? Let's go. Get your shoes on right now, or you can hike without them." Veronica quickly gets out of bed and pushes her feet into her tennis shoes; like her roommates, she lines up and keeps quiet. Single-file, they march to the common room, where they stand at attention to listen to a diatribe about the value of exercise and spiritual toughness. The hike leaders, wearing down jackets and hiking boots, hustle the girls outdoors. Veronica shivers in her light sweatshirt, but by now knows better than to ask for a jacket. The leaders set a fast pace, and the girls struggle to keep up. Veronica is starving; last night's meager dinner of oatmeal and an apple seems a distant memory.**

**After five miles of relentless hiking, they are met by two different leaders who take over for the first set. Veronica sees that all the girls are tired, but no one says a word when they set off again after a minute or two. Veronica's leg begins to cramp, and she starts to limp and fall behind. One of the leaders jogs back and yells. "Stop being so lazy! Keep up with the group!"**

**Veronica says weakly, "I have a cramp."**

**The leader blows a whistle, stopping the hike. All the girls stop, staring at Veronica. "Fifty pushups, let's go!" the leader says. When Veronica doesn't get down fast enough, the hike leader shoves Veronica on the back, and Veronica falls to the ground.**

**The hike leader looks around at the girls and says, "If she doesn't do the pushups, no one will have dinner today. And five extra miles on the hike."**

**The girls begin to scream at Veronica, "Do it! Goddamn it, do the pushups." A few begin to approach Veronica, making as if to kick and punch her, and Veronica shakily begins to do her assigned pushups.**

**Two months earlier...**

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Deep Down and Dirty**  
Candice checks out; Veronica suggests a  
new tactic in Duncan's custody case; a new  
exposé on Logan; Keith gets in deeper.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Wallace: Percy  
Daggs III. Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack.  
Logan: Jason Dohring. Keith: Enrico  
Colantoni. Eli: Francis Capra.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER EIGHT: "DEEP DOWN AND DIRTY"

Thurs. 1/22/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Veronica enters Wallace's dorm room. "Wallace, I don't know how to tell you this," she says somberly.

"What is it? Is Candice married? I know, she's got a criminal record, doesn't she?" Wallace moans, holding his head.

"Wallace, I can't find a single thing wrong with this woman. Except that she's way too smart. She got a perfect score on her SAT's and entered college at sixteen. She graduated Georgia Tech summa cum laude. She spent the last year in the Peace Corps and wrote several articles about her experiences." Veronica hands Wallace some printouts. "No quickie marriages, no criminal record, no bankruptcies. There is one thing though."

"What??" he asks, despairing.

"She doesn't appear to be a basketball fan. And I see no evidence that she knows how to bake snickerdoodles."

Wallace glares at her. "Thanks a lot. What about hobbies, things like that?"

"You're on your own for that, dude. I will, however, agree to set up a bump and dump should you need it."

Wallace looks at her thoughtfully. "Bump and dump, huh?"

"I did happen to get a copy of her schedule. Looks like Thursdays she's free between one and two."

"Okay, you're on. Lunch today, one o'clock."

"See ya then, studmuffin."

Veronica leaves Wallace's room smiling. _No clandestine mob connection to Candice's parents? Check. No secret love-child in Brooklyn? Check. _Her cell rings and she hits the talk button.

"Veronica?" Duncan asks.

_Ah, speaking of a secret love-child..._ "Hey, uh, Daniel," she says, looking around to see if anyone can overhear her conversation. "I talked with Dad and Cliff yesterday. They are not optimistic about me testifying. Cliff said there's no chance of a deal with the prosecutor's office."

Duncan/Daniel says quickly, "Then what are we going to do? My deal with the prosecutor's office is going to expire in three weeks if I don't turn myself in."

"I did have an idea. There is someone else who can testify about the abuse that was going on in the Manning house," Veronica says. "Lizzie."

"Lizzie?" Duncan asks. "She hates us. She'll never testify for us."

"She hates _us_. But, Duncan, she's never met Lilly. What if we surprised her and showed her how happy Lilly is? And the other thing is..." Veronica starts.

"What?"

"Lizzie feels like she got screwed out of a normal teenager's life because of Meg's pregnancy and Lamb blackmailing her family. What if we offered that to her...what if you paid her enough money that she could go to whatever college she wants and get out from under Stewart's thumb?" Veronica suggests. "Just think how you feel. You've been screwed out of that too."

"Yeah. You're right," he agrees.

"It'd be worth it. Just pay her, and both of you can put Stewart Manning behind you."

"Do you think she would tell her parents if she turns us down?" Duncan worries.

"It doesn't matter. They know we're desperate. How much worse could it get? Right now, you're considering turning down the prosecutor's deal and returning to a life in exile," Veronica replies logically.

"I guess you're right... Hey, how's Logan doing? This exposé that's running is completely unreal. It makes the Tinseltown Diaries look like kid stuff."

"What are you talking about?"

"The story on TSG? The one about the FBI suspecting him of being the serial killer?"

Veronica hears a commotion behind her. She whirls around and sees a reporter and a video cameraman. "Got to go. I'll be in touch about Lizzie." She hustles back to Wallace's room and bangs on the door. "Let me in, Wallace!"

The reporter, hurrying to catch her, calls out, "Any comment, Ms. Mars?"

Wallace opens his door, saying, "You need to chillax, Vee! What the hell"

She pushes him inside and slams the door shut. "Get up the Smoking Gun web site."

Her heart sinking, Veronica reads a report titled "Son of Murderer Aaron Echolls Arrested in Connection with Serial Murder Case" complete with pictures of Logan being escorted into an FBI vehicle and entering LAPD headquarters with the agents. She winces as she hears knocking on the door and voices calling her name.

"Oh shit," Wallace says.

The article speculates on comparisons of Aaron murdering his girlfriend with the possibility that Logan killed his ex-girlfriend Hannah. No motive is given, although the article implies that Hannah was murdered to protect Logan's current relationship with Veronica. There is a prominent picture of Madison Sinclair, and she is quoted extensively throughout the article.

"This doesn't have any basis in reality," Wallace comments.

"The FBI didn't arrest him, they just asked him to provide a statement about the last time Hannah contacted him," Veronica moans. "He has an alibi, and the motive is ridiculous."

"God, Madison sure hates you. Talk about a bunny boiler!"

"It's mutual. I should have cubed her car when I had the chance." At Wallace's quizzical look, she adds, "Never mind. It's not important." She tries to call Logan, even though she's certain his phone will be off. The call goes directly to voicemail, and she hears a message, 'Voicemail box is full. Please try your call later.' Veronica hangs up and looks closer at the web page. She gasps when she sees that the byline reads, 'Story by Norman Phipps. Additional reporting by Carrie Murray.' She sits down heavily on the bed, and Wallace joins her, hugging her.

- • -

Thurs. 1/22/09: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA

In Venice Beach, Logan shuts down his computer with a shaky hand. He stands up, trembling with rage and humiliation, and goes to the window. Leaning on his cane, he peeks out and sees that there are reporters lining the driveway. He quickly moves away from the window, his stomach beginning to clench and heave. The room begins to spin around him, and he stumbles toward the bathroom, just barely making it before he loses his breakfast in the sink. He runs some water in the sink and splashes cold water on his face. He looks at his face in the mirror, and suddenly the room appears to tilt sideways. Logan's breathing quickens, and his heart begins to pound, seeming to fill the silent room with its thumping. Logan falls to the floor in a faint, his cane clattering to the tile floor next to him.

When he comes to a few minutes later, he is at first uncertain where he is. He looks around the bathroom and focuses on the glass shower door. Logan stares at the glass door for long minutes as, unbidden, memories of the night of the accident a few months previously begin to surface. He groans and shuts his eyes to try to block out the flashes that besiege him: the crash of the glass door when he slams his hand into it; Dick's panicked assessment of Logan's wound; the nightmarish trip through the jostling crowd of screaming reporters; and finally leaning against Dick's car door, thinking that everything is so blurry and why is there so much blood.

He lays on the floor of the bathroom for a long time, trying to sort out the flashes into some sort of coherence. The neurologist had told him it was unlikely that he would ever completely remember that night considering the head trauma that he sustained in the car accident. The elusive nature of the memories is frustrating and terrifying. Suddenly another memory assaults him: Aaron screaming at the top of his lungs at eleven-year old Logan cowering on the bathroom floor. Aaron begins to strike him repeatedly with an open hand as Logan tries to avoid the blows, a punishment for some infraction of the rules that Logan cannot fathom to this day. In the present day, Logan mentally relives the traumas, drawing himself into a fetal position and crying soundlessly, hopelessly, until at last he falls into an exhausted sleep.

- • -

Thurs. 1/22/09: El Cajon, CA

Working on phase two of his plan to help Vinnie Van Lowe, Keith drives down to El Cajon Gun Exchange.

"I'm looking for a Smith & Wesson 539 9-millimeter semi-automatic," he says to the man behind the counter, perusing the contents of the display cases.

"They only made that model for a few years in the eighties. It's pretty rare. I know I don't have any in stock," the man says, thoughtfully.

Keith shows his PI license to the man and says, "It has to be that particular gun. It's for a case I'm working on."

"Hey, are you any relation to Veronica Mars? She used to shoot here all the time last fall."

Keith suppresses a sigh. "I'm her father."

"Well, tell her hi from Fred. Mr. Mars, I can make some calls, and see if any other dealers have one. In the meantime, do you see anything else you like?" Fred motions to the impressive assortment of modern weaponry.

"No thanks. If you could just let me know right away if you find a 539, I'd appreciate it. I'll tell Veronica you said hello."

- • -

Thurs. 1/22/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

"Break it up!" Eli Navarro calls out. Veronica has called him for help, asking him to get rid of the reporters who have besieged Wallace's room. "You guys don't have permission to be on campus. I've called the local sheriff's department, and they're on their way." Sirens can be heard approaching the campus, and the reporters reluctantly leave, grumbling about their free speech rights.

"Veronica, it's Weevil, let me in."

She cautiously opens the door and allows him to enter.

"This is some sick shit that going on," he says. "It's worse than the Aaron Echolls trial. I never thought I'd feel sorry for Logan."

She glances at him, startled.

"Get your stuff; I'll take you to class and make sure these guys leave you alone," Weevil suggests.

They walk together. Twice reporters try to approach, and both times Weevil menacingly orders them to leave her alone.

"My personal bodyguard," Veronica comments.

"About time you let someone protect you," he replies.

"You know that tomorrow there will be pictures of you and me with the caption 'Veronica Mars leaves Logan Echolls, runs to her Latin lover'."

"As long as they spell my name right, I'm okay with it." He throws an arm over her shoulder. "So you're not going to look for this serial killer. I'm not asking. I'm telling you. I know you think you're invincible, but you're not."

"I hadn't thought of it."

"Bull, Veronica. You're just this guy's type, you know."

"Now you're calling me a hooker?" she asks.

"No, but you're young and female. And he gets off on hurting people. You're not gonna mess with this," Weevil says.

"I'm not going to," she swears.

Weevil stares at her, hoping she's telling the truth for once.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Flirting with Disaster**  
Nerd bonding; Keith probes St. Mary's;  
Veronica helps Wallace with his crush;  
the FBI comes calling.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Max: Adam Rose.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Veronica: Kristen  
Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring. Wallace:  
Percy Daggs III. Candice: Toy Connor.  
Morris: Lucy Lawless. Carney: Jason Isaacs.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER NINE: "FLIRTING WITH DISASTER"

Fri. 1/23/09: Neptune, CA

Max plugs a USB cord into the hard drive from Dick's computer and begins to copy the files onto his own computer. While waiting for the copying to finish, he leans back in his chair and regards Mac. "So how've you been? I checked out your web site. It definitely serves a need. There are way too many noobs on the internet."

"Things are good. I'm still going out to Vegas playing cards, but the pressure to make money is off so I can have more fun. What about your business?" Mac replies.

"Fortunately, there aren't too many college kids who actually care about getting an education, and I'm right there to supply them with the papers and tests they need to get their degree with the minimum amount of work," he answers. The drive finishes copying, and Max sits up quickly, banging the front two legs of his chair on the floor. "Let's see what we got here." He scrolls through the same files that Mac had found, but more warily, keeping in mind her warning. He stops and points to the screen. "You're right, your client did have a malware program on his drive. You said that the screen was overwritten with the Dead Cow logo?"

Mac nods.

"That's totally crazy. Those guys are my heroes. They're hackers, to be sure, but their agenda is about exposing software flaws, not unleashing malicious viruses. Lately, they've been working on the Goolag project," Max comments.

"Right, I read about that. They're protesting Google's decision to comply with China's Internet censorship policy. 'GoolagExporting censorship, one search at a time.'"

"Mac, can you bring up the chat program that you told me about?" Max says.

Mac turns the keyboard and logs onto the porn site that Dick had been on. Max raises his eyebrows questioningly. She says, "The client is sort of lowbrow."

"Client, huh?" Max clicks on the system profiler window and highlights the text 'Dick Casablancas' Computer'. "I heard you were seeing Dick Casablancas, but I didn't believe it."

"Are you keeping tabs on me?" she says in surprise.

"Isn't stalking just another way to say 'I love you'?" he replies, laughing.

She punches him in the shoulder. He rubs the shoulder ruefully and says, "I'm not ever going to wash this shirt."

She explains, "I'm not seeing Dick anymore. It was just temporary insanity, okay? He promised to stop bothering me if I helped him and his frat buddies with this."

Max looks at her for a moment, then continues, "Okay, I'm going to try to get the attention of the IM program." He begins to click on various salacious photos and browses through the linked pages.

Suddenly, a message window opens.

BRANDY42: hello anybody there

Mac and Max exchange a glance, and Max types:

MAXIMAN: hi baby  
BRANDY42: i've been waiting for you  
MAXIMAN: i'm looking for something special  
BRANDY42: like what  
MAXIMAN: more personal  
BRANDY42: what are you into baby  
MAXIMAN: i have needs  
BRANDY42: are you on facebook i'd like to see your picture  
MAXIMAN: i'd rather meet face to face  
BRANDY42: i can't do that i need to check you out first  
MAXIMAN: how old are you  
BRANDY42: twenty-one how old are you  
MAXIMAN: thirty-five

Mac looks at Max in surprise, and he says, "Just wait."

BRANDY42: i like older men  
MAXIMAN: i bet

Max signs off and turns to Mac. "I've heard about this, but this is the first time I've seen it. It's called a 'flirt-bot'. The software was developed in Russia. It's been seen on dating sites and porn sites. The idea is to mimic human interaction to try to get the user to supply personal information, or to get them to go to a remote site which will then infect the computer with malware that will collect data."

"'Flirt-bot'? You mean that's a computer program, not a human? It's been different every time," Mac says in amazement.

"It's designed to gauge the responses of the human and respond in kind. Some people think it actually passes the Turing test of artificial intelligence," Max replies, almost reverently.

"So how do we get rid of it on our website? And how do I prevent it from reinfecting my...uh...clients when they surf onto porn sites?" Mac asks. "I don't want them coming back to me for help because it happened again. And what's with the Dead Cow logo stuff?"

Max ponders. "I guess whoever's responsible for this is trying some misdirection by blaming a known hacker group. I have a contact in the group. Let me get in touch with him and see if he has any ideas how to keep it off your site."

- • -

Fri. 1/23/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Keith checks on the bugs that he placed at St. Mary's. He accesses the Sonic Snoop program and enters the serial numbers of the devices he planted in the priest's office and in the church itself. He listens to a short one-sided phone conversation, then checks the bug he left in the phone, which recorded both sides. He nods with satisfaction that the voice-activated audio recorders are functioning properly. Keith then peruses the image captures from the video devices in the church. He chuckles when he realizes that he has inadvertently taped a young couple making out in the confessional booth.

- • -

Fri. 1/23/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

In the Hearst Food Court, Veronica tries Logan's cell phone again with no success. She calls Dick, who answers, "Hey Ronnie. Thanks for getting Mac to help us."

"At triple rates, it's hard to say no...Dick, have you talked to Logan?"

"Not since yesterday."

"Me either," she replies. "I'm pretty worried after what happened because of the _Dateline_ interview. But he told me not to come."

"And you're going to start doing what you're told NOW?"

She is silent for a minute, then says, "Dick, I think he's ashamed about Hannah. He blames himself. He said he doesn't want to see me. Can you try to call him? He's not picking up for me."

"All right. I'll call you right back," Dick acquiesces.

She waits impatiently, drumming her fingers on the table. She sees Wallace and waves at him to come over. Her phone vibrates, and she grabs it quickly. "Hello? Dick?"

"No, it's me," Logan says. "Dick said you were worried. Listen, I'm okay. It's crazy here; I'm not going to lie. I'm just going to stay in. I hired a limo to take me to Neptune for the funeral Saturday. I'll pick you up at your dad's at ten," Logan says.

"Logan, talk to me. What's going on? I think I should come up"

"NO, VERONICA."

Veronica is stunned into silence. Wallace looks on, worriedly.

Logan continues, more calmly, "I don't want the reporters harassing you too."

"But"

"No. I'll call you later." He ends the call abruptly, and she stares at the phone in disbelief.

"Hey, are you okay?" Wallace asks. "You know, we don't have to do this today. My love life is not that important."

She turns her head so Wallace can't see her wipe a tear from her eye. "No, let's do it. It'll be fun. Are you sure you can handle your end of it?"

"Vee, I can't even believe you said that. Nothin' but net, baby!" He pantomimes shooting a basketball.

"Remember to do it just like I taught you, Fennel," she smiles back wanly.

They scan the crowd of students entering the Food Court for lunch. When Candice enters, Wallace nudges Veronica. "Spiffy," she comments, nodding, and Wallace elbows her again. They walk over toward Candice, who has a loaded lunch tray and is making her way to the cash register to pay.

As they approach, Veronica begins to speak animatedly, gesturing with her hands. "So then he says to me, can you believe it, he ACTUALLY SAYS, 'I don't think this is working for me'. After I caught him talking to that skank at the party" she turns around, continuing to come closer to Candice as she walks backward. When Wallace subtly nods, she 'accidentally' bumps into Candice, slipping her hand underneath Candice's tray and knocking it to the floor, making sure to push it away from Candice so she won't be splattered.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry, let me help you," Veronica exclaims.

"Why don't you ever watch where you're going? I can't believe you did that," Wallace says. He grabs napkins from a dispenser, and kneels down to help Candice. "My friend is such a klutz. Can I get you a new lunch?"

Candice, trying to salvage her lunch, says, "It's okay, I'm sure it was an accident." She looks at Wallace and says, "Wait, we met the other night. Walter? Wally? Something like that?"

Wallace is crushed, but recovers quickly, "Wallace. Wallace Fennel. The Tau Beta Pi dinner."

"Right," Candice says.

Wallace takes the tray, dumps its contents in the garbage, and says, "Let me buy you a new lunch. My treat, to make up for my friend." He quickly makes his way to the counter to order a replacement lunch.

"I'm so sorry, I don't know what's wrong with me," Veronica says again. "It didn't get on your clothes, did it? Wallace is always having to clean up my messes."

"It's all right," Candice replies.

"My name's Veronica. I'm a criminology major." Veronica extends her hand for Candice to shake.

"Candice. I just started in the master's engineering program." She smiles as she releases Veronica's hand.

Wallace joins them with a new tray for Candice. "Don't you have class now, Veronica?" he says.

"Oh you're right. Nice to meet you, Candice," Veronica says, wiggling her fingers as she walks away.

Veronica turns and watches Wallace pay for the lunch and lead Candice to a table. He catches her eye and smiles, and she thinks, _Poor woobie, he's got it bad._ She sighs, worrying about Logan alone in Los Angeles, wishing he'd let her come be with him.

- • -

Fri. 1/23/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Keith accesses the PryingEyez database. He's been thinking about what Vinnie said, that Liam Fitzpatrick claimed to know 'where the body is buried', and he's had an idea. _Liam's not a trusting guy, and he doesn't leave anything to chance...especially something as important as a dead body that was necessary to keep a bought-and-paid-for sheriff in line._ He types in 'obituaries' and 'St. Mary's cemetery' and limits his search to a period from the date of Sheriff Lamb's accidental death to six months after Vinnie's election as sheriff. Keith finds that there were six interments in the small cemetery adjacent to St. Mary's during that time. One name stands out on the list: Cormac Fitzpatrick. He thinks a minute, then requests information on requests for exhumations approved by the Department of Health during the same period. The results of this search adds two names to his list. The second of the two names is Mary MacDonald, and the family member requesting the exhumation is listed as Liam Fitzpatrick.

- • -

Fri. 1/23/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Veronica is trying to study without much success when there is a knock on her dorm room door. "Ms. Mars? FBI." Veronica opens the door cautiously. Her heart sinks when she recognizes Agent Morris along with another FBI agent.

"Come in," Veronica says with resignation.

The two agents offer their ID for Veronica to inspect, and she looks at them carefully. The other agent is Thomas Carney, who appears to outrank Agent Morris. Veronica hands back the IDs and is surprised when Agent Morris runs the interview.

"Well, Ms. Mars, I can't say I'm surprised to see you in trouble again. I couldn't believe it when I heard you passed the background check for the FBI internship program. You really must have friends in high places," Morris comments.

"What's this about, Agent Morris?" Veronica says abruptly.

"Just routine questions. Were you with Logan Echolls on the night of Saturday, January 17th?"

"Yes, we took a break from studying and went out to hear some music. There were paparazzi at the club who took pictures of us; I think it was E! Online."

"Yes, that's exactly what Mr. Echolls told us," Agent Carney comments, glancing at Morris.

Veronica remains quiet, her lips pressed in a thin line of anger.

"Were you friends with Hannah Griffith in high school?" Agent Morris continues.

"I saw her around school, but I never even spoke to her."

"You knew she was seeing Mr. Echolls though?"

Veronica frowns, and says, "What are you implying?"

"I'm not implying anything. Did you know she was involved with Mr. Echolls?" Morris presses.

"Of course. The whole school knew," Veronica explains.

"Was this is a serious relationship?"

"I'm not sure why you would ask me about this."

Morris stands, and clasps her hands behind her back. She walks around the room and approaches Veronica. "We're just wondering if Mr. Echolls continued to see Hannah after she left Neptune."

"My understanding is that she was taken away from Neptune by her parents. You make it sound like Hannah had a choice in her actions," Veronica replies.

"You do know that she contacted him in the summer of 2006?" Morris asks. Carney stares at Veronica, and she falters a little under his stern gaze.

"I didn't know at the time. But he mentioned it to me when he heard she had been killed. He was upset that he didn't know that she needed help, and he wished that he could have assisted her."

"You mean he wished he had helped her to run away?" Carney says quickly.

Veronica realizes her error. "He wished that she had asked him for help, and he would have done whatever was LEGALLY possible to help her."

"Legally? Hmm..." Agent Morris turns to Carney. "What's the status on the Kane kidnapping case? That's still open, right?"

Carney responds, "The Kane case is still unsolved. But the scuttlebutt is that it's just a matter of identifying his accomplice."

Veronica narrows her eyes at the not-so-subtle threat. "I heard that Jake Kane is close to working out an amnesty agreement with the prosecutor's office on his son's behalf. And I'm really not understanding the connection between the Kane kidnapping and Hannah's murder."

"Your boyfriend flees the country with his love-child. Another one of your boyfriends dates a girl who then runs away. Maybe the connection is you. You were busted for making false ID's, as I recall. Perhaps you've got a little business setting up new identities," Morris says.

"Those charges were dropped," Veronica protests.

"It all comes down to connections, Ms. Mars. Must be nice to have a dad in law enforcement who watches your back. Oh that's right, your dad's not in law enforcement anymore; something about a hard drive being erased while in his possession at the sheriff's department," Carney says sarcastically.

Veronica remains silent for a moment, then says, "You know, as much as fun as this is, I really have to get to class. Let me know if you have any other questions for me, and I'll be happy to answer them." She stands up and pointedly opens the dorm room door for the two agents to exit.

"Really nice to see you again, Ms. Mars," Morris says as they leave.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Eulogy**  
Hannah's memorial service.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Dr. Griffith: Rick Peters.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER TEN: "EULOGY"

Sat. 1/24/09: Neptune, CA

Veronica waits impatiently at the Sunset Cliffs apartment for Logan to pick her up for Hannah's memorial service. Logan called her two times in the last two days; both times he refused to say more than that he was doing alright and was keeping a low profile. She checks her phone again, but Logan has not called since the last time she checked thirty seconds ago.

Finally there is a car horn outside. She quickly checks to make sure that there are no reporters. She grabs her dark suit jacket that she bought for her FBI internship and puts in on over her conservative black dress. _My funeral dress, _she thinks. She's worn it to three funerals: Lilly's, Meg's, and her mother's. She dons her oversized sunglasses, acknowledging the cliché to herself, but nonetheless unwilling to exhibit her naked face to the world at this event.

Veronica slides into the backseat and joins Logan in the limo. She removes the sunglasses and kisses him. She pulls back to look at his face and is shocked at his haggard appearance, despite the expensive dark suit he is wearing. She subtly sniffs and is ashamed of her suspicions but relieved not to smell alcohol. "Logan, when's the last time you ate something?" she worries.

"I had breakfast this morning," he says shortly.

She doesn't believe him, but doesn't press the issue. "It's good to see you. Will you stay for the weekend? I've missed you, Logan." She leans against him. When he doesn't automatically put his arm around her, she takes his arm and places it over her shoulder.

"I think I'm going to go back right after the service," he replies.

She sits forward and turns to look at him. "Why are you pushing me away? You said you were scared I was going to run away again, and now you're the one who's running away."

"I'm not running away, I'm protecting you," Logan says vehemently.

"Protecting me? From some asshole reporters?" she responds angrily. "I don't need you to protect me. I do need to be with you. And Logan... You. Need. Me. Look at you. You haven't slept or eaten in how many days now?"

"I'm protecting you from me. All the women around me always get hurt, because of me," he bites off.

She is stunned into silence. Finally, she says, "What about the times you saved me? Beaver? The River Stix? MERCER??"

"Again, you're missing the point. You wouldn't have needed saving from the River Stix or Mercer if it hadn't been for me. And Beaver? Don't you think I should have noticed something was wrong with him? He's my best friend's brother; he tagged along with me and Dick that whole summer before senior year. I should have realized he was a psychopath. Yep, you can put me down as responsible for that one too."

Defeated, she slumps against the seat. _What is going on? Is he breaking up with me? Why is he acting like this?_

She tries again. With a superhuman effort, she keeps her voice calm. "Logan, all I know is that I love you, and I've never doubted that you loved me too."

"I've never? I've never...done anything to hurt my girlfriends," he says sarcastically, pantomiming drinking. "I've never...corrupted a naïve freshman." Again, he pretends to drink. "I've never...introduced my underaged girlfriend to my statutory rapist father. Shall I continue? There's probably not enough alcohol in the world for me to play this game right."

Veronica crosses her arms and huffs a breath, trying to think how to deal with this new incarnation of psychotic jackass...a psychotic jackass determined to punish himself. Her eyes fill with tears, and she tries valiantly to keep Logan from noticing.

Finally, he takes pity on her. "Veronica, all I want to do is protect you, and it seems that all I ever do is hurt you. I just...couldn't take it if anything happened to you." He reaches for her hand, and she hangs on for dear life.

As they approach the church where the memorial is being held, Veronica raps on the divider and asks the limo driver to stop. "Logan, I think it would be less obvious if we get out here and walk."

"All right," he agrees.

They exit the limo and, seeing a group of somberly dressed people ahead, rush to tag along, hoping to blend in with the crowd. Both Logan and Veronica put on sunglasses, though neither is optimistic that they will remain unrecognized. Logan struggles a little to keep up, leaning heavily on his cane. At the front of the church, Sheriff D'Amato and several deputies are posted, preventing reporters from entering and disturbing the memorial. Logan and Veronica nod at Leo and enter the church, sitting in a pew well to the back.

The church is packed with multitudes of curious onlookers unable to disguise their prurient interest in the latest Neptune scandal. The murmurs of the crowd are a constant humming background to the eulogies being given from the altar. Veronica discreetly looks around and is relieved to see that everyone's attention is on the grieving families at the front of the church: Hannah's mother, Stephanie Denenberg, sits on one side of the church with an older woman, presumably Hannah's grandmother; Dr. Tom Griffith sits on the other side with a woman and a baby. _Did the cokehead doctor remarry?_ She tries to think if she heard anything about Griffith, but draws a blank. _Why didn't the Fitzpatricks ever punish Griffith for not testifying against Logan? Maybe they did, and we just don't know about it. What the hell, we never figured out why they were so determined to frame Logan in the first place._ She continues to scan the crowd, recognizing a few familiar faces from Neptune High School, including Principal Clemmons, Ms. James and several students whose names she does not recall.

She turns toward Logan. His eyes are closed, and she's certain he's still torturing himself with regrets about Hannah. She takes his hand, and Logan opens his eyes and regards her. She pulls his hand to her lips and gently kisses his hand. The faintest smile possible touches the corners of his lips, only to disappear immediately.

Several girls come up to the altar together. One approaches the lectern and speaks hesitantly. "We were on the track team with Hannah. She was the sweetest girl we ever knew, the best friend you could have; she was always ready to believe the best of everybody. It was hard for her when her parents got divorced; she loved them so much." The girl pauses, and stares at Dr. Griffith. "But we lost Hannah twice: when her parents took her away from us and now permanently to a horrible killer. She never did anything wrong, and she was punished as if she was a criminal. We loved you, Hannah. We miss you." The girls traipse down the steps of the altar, staring accusingly at Dr. Griffith as the crowd murmurs excitedly.

Logan reflexively tightens his hand into an angry fist in Veronica's hand; she caresses his hand until he relaxes.

Dr. Griffith stands and slowly makes his way to the altar. The gossiping silences, as the audience eagerly awaits. "I'd like to thank you all for coming today. Hannah was my jewel, my princess. She was a precious gift to her mother and me. When she began to have trouble with depression and anger, it was the hardest decision her mother and I ever had to make to send her away for help."

Veronica notices out of the corner of her eye that Ms. James frowns when she hears Dr. Griffith mention 'depression and anger'. The undercurrent of whispered gossip begins again.

Dr. Griffith continues, "Regrettably, we waited too long to get help for Hannah, and we lost her to god knows what horrors." His voice breaks, and he says, "I'm sorry...Hannah, we loved you so much, I'm sorry we couldn't help you." He covers his eyes with his hand, apparently weeping. The reverend stands and helps Dr. Griffith return to his seat in the front row.

Logan whispers intensely, "Liar."

Veronica turns to him and shushes him. "Don't," she says under her breath.

He looks at her with unfocused eyes, then his gaze clears, and he nods imperceptibly at her.

The reverend ends the service, and the family stands to leave the church first. As Dr. Griffith passes Veronica's and Logan's pew, he notices Logan and stops dead. "You. What the hell are you doing you here, you bastard?"

"I'm grieving for your daughter," Logan says, standing angrily. Veronica puts her hand on his arm and tries to force him to sit down. Logan continues spitefully, "Your precious jewel, the one you dragged to boarding school against her will."

"Logan, no!" Veronica says.

Dr. Griffith aims a punch at Logan's face. Instead of avoiding the blow, Logan allows it to land; he sags a little, then stands again, saying bitterly, "Go ahead, hit me again; you can't make me feel any worse than I already feel." Dr. Griffith complies, and Logan goes down. Reporters break past Sheriff D'Amato and his deputies, and the crowded church rushes to witness the spectacle at the back.

Veronica tries to go to Logan, but she is pushed aside as several people try to restrain Dr. Griffith, who continues to beat on Logan. She fights her way toward him, screaming, "Stop it!" She is buffeted by the throngs of people trying to get a look at the scene. Flashes from cameras blind her, and someone pushes her; Veronica is knocked off her feet, hitting her head on the edge of the pew. The world goes dark as she blacks out.

- • -

Sat. 1/24/09: Neptune, CA

"Honey? Open your eyes. Come on, Veronica, wake up," Keith says.

Veronica opens her eyes. She sees her dad staring at her with concern, and she realizes that she's in the emergency room.

"Honey? You got knocked out," Keith explains.

The doctor pulls the curtain shut around the bed and flashes a light in Veronica's eyes. "It's probably just a minor concussion but it's a good thing the paramedics brought you in to be sure."

Veronica asks, "Logan?"

"He's right here, honey," Keith says. Logan stands up and approaches the bed.

"You are such a jackass," she says quietly. "You practically begged him to hit you."

"That's me, I'm a jackass," he answers. "Are you okay?"

"Better than you, apparently," Veronica replies, noting his cut and swollen lip and black eye. She reaches up and touches his face tenderly. He winces. "What possessed you to bait him like that?"

"I'm going to discharge her. Keep an eye on her for the next twenty-four hours. Head injuries are unpredictable," the doctor says, leaving the area.

Veronica rolls her eyes and tries to sit up, but is hit with a wave of nausea and sinks back to the bed.

"Slowly, honey," Keith cautions her.

- • -

Sat. 1/24 - Sun. 1/25/09: Sunset Cliffs Apartments, Neptune, CA

The next twenty-four hours are a blur for Veronica. Keith brings her back to the Sunset Cliffs apartment and puts her to bed. Her head aches intensely. At one point, she thinks she hears Leo speaking with Logan in the living room. Then Logan comes in the bedroom and sits with her. She drowses off, unable to stay awake. Sometime later, Logan approaches the bed, kisses her, tells her he loves her, and leaves the bedroom. She falls into a deep sleep and does not wake until late in the afternoon the next day.

"Dad?" she calls. "Logan?" She manages to sit up. Her head throbs, but it's bearable.

"Honey, how do you feel today? You slept for almost twenty-four hours," Keith says concernedly.

"My head hurts a little, and I'm starving," she replies.

"Starving is good."

"Where's Logan?" she asks.

"He left yesterday around dinner time," Keith says slowly. "I told him that he should stay, but he just muttered about not wanting to be in the way and took off."

She repeats uncomprehendingly, "In the way?"

"Leo came by and asked him if he wanted to press charges against Dr. Griffith. Logan refused, said the grieving father defense is a pretty good one, and he doesn't need any more bad press. There were a lot of reporters outside, but most of them left when Logan did."

"That's why he left," she explains. "He was going on about protecting me and not wanting me to get hurt."

"He was very upset in the emergency room; he wouldn't let the doctors look at him until they examined you," Keith says gently.

"Get my phone, will you?" Veronica asks.

Keith finds her purse, which somehow survived the stampede at the church, and gives Veronica her cell.

The display reads 78 missed calls. The message waiting indicator is lit, and she scrolls through the menu. "54 voicemail messages and twenty text messages," she muses. She looks for Logan's number in the list of missed calls unsuccessfully, then peruses the text messages. She recognizes one as coming from Logan's cell.

The message reads:

_Veronica, I love you so much, and all I ever do is hurt you. I'm going away for a while. Please don't try to find me. If I can figure this out, I'll come back. Know that I'll always love you. Your loving jackass, Logan_

She lets the phone slip out of her fingers and begins to cry.


	6. Chapters 11 to 13

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?"

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy, Poniesforall, and Aly88. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

* * *

**After the rigorous day-long hike, Veronica is too tired to eat. She looks at the other girls who are eating diligently, even though Veronica sees that they are as exhausted as she is. She picks up her sandwich and tries to force it down, watching as some of the other girls gnaw slowly at the crust, then take miniscule bites, chewing each portion thoroughly. Veronica realizes they are savoring the pathetic meal, languishing over each bite as if it is a religious experience.**

**For her part, she thinks of her old comfortable water bed in Neptune. She smiles, thinking of her dad finding it for her at the garage sale, and fantasizes about slipping into soft, clean sheets that smell of fabric softener. She imagines drifting off to sleep with her dad right next door, keeping her safe. How did she never see how wonderful that was? In her exhaustion, she closes her eyes and falls asleep momentarily–that dozing sleep where the world exists but you are dreaming.**

**Seven weeks earlier...**

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Tunnel Vision**  
Veronica pursues Logan with Dick's help;  
Keith crosses a line.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Dick: Ryan Hansen  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Keith: Enrico  
Colantoni. Ming: Welly Yang.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ELEVEN: "TUNNEL VISION"

Mon. 1/26/09: Neptune, CA

VERONICA

This is my normal. The world is fucked up, yet again. The man who loves me has run away to try to protect me. Reporters dog me at every turn, asking me if Logan has broken up with me. Is this what you thought you would accomplish by running away, Logan? Today I found a tracking device on my car. Oh, and speaking of tracking devices, Logan, did you smash your phone after you sent me that text? You figured I had turned on the tracking signal in your phone again. Maybe you threw it in the ocean. Yeah, that sounds about right.

I can't do any PI work with the reporters following me around. Luckily, the dean has banned all reporters from campus, so at least I can go to class. Of course, the dean can't keep my lovely classmates from gossiping about me. I heard one girl say I'm the Mrs. Lovett to Logan's Sweeney Todd. What can I say, even the slams are better in college.

I'm completely exhausted, but I haven't been able to sleep since I got his text; every time I close my eyes, I imagine Logan teetering on the edge of a bridge somewhere...or rotting in the drunk tank of a Mexican prison.

Tues. 1/27/09 morning: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Dick is laughing with Chip Diller in his room at the frat house when Veronica and Mac burst into the room. Dick immediately stops laughing when he sees Veronica's face. He says to Chip, "Gotta run, see ya later," and stands up, intending to flee.

Veronica blocks his path, glaring at him.

"Don't hurt me, Ronnie," Dick begs, ostentatiously protecting his man-parts.

"Don't make me hurt you, Dick," she replies. She pretends to lift her knee toward Dick's groin, and he reflexively flinches. "Have you talked to Logan?"

"I swear, I haven't talked to him. I'm worried, too. Leave my ballsack out of this, Ronnie."

Mac says, "Veronica, I can check his phone if you don't believe him."

Dick looks at her, hurt. Mac holds out her hand expectantly, and Dick gives her his phone. She begins to scroll through the call history.

"Chip, I think you should leave us alone," Veronica says. Chip glares at her, but complies, muttering "_bitch_" under his breath as he pushes past her.

Veronica continues, "Sit down, Dick. Let's discuss the situation," Veronica says, pushing Dick back down into a chair. She pulls another chair over and leans against it with folded arms, doing her best 'bad cop'. "When did you last talk to Logan?"

"Did you ever think that maybe you should just do what Logan wants, and just leave him alone?"

Mac shakes her head at Dick's naïveté. "Dick, answer Veronica's question, or I'm not going to help the frat with your little porn problem."

"You wound me, baby," he replies to Mac. Mac rolls her eyes.

Veronica pokes Dick in the chest to get his attention. "Hello! Do you speak English? Parla usted Inglese? I'll say it again. When did you last talk to Logan?" Veronica repeats.

"Okay, okay! I talked to him on Friday, the day before the memorial service. He was really down; you know how emo the boy can get...especially since he can't go surfing with his bum leg."

"Do you think he's drinking again?" Veronica asks.

"I don't know. He hasn't had a drink around me since the accident."

"Where would Logan go to hide?"

"T.J.? Cancun or Cabo San Lucas, maybe."

"All right. You're coming with me. We're going to L.A. this afternoon after class. We'll check out Logan's house, and then if we don't find any clues there, we'll go down to T.J. and look in all the usual places. I think it's a long shot; Logan's too smart to go there."

"I don't understand why you won't just let Logan–"

"Dick!" Mac and Veronica say together.

"Oh man, I'm in trouble," he moans, shaking his head.

Tues. 1/27/09 morning: Ranchita, CA

In Ranchita, California, near the Anza-Borrego Desert, Keith checks his map again, then rechecks the GPS coordinates on the navigation system of his rental Jeep Wrangler. He pulls out a copy of a title deed. The deed lists this property as belonging to Shamrock Inc., which Keith has discovered through patient research is a shell corporation, owned by yet another shell corporation which lists Liam Fitzpatrick as the sole shareholder. Keith nods to himself that he has located the correct address. He exits his car and surveys the property, which appears to border on state park lands. The title shows that Shamrock Inc. owns twenty-five acres of land, and the property appears completely undeveloped. _If I wanted to stash a car somewhere, this is the perfect location._

There is a rough doubletrack road that leads into the desert. Keith gets back in the jeep and follows the road into the property. After about half a mile, he sees a ramshackle house with a nearby shed. Keith parks the jeep and takes out a small device from his briefcase. When Veronica saw the SCI-SH055DV Signal Detector in the SpyGear catalogue, she fussed at him mercilessly until he gave in and purchased it. For the first time, he's glad he made the purchase. He also puts on a pair of latex gloves, deciding to err on the side of caution.

He walks to the house. The front door is unlocked, and Keith walks in cautiously holding the signal detector at eye level, checking the LED display. _No video cameras, no listening devices, and no cell phones within 100 feet._ Keith pockets the signal detector and begins to search the house methodically.

The house is in disrepair and appears to have been deserted and unused for years. A thick layer of dust covers every surface. When Keith opens the door leading to a set of stairs that descend to a basement, he is assaulted by a foul odor. But, upon investigation, he only finds the putrid remains of an animal that was probably once a fox.

Having found nothing of interest in the house, he walks over to the shed. The door is secured with large padlock of recent vintage that contrasts sharply with the age of the shed. Keith tries to clear the dirt from a small window to look inside, but the interior is too dark to make out any details. He returns to the jeep and finds a boltcutter in his tool bag. He snaps off the padlock and opens the double swinging doors wide to find a car covered by a dusty tarp.

Keith checks the signal detector again to be certain there are no surveillance devices. He removes the tarp from the car and finds a 1973 Ford Torino sedan. He nods to himself in satisfaction. When he opens the rear door, he finds a massive blood stain on the seat. He pops the trunk and finds nothing of interest, other than several empty bottles that once contained premium Irish whiskey.

Returning to the jeep, Keith retrieves a spray bottle of bleach, several rags, a dropper bottle of hydrochloric acid, and several containers of gasoline. Keith is positive that this location is far enough from a fire station that the fire he intends will burn out of control long before firefighters can get there, but he wants to make certain that even if the fire is discovered there will be no fingerprint or vehicle identification evidence to point to Vincent Van Lowe's crime twenty-five years ago. He uses the acid the obliterate the VIN numbers on the engine block and every other location on the car. He removes the license plates, intending to dispose of them elsewhere. He then proceeds to methodically wipe every surface on the car with the bleach. Keith pours the gasoline all over the interior, making sure to soak the bloodstained area in the back. He reserves some of the gasoline to pour over the wood surfaces of the shed itself.

When he is certain that his preparations will turn the shed into a raging inferno, he steps away and lights a disposable lighter, throwing it at the shed. The wood building catches fire tentatively, then with a whoosh, the flames intensify. Keith throws his latex gloves into the fire, and takes the empty gas cans and license plates back to the jeep. He loads the cans into the rear compartment, but doesn't notice when a small item falls out of his pocket into the sandy dirt. Keith takes a last look around the property, and gets the hell out of there.

Tues. 1/27/09: late afternoon Venice Beach, CA

"All right, Dick, just drive past Logan's house slowly; I want to see if there are any reporters."

Dick obeys Veronica's orders. As he drives past the beach house, they see several cars parked. The paparazzi are gathered together, sharing coffee and tales from the trenches of celebrity stalking. Logan's house is completely dark, with all the curtains drawn on the street side. His car is in the driveway. Veronica is certain that several more photographers are stationed on the beach, waiting to take telephoto shots through the floor-to-ceiling windows that overlook the ocean. From the back seat, Backup looks out the window with interest at all the reporters.

Veronica instructs Dick, "Keep going to the public beach; I want to check something there." She spots the taxi stand that she remembered; she makes a note of the company name, 'Checker Cab', and the phone number, 310-555-5555.

"Okay, go back towards Logan's house." As they near the house again, Veronica says, "Now turn here and go around the block. Make a right up here," she directs Dick. "D'you see the Chinese restaurant up there? 'Woo Too'. Park in front of it."

Dick pulls the car up to the restaurant. "Now what? How are we going to get past the reporters?"

"Just wait in the car with Backup."

"Hey, get me an egg roll," he says.

Veronica slams the car door shut a little harder than necessary.

In the restaurant, Veronica approaches the takeout window. "Hi, Ming. Get any more acting gigs?"

"Chinese gang member #3, CSI, New York." he says proudly. "Typecasting at its finest. I even had a line this time. What's up, Veronica? I saw all the reporters outside Logan's. He hasn't ordered from us since this started."

"How would you like to make a little extra money? A private acting job," Veronica says, sliding a fifty-dollar bill onto the counter.

Ming quickly makes the fifty disappear. "What d'ya have in mind?"

Veronica quickly goes over her plan. Ming suggests a couple refinements, and they set a time for one hour later. Veronica purchases dinner for herself and Dick, and returns to the car. They eat egg rolls and Hunan beef while Veronica explains her idea.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Pick and Roll**  
Mac researches; Veronica investigates  
Logan's house; Wallace has a fan.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Veronica: Kristen  
Bell. Dick: Ryan Hansen. Wallace: Percy  
Daggs III. Mordroc: Gabriel Tigerman.  
Ming: Welly Yang. Candice: Toy Connor.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER TWELVE: "PICK AND ROLL"

Tues. 1/27/09: early evening Neptune, CA

Mac walks into the Neptune Stardust Diner. She looks around the restaurant, trying to guess which patron is secretly a fellow computer hacker. As instructed, she takes a seat in a booth and turns to the retro jukebox mounted under the window sill. She looks at the song selections and, inserting a dollar in coins, selects B12. She smirks as "Undercover Angel" by Alan O'Day begins to play. A young man in his early twenties slides into the booth across from her.

"Mac?" he asks.

"Yes, you must be 'Mordroc'." Mac nervously wonders what the protocol is for shaking hands with a fellow hacker.

Mordroc notes her hesitation and grins, flashing her the Star Trek Vulcan symbol.

Mac laughs and returns the sign, saying, "Right, 'live long and prosper'. That song is totally teh suxor."

Mordroc grins and replies, "Couldn't help myself. I love seventies music. So Max said you're one of the best hackers he's ever worked with, and that's saying a lot. I like your site. What kind of hits were you getting before you had to shut it down?"

"About fifty hits a day, but the average number that signed up for the service was much less, maybe two per day, and not all of them had a valid credit card. We were just thinking about expanding and trying to improve our search engine placement rates when this started. We'd like to port it as a Facebook widget as well; we might include a game module to attract users," Mac explains.

"That's smart. But you have to remember that Facebook is definitely the new frontier for identity theft. Its popularity alone would make it desirable, but the new third-party apps are creating all sorts of security risks that people are just not aware of. If you're running a business there, you have to be prepared to upgrade your security protocols constantly," Mordroc comments.

"What can we do about the flirt-bot program now? Did you find out anything about it?" Mac asks.

Mordroc puts his laptop on the table and points questioningly at the seat next to Mac, and she nods 'okay'. He slides into the booth next to her and turns the laptop around so they can both see the screen. "I traced the program back through several anonymizing servers in remote locations. What I really don't like is that the programmers used the Cult of the Dead Cow's Tor encryption software to cover their tracks, and then they used our logo to try to shift the blame onto us. There's certainly some rogue hackers within the Cult, but our main emphasis has been hacktivism, especially the Goolag project."

He continues, "This is some seriously sophisticated code-writing; very experienced programmers were involved in this. It's not some kid experimenting with coding vulnerabilities. I'm pretty sure that this is the Russian mafia."

At Mac's look of disbelief, Mordroc says, "Russian investors have been investing in a lot of U.S. internet companies, including livejournal. Gravitonus received a grant from the U.S. Civilian Research & Development Foundation to develop a user interface for the disabled. Russian computer scientists developed CuneiForm, the optical character recognition software. Those are all legitimate businesses, but there was also a famous case in 2004 where Russian hackers targeted the bookmaking industry in the United Kingdom. It's only logical to assume that the Russian mafia has moved into identity theft over the internet. The risk is low, and the rewards are great."

"So what do we do?" Mac asks.

"I've alerted some of my fellow cult members, and we'll be working on coming up with a solution. We consider this a direct attack on us. In the meantime, I've found some vulnerabilities in their software you can exploit for now. But I think you can assume that you are going to have to be vigilant to protect your site," Mordroc says solemnly. "Here's what you're going to do." He begins tapping at the keyboard, and Mac looks on intently.

Tues. 1/27/09: early evening Venice Beach, CA

In Venice, Dick drives back to the public beach access point half a mile down the road. Veronica puts on her black wig that she used so successfully at Gameland. Dick reluctantly takes the baseball cap that Veronica hands him.

"This casual look doesn't just happen, you know," he protests. "There's product involved."

"Put. It. ON."

"Okay, okay. You're bitchy when Logan's not around."

"Taking a big chance with your life, Dick," she mutters.

He wisely decides to remain silent and puts on the baseball cap.

"Try to act like my boyfriend, all right? I know it's a stretch," she says as they get out of the car. Holding Backup by his leash, they walk down the beach hand in hand, joining the other couples enjoying the spectacular Venice Beach sunset.

As they approach Logan's house, Veronica checks her watch. "We're a little early. Stop and look out at the sunset. Put your arm around me, Dick." She leans into Dick's embrace, keeping one eye on her watch. Dick's hand drifts down below Veronica's waist, and she stiffens. "Dick!"

"My bad," he replies, returning his arm to Veronica's shoulder. "Can't help myself."

"Okay, pretend to hug me, and keep it strictly PG." She watches as several men with cameras head for the front of Logan's house. "That's our cue." Veronica and Dick, with Backup tagging along, quietly go up the steps to the deck in back of Logan's house.

At the front of Logan's house, Ming rings Logan's doorbell. He speaks using a thick put-on Chinese accent. "Mr. Rogan? It's Ming from Woo Too, with derivery ohr-der. Mr. Rogan??" The reporters stop congregating and swarm the front of Logan's house, hoping for a shot of a distraught Logan Echolls ordering in Chinese food.

In the rear, Veronica uses her key to let them into Logan's house then disables the security system. She tells Backup, "Guard," and Backup obediently sits. "Okay, Dick, we've got ten minutes. You know what to do."

Out front, Ming looks frustrated at the lack of response. He asks the reporters if they've seen 'Rogan'. When they shake their head, Ming begins to tell a long, gossipy story in a thick accent about seeing Logan in his unmentionables.

Dick goes to Logan's bedroom and looks around, trying to determine in the fading sunset light what's missing without turning a light on to alert the reporters outside. Meanwhile, Veronica goes to Logan's desk. She turns on his laptop, surprised that he didn't take his computer with him. Using a small flashlight, she checks in the desk and sees that Logan's passport and his stash of ready cash is missing. Logan's cell phone charger sits empty on the desk. Veronica uses Logan's login to check his email and browser history. His inbox shows a confirmation for a reservation at a hotel in Tijuana. She also finds a receipt for a rental car, a relatively sedate Volvo S80. She forwards both emails to her own account. In his browser history, she finds a search for Tijuana lodging, but as she scrolls down she realizes that Logan cleared his browser history recently. She tries typing the URLs of a few travel sites like Expedia, hoping the autocomplete function on Firefox will give her some clue where he's been surfing, but all personal data, including cookies and the browser cache, have been cleared and she has no success.

Veronica checks the documents file and is surprised to find all of Logan's fiction and schoolwork has been deleted. She opens Norton Utilities and sees to her dismay that Logan defragmented his hard drive on January 25, thus rendering useless any recoverable deleted files. Sighing and cursing that she taught him all her tricks, she decides to try to locate his most recent files, knowing it will probably be futile. She uses the 'find' function, asking the computer to find all documents created after January 22, 2009, and quickly copies all the resulting files to her flash drive. While she waits for the files to finish copying, she takes a quick look around the living room. Nothing seems out of the ordinary, but when she looks a little closer, she realizes that one of Logan's photos of her has been replaced by a generic photo of the beach. She checks her watch and calls out, "That's time, Dick; let's go."

Out front, Ming finishes his tale about Logan. He tells the reporters to hold on; he needs to check with his boss. Ming pulls out a cell phone and pretends to talk to his boss at Woo Too in Chinese. After an animated one-sided discussion, complete with hand gestures and dramatic facial expressions, Ming hangs up and tries ringing the doorbell again. "Mr. Rogan? My boss says you there. Don't worry, reporters all gone for sure." He winks at the paparazzi, who prepare their cameras for the money shot.

Veronica, Dick and Backup slip out the back entrance and resume walking on the beach, heading back for Dick's car.

Veronica grabs Dick's hand and looks up at him, pretending to smile. "So what did you find, honey?"

"He took one small bag, that brown backpack he uses for school. I think a couple pair of jeans, t-shirts, maybe one nice shirt, that green one you bought him. His swim trunks, the really ugly ones with the blue fish. Flip-flops and sunscreen, toothbrush, stuff like that," Dick says.

"Anything surprising missing?"

"Just that he didn't take very much. Maybe he was hurrying."

Veronica chances a look back and sees that the paparazzi have resumed their places observing the back entrance of Logan's house. "Mission accomplished. And no one's the wiser."

"You're gonna tell Mac that I did good, right?"

"Not only that, you did well."

"That's what I said," Dick says, a little confused.

Tues. 1/27/09 evening: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

When the Hearst College basketball team enters the gym, Wallace searches the stands for familiar faces. He sees Mac and nods as she waves at him. He sees a petite African-American woman making her way to an empty seat; when she sits and turns to face the court, Wallace sees that Candice has come to the game as she had promised him. _All RIGHT!_ he thinks.

Wallace has an unbelievable game. The opponents, the Colorado State Rams, are a strong team this year, and they put up a worthy fight, but Fennel is on fire. After a particularly stellar lay-up, he sneaks a glance at Candice and sees her smiling and applauding. At the end of the game, Hearst wins, 72 to 69, and Wallace is named player of the game.

When Wallace exits the locker room, he is thrilled to see Candice waiting for him. "Mr. Fennel. I must say I've never seen the appeal of basketball before, but I had a lot of fun tonight. I wondered if you wanted to celebrate your victory," she says shyly.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Go Ahead, Fake My Day**  
Veronica and Dick go to TJ;  
Logan on the run.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Dick: Ryan Hansen.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER THIRTEEN: "GO AHEAD, FAKE MY DAY"

Tues. 1/27/09 late evening: Tijuana, Mexico

Later that night, Dick parks his car in a lot on the U.S. side of the border with Tijuana, Mexico. "I don't understand why we can't drive over."

"I'm not taking a chance that we're going to get stuck for hours at Customs on the way back. It's already eleven o'clock. We're going to walk in, take a taxi to the hotel I found on Logan's computer. I'm sure he's not there anyways; he left that reservation for me to find," Veronica says.

"If you're sure, why do we have to do this?"

"The Hertz agent told me that the car reservation was used. The hotel says that Logan Echolls checked in last night. Somebody drove that car here and checked in, and I want to talk to him." She thinks, _When I find Logan, I'm going to...I don't know what I'm going to do to him, but I'm never going to tell him another story about how to disappear._

Dick looks at her sympathetically. "Veronica, I'm sure he's okay. He'll come back as soon as the paparazzi calm down."

They exit the car and walk toward the border. The crossing is uneventful, and they hail a taxi, asking it to take them to the Hacienda del Rio. Veronica asks, "Dick, is this a place you guys have stayed?"

"Once, I think. It's not great; the only selling point is it's close to Avenida Révolución. And it's cheap," Dick says.

When they get to the hotel, Veronica goes to the front desk and asks in Spanish for Mr. Echolls' room. The clerk clears his throat and replies, "Creo que Señor Echolls salió por la noche. Él pidió direcciones al 'Adelita Bar'." He raises his eyebrows, looking at Veronica.

Dicks pulls Veronica aside and whispers in her ear, "Um, Veronica? He's saying that Logan asked for directions to a whorehouse in La Coahuila."

"And you know this because..." she says. "Never mind. Would Logan go there?"

"We've been there, more than once." Seeing Veronica's look of disgust, he continues, "I didn't say we used their services, but, c'mon, it's Tijuana, what'dya think we did down here?"

"I don't know, tequila shots, maybe?" she says witheringly.

"Veronica, you can't go in there, you know. A beautiful girl like you–it would be open season," Dick says.

"You'll have to go in for me." She realizes something and asks Dick, "Would Logan need directions to Adelita?"

Dick replies, "Can't imagine, unless that hematoma thing knocked out all his sweet memories of Tijuana hookers."

Veronica turns back to the hotel desk and pulls out her PI license and shows it to the clerk. "Señor, we believe the real Mr. Echolls is the victim of identity theft...alguien ha robado su identidad." The clerk nods that he understands. "I'm sure you want to cooperate with us in this matter, uh, seguro que quieres ayudar. We are working with the FBI, who are very interested in locating this person in a related matter." She returns her PI license to her purse and takes out a picture of Logan. Stumbling a little in the Spanish, she says, "Es una foto de...uh, el verdadero Señor Echolls. Es el hombre que esta aqui en el hotel?"

The clerk studies the photo. "Well, he looks a little like this guy. Short hair, dark blond, good looking, about six feet tall. All the ladies were checking him out."

Veronica sighs, realizing she could have asked her questions in English. "Did he have a cane?"

"Yep. Hey, you guys need a room?"

Veronica shakes her head and says, "I don't think so. Thanks for the help."

"De nada, senorita." The clerk smiles at her. "Your friend is right, don't go in Adelita."

Tues. 1/27/09 late evening: Somewhere in the United States

In a cheap motel off a deserted highway, Logan locks the door behind him and tosses his backpack and laptop onto the bed. He uses the bathroom, splashing some water on his face. He sits on the bed and contemplates the television, finally deciding that he doesn't want to risk seeing his face on the screen. He pulls out the new laptop he purchased for cash on his last day in L.A. Logan opens a small disc case and peruses the DVDs he brought with him. All his favorite films are here. He rejects 'Reservoir Dogs' and 'Pulp Fiction', thinking _too bloody, too violent_. He considers 'American Beauty' and 'Cold Mountain', but the thought of impossible love that can never be attained hits too close to home. Finally, Logan selects 'Million-Dollar Baby', but stops the film after twenty minutes, realizing that he'll start to weep if he watches the whole movie. He slides the disc back into the case, and looks through some of his other movies: Alfred Hitchcock's 'Vertigo' and 'Rear Window'; the Coen brothers' 'Fargo'; and Polanski's 'Chinatown'. The twists and turns of the great masters feel too similar to his own past and remind him too much of Veronica and her investigations. He finally realizes that all the movies that he loves are too powerful for the way he feels right now.

He undresses and gets in bed, staring up at the watermarked ceiling. _Tomorrow's going to be a long day. First up: new ID, then get rid of the car. I bet Veronica's already found the Tijuana reservations._

_Tomorrow phase two starts. I hope that schmuck Harvey Greenblatt was right about Jessica Simpson's schedule. Am I doing the right thing? Veronica's probably furious. If she's furious, she can't be sad. And if I stay away, maybe she'll actually be all right. She'll never forgive me, but...at least she'll be all right. The paparazzi will forget about her eventually. God, I miss her; I wish she was here._

Logan's mind wanders to a bittersweet fantasy that sustained and tortured him for many months several years ago. He is lying on the couch in the suite at the Neptune Grand, wearing Duncan's borrowed argyle sweater with a magazine covering his face. Veronica comes in and lays on top of him. He stays perfectly still, hoping she will not realize that it's him and not Duncan. She caresses his chest, then to his delight she moves down, unzips him, and opens his pants. Pulling his shorts down, she puts her mouth on him; he groans involuntarily, but manages to keep his face concealed under the magazine. Veronica licks him teasingly for long minutes as he gives himself over to the rush of the sensations. He is frustrated and overwhelmed as she licks under and over him, and around the sensitive rim and tip; he can't decide if he wants the agony and ecstasy to stop or never to stop. She stops suddenly, and his cock jerks uncontrollably; she circles her hand around him and begins to stroke him as she takes him in her mouth. The exquisite friction of her grasp is unbearably exciting, and he inadvertently thrusts into her with a quiet gasp of pleasure. She moans in response and tightens her lips around him. Guiltily he throws the magazine aside, reaches for her, and pulls her up to him, saying "It's me, Veronica; stop, it's me."

She answers, "I knew it was you. Of course I knew it was you." She kisses him, and he tastes the saltiness of himself on her mouth. She sits up and tugs at the argyle sweater; he lifts his arms and allows her to remove it. She leans down to kiss him again. He battles her tongue with his own and reaches under her short skirt to caress the crotch of her soft underwear. She is damp with arousal and he moans, "Veronica..." He reaches up and slips his hand between her skin and her panties, and drags his middle finger, slowly, teasingly, across her nub. She spreads her legs and presses against his hand, begging him, "Logan, please..." but he keeps stroking her lightly, tormenting her with the gentleness of his caresses. He pulls his hand away, ignoring her cry of disappointment, then suddenly sits up and flips her under him on the couch.

Quickly discarding his jeans and shorts, he pulls off her panties and lays on top of her. He pushes her shirt up, and he grabs her wrists, holding them above her head with one hand. He kisses her breasts as she moans uncontrollably. He begins to gently lick and suck her right nipple as he strokes her left between his thumb and forefinger. She gasps and grinds her pelvis into him, but he rolls away, adjusting the weight of his legs to hold her down to the couch while preventing her from rubbing against his stiff cock. He bends down to her breast and sucks her nipple hard, teasing and nipping, forcing her to cry out. He pulls away and looks at her flushed face.

"Please..." she whispers.

"What do you want from me, Veronica? Why were you sucking me off?" he asks intensely.

"Please..." she repeats, flinching at his coarse words.

"What do you want?" he says angrily. He bends to her neck and bites her, marking her.

"Oh god...Logan, I want you to fuck me!" she finally cries in desperation.

Logan bites her neck again and she arches into him, struggling against his weight. He releases her wrists and forces himself between her legs. He pulls her calf up and over his shoulder, intending to give her the fucking she's asking for. He positions himself at her entrance; she's as wet and ready for him as she's ever been. He pulls back to look at her again as he pushes relentlessly into her tightness, thrusting as hard as he's ever fucked a woman. She gasps and closes her eyes. He stops mid-stroke and demands, "Open your eyes. Look at me, Veronica. Tell me it's me you want, and not Duncan."

Her eyes flutter open, and she whispers, "Don't stop, Logan. Love you..."

He resumes thrusting, and Veronica touches his face, drawing his lips to hers. She moans against his mouth, and he begins to pound into her, trying to punish her for her betrayal with each stroke, but she matches him willfully on each thrust, grabbing his ass, pulling him closer and urging him on. He pulls back for leverage and begins to fuck her with a vengeance, with Veronica saying, "Yes, yes, Logan, god don't stop" as he buries himself in her over and over.

In the cheap motel, Logan groans as he comes. He bitterly thinks about the implications of his mind going to such an angry fantasy about the woman he loves. He staggers to the bathroom to clean himself up. He examines his face in the flickering fluorescent light of the bathroom; he touches the fading bruise on his eye and scratches at his two-day growth of beard. Logan returns to the bed, trying not to think about traveling even farther away from her the next day. Before he lays down to sleep, he turns on the bedside light and pulls a photo of Veronica from his backpack. He runs his fingers over her face and sighs, certain that he's doing the right thing to protect her from his train wreck of a life. Logan doesn't sleep much that night; he adds the guilt of his angry fantasies to his long list of sins and berates himself late into the night.

Tues. 1/27/09 very late: Tijuana, Mexico

Veronica waits in the taxi outside Adelita Bar while Dick goes in to try to find someone using a cane. Several times the taxi is approached by streetwalkers; the taxi driver looks back at Veronica for guidance, and Veronica shakes her head that she's not interested. The taxi driver finally says, "Señorita, que haces aquí? Es un sitio muy peligroso para una mujer como usted."

She thinks for a second and responds, "Estoy buscando a mi amigo...ah, boyfriend?"

"Tu novio? Ah, entiendo," the driver replies nodding.

Holding a cane in one hand, Dick pulls a young man out of the club and pushes him into the taxi. Dick gets in after him and shuts the door.

"Mr. Echolls, I presume?" Veronica asks.

"He wasn't even pretending to use the cane. I saw it laying on the floor, and I waited until someone sat down at that table," Dick explains.

"You must be Veronica," the man says, looking from Veronica to Dick and back to Veronica. "I have a note for you. Logan said you'd probably show up." He hands Veronica a slip of paper.

_Veronica,_

_I asked you not to look for me. This is for the best. My friend Rob agreed to help me out, for a fee of course. He doesn't know anything about where I really am. Please, do as I ask, Veronica. If you ever loved me, you won't look for me._

_Logan_

Veronica crumples the note in anger. _Game on, Logan_, she thinks.

* * *

Spanish translations:

"Creo que Señor Echolls salió por la noche. Él pidió direcciones al 'Adelita Bar'."  
I believe that Mr. Echolls left for the evening. He asked directions to the Adelita Bar.

"Señorita, que haces aquí? Es un sitio muy peligroso para una mujer como usted."  
Miss, what are you doing here? This is a dangerous place for a woman like you.

"Estoy buscando a mi amigo...ah, boyfriend?"  
I'm looking for my friend...ah, boyfriend?

"Tu novio? Ah, entiendo."  
Your boyfriend? Oh, I see.


	7. Chapters 14 to 17

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy and Poniesforall. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

* * *

**When Veronica sees how upset Tara is, she hugs her, even though she knows it's against the rules. Tara stares at her wide-eyed, shaking her head 'no'.**

**The group leader runs to Veronica, grabs her arm, and shakes her violently. "What are you doing? You're enabling her to stay in denial. You know the rules; you don't interfere with another girl's treatment." She pulls Veronica to her feet and drags her out of the room, handing her off to another counselor. After a hurried consultation with the group leader, the counselor escorts Veronica to a room with no windows and pushes her in. The counselor gives Veronica a spiral notebook and several pens and says, "Write an essay. 100,000 words."**

**"On what topic?" Veronica says belligerently. "This is bull."**

**"Okay. 150,000 words. Do you want to go for 200? You're a whiner and a complainer, Connie, and you think the rules don't apply to you. Each time you fight us we add another month to your treatment plan. When are you going to accept that you need this?" The counselor shuts the door, locking Veronica inside.**

**Seven weeks earlier...  
**

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Things Better Left Buried**  
Keith tells Veronica to back off; an  
incident at LAX; Hannah's mother  
hires Mars Investigations.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Stephanie Denenberg: Stacy Edwards. Leo:  
Max Greenfield. Sacks: Brandon Hillock.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FOURTEEN: "THINGS BETTER LEFT BURIED"

Wed. 1/28/09 morning: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

At Mars Investigations the next day, Veronica is intently looking at the computer screen. First she checks Logan's dotmac account that she set up for him. As she suspected, it's been canceled; she supposes on some server, there's a trace of the 0's and 1's that represented the backup of Logan's documents, but for all intents and purposes the backups have disappeared into the void of cyberspace.

She runs a check on Logan's real estate holdings. When Aaron was killed, Logan inherited several properties that Veronica suspects were primarily used for Aaron's many assignations. It appears, as Logan had told her, that he sold all of Aaron's getaways to finance the charity called "The Bridge" that Logan created in the fall. The only property Logan held onto was a condo in Aspen that Veronica knows was an Echolls family retreat that Aaron probably did not use for his affairs. Veronica makes a note of the address in Aspen.

She sighs, then begins to work on setting up traces on all of Logan's credit cards. None appear to have been used in the last week. Veronica is so absorbed in her work that she doesn't hear her dad approach until he says, "Whatcha doin'?"

She jumps and turns to him guiltily.

He looks at the screen and says, "Veronica, honey. I'm not sure you should be doing this."

"Dad, I can't help it; I'm worried about him. He was so upset and depressed the last time we saw him."

"I know. But I think he's trying to be honorable. He genuinely feels that his presence here at this time might cause problems for you. And he's sad about Hannah. Imagine if Piz was killed, in some horrible way. It doesn't matter if you don't love him anymore; the fact that you had a connection at one time makes the tragedy more horrible. And in Logan's case, he made some decisions that affected Hannah's life, and you wouldn't care about him if he was oblivious to the pain he caused her. He's facing up to the consequences of his actions in high school."

Veronica thinks for a minute, then says, "He asked you to help, didn't he. You helped him disappear."

"No, Veronica, I didn't, and I wouldn't do that to you. But I'm pretty sure he did consider asking me for help, because he knew that I was worried about you too. Did you happen to notice that you didn't have to run a gauntlet of paparazzi this morning? Logan was right about one thing; trouble does seem to follow him."

"What if he starts drinking again?" Veronica asks.

Keith picks up the crumpled note that Veronica got in Tijuana from the desk. "Looks like Logan laid a false trail for you, and you followed it up. He's been smart enough not to use his credit cards, and he's managed to avoid reporters for several days now. My point is that he seems to be in complete control of his faculties and not sitting in a bar drinking. I know I can't stop you from pursuing him, but I wish you would trust him a little more. He'll come back when he's ready." Keith kisses the top of Veronica's head. "Veronica, what's going on with Duncan? I hope you've given up on the idea of testifying for him."

"We're going to try to convince Lizzie Manning to testify against her father. Duncan called this morning, and we're going to head over to San Diego State to talk to her." She adds in her head, _Duncan thinks half a million should be enough to convince anyone to do the right thing._

"Do you have time to do some research for me today?" Keith asks.

"Maybe later when I get back from San Diego...what's up?"

"Just take a look at this file when you get a chance and run background checks on the principals." He hands her a thick file, and Veronica opens it and begins reading about a prominent local attorney. "There's some monkey business going on with this guy. The family of one of his clients asked us to investigate regarding possible fraud."

"Mr. Mars?"

Veronica and Keith turn toward the door. It's Stephanie Denenberg, Hannah's mother. She says, "Could I have a minute of your time, Mr. Mars?"

"Of course. We're...so sorry for your loss," Keith says, aware of the inadequacy of the sentiment.

Ms. Denenberg nods, keeping her gaze on Keith to avoid looking at Veronica. Keith motions toward the office, and she enters and sits down. Keith says quietly to Veronica, "Why don't you put on some coffee, honey?" and he follows Ms. Denenberg in, closing the door.

Veronica starts a pot of coffee then glances at the file Keith has given her. The attorney, Douglas Stern Jr., a partner at Simon and Stern, specializes in wills and trust and has served as the executor for several recently deceased '09'ers. She returns the file to her desk, making a mental note to work on it later. As Veronica leaves Mars Investigation, she stares at the inner office door, wondering what Hannah's mother is saying._  
_

- • -

Wed. 1/28/09 morning: LAX, Los Angeles, CA

At Los Angeles International Airport, Jessica Simpson exits the arrivals area and waves at the waiting paparazzi. She poses prettily as the reporters take photos and ask fawning questions about her latest project. One reporter notices a familiar young man, wearing sunglasses, with a cane and a brown backpack walking toward the security check-in. He hustles toward the man and takes a photo; the man notices and begins to walk hurriedly toward the International Departures security area, leaning heavily on his cane. The young man hands his travel documents to the security personnel, and the reporter calls out, "Where are you headed, Logan?" The man ignores the reporter and passes through security. As he heads toward the gates, he looks over his shoulder, and the reporter snaps another photo.

The reporter hurries to the ticket counter and buys the cheapest ticket available; he hustles to the security area, waiting impatiently as his camera bag and shoes are x-rayed, then runs through the terminal, searching at each gate. At a KLM gate, he manages to photograph his quarry disappearing into the jetway for a flight to Amsterdam.

- • -

Wed. 1/28/09 morning: Sheriff's Dept., Neptune, CA

"Sheriff?" Deputy Sacks asks, poking his head into Leo D'Amato's office.

"What's up?" Leo answers.

"We got a report here from the San Diego Naval Base. A squadron of Hawkeye jets were running a routine training mission over Anza-Borrego Desert, and they noticed a large smoky fire yesterday. The local fire department in Ranchita said they didn't have any calls."

"Ranchita? That's an unincorporated area right?" Leo asks.

"Yes sir. That makes it under our jurisdiction," Sacks replies.

"Can you check it out tomorrow?"

"Sure thing. They noted the GPS coordinates of the sighting so it should easy to locate," Sacks says.

- • -

Wed. 1/28/09 morning: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

"Ms. Denenberg, tell me why you're here," Keith says gently.

"I'd like to hire you. I've recently...reconsidered...some of my actions three years ago. I was contacted by a fellow student of Hannah's who has told me some horrific stories about the Briar Hill school," Ms. Denenberg says slowly.

"Horrific?" Keith echoes.

"How much do you know about my daughter's history in Neptune?" she asks.

"My daughter Veronica has told me that Hannah was dating Logan Echolls just before she, uh, transferred to Briar Hill," Keith replies cryptically.

"And your daughter Veronica is...with Logan Echolls now, is that correct?"

"Yes. Ms. Denenberg, I'm close with Mr. Echolls as well at this time, although three years ago I was not. I think, before we go any further, I need to disclose that Logan has talked with me about his motivations regarding your daughter, but I'm not going to be able to reveal to you what he told me," Keith says.

Ms. Denenberg sighs. "Hannah herself told me that Logan originally pursued her in order to force my husband into withdrawing his testimony. At the time, I believed that my husband was telling the truth, that he had witnessed Logan on the bridge. Thomas and I had had our problems, but I did not believe at the time that he could commit perjury. Hannah was making wild accusations about her father. She said that she found cocaine in his house and had evidence that he was friends with known criminals. She found newspaper stories about the Fitzpatrick family and showed them to me, claiming that Thomas was partners with them in some crazy scheme to frame Logan. It was all too preposterous. Why would the Fitzpatricks target Logan Echolls? And why would my husband be involved?"

Keith sighs and leans back in his chair. "I'm not sure we'll ever really know the true story, Ms. Denenberg."

"Stephanie, please."

"Stephanie, at the time, I was quite convinced that Logan was guilty of killing Felix Toombs. He had a history of angry and impulsive behavior, and there was a well-known feud between him and the PCH gang. I was as surprised as anyone when the charges were dropped. Although it was not released publicly, I believe that the real witness that night on the bridge was later found, and he cleared Logan definitively," Keith explains. "I'm not excusing his behavior regarding your daughter. I think Logan would be all right with me telling you that he himself has expressed to me how much he regrets what he did."

Stephanie replies, "When my husband found out that Hannah was still seeing Logan despite having recanted his testimony, he called me and convinced me that we needed to take strong action if we wanted to preserve her future. Thomas said that we needed to get Hannah away from Logan, to a secure facility where we could make sure that someone with access to resources like Logan's could not get to her. I hated Logan on sight; he was every parent's nightmare boyfriend, and my daughter couldn't seem to get enough of him. Hannah and I had nightly screaming matches about him. We went from a very close mother-daughter relationship to a bitter feud almost overnight; I felt that I could barely recognize her, and I blamed Logan Echolls. I was worried that she would end up pregnant, or involved in some violent crime. My husband found a school in Vermont, Briar Hill Academy, that was about as far away as possible without leaving the country. He said that it had a good reputation for rehabilitating defiant children and had an excellent track record for security. I spoke to several parents who had children there, and they raved about the place. They said that Briar Hill was responsible for saving their children's lives."

Stephanie continues, "We used their transport service to take Hannah to the school. I was quite concerned when they placed handcuffs on her, but Hannah was screaming that she was going to run away, and we couldn't keep her from Logan. She said that she hated us, over and over again." Stephanie begins to shake with the effort of holding back tears. "I couldn't recognize my own daughter, and I thought the school was the best option we had. I allowed them to take her away in handcuffs, and that's the last time I saw her alive." She begins to weep, and Keith stands up from behind his desk and sits beside her on the couch, trying to comfort her.

- • -

Wed. 1/28/09 morning: Exterior of Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Veronica gets in her Saturn parked outside of Mars Investigations. All of a sudden, the lack of sleep from her adventures in Tijuana the evening before combined with her distress about Logan's disappearance overwhelm her, and she leans her head back against the head rest, closing her eyes. The tears flow down her face unchecked.

Unnoticed by Veronica, a man in a nearby car takes a series of pictures with a telephoto lens.

Veronica mentally shakes herself, reminding herself of her dad's comment that Logan's evasive tactics implied he was doing all right. She searches for a tissue and blots her tears while the photographer continues to take photos. Despite her dad's reassurances, she decides to pursue the one angle she has left to track Logan and dials Mac on her cell phone.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**For the Sake of the Child**  
Ms. Denenberg speaks to Keith; Duncan asks  
Lizzie to testify; Keith asks Wallace for help.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Duncan 2.0: Chris  
Carmack. Lizzie Manning: Anastasia Baranova.  
Stephanie Denenberg: Stacy Edwards.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FIFTEEN: "FOR THE SAKE OF THE CHILD"

Wed. 1/28/09 morning: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Keith returns to his office with a cup of coffee and a box of tissues for Ms. Denenberg. He sits beside her again on the couch; she takes a tissue and wipes her eyes. "Did you talk to Hannah after she arrived at the school?" Keith finally asks when Ms. Denenberg has calmed down.

"The school has a policy of restricting contact with the parents for the first several months. She was allowed to call us once every two weeks. When I spoke to her, she admitted that the school was helping her, and she agreed that she needed to be there," Stephanie replies. "The school diagnosed her with a sexual addiction secondary to a borderline personality disorder and drug addiction. They implied that we had gotten help for her just in time, that Hannah would certainly have run away and probably ended up in jail or worse. They claimed that she also was 'cutting' herself, and that she was exhibiting sociopathic tendencies that were manifesting as defiant behavior toward her parents. When she ran away from the school, it seemed just to prove what they were saying–that Hannah had severe emotional problems. We hired private detectives to try to track her down, including one who was recommended by the school. I regret now that I didn't come to you at that time, but by that time, the whole Cassidy Casablancas...incident...had occurred and it was rumored that your daughter was seeing Logan Echolls again..."

"Yes, I can see why you would have hesitated to hire me," Keith comments. "Did the private detectives find any leads to your daughter's whereabouts?"

"No. She completely disappeared. One of the detectives implied that she would have required a great deal of money to disappear so completely, and he investigated Mr. Echolls quite thoroughly. But he was unable to find a connection, financially or otherwise. I believe the FBI is currently looking into that as well."

"I don't think you would be here if you believed that were true. You know that my daughter is very close with Logan."

Stephanie sighs and says, "I was quite impressed with Mr. Echolls' charity in the fall. He does appear to have reformed, in quite a public way."

"Well, he intended to be an anonymous benefactor, but circumstances changed...What exactly is it that you would like me to do for you, Stephanie?"

"Mr. Mars, I was contacted a few days ago by another student from Briar Hill Academy. She had quite a tale; she claimed that the school abuses its students: locking them in isolation for days a time; forcing them to admit to imaginary crimes in group therapy; and encouraging a system of punishment administered by the long-term students against the most recent arrivals. She claimed that no student is ever cured; the school tells the parents that more intensive therapy is needed in order to prevent dire future problems, and the school continues to keep the students until the parents' resources are completely drained."

"Are you saying that it's a scam, that the school is not actually providing treatment?" Keith asks, shocked.

Stephanie nods. "The school contacted me after a few weeks and asked for permission to start more intensive, and by the way very expensive, treatments. When it was time to bring Hannah home for the summer, they convinced me that she was still at risk for self-destructive behavior. They said that Hannah still talked about running away with Logan in group therapy. I agreed to continue the residential treatment over the summer. When she ran away not long after that, it seemed to prove what they had been saying...Keith, I am convinced that the school made a bad situation far, far worse, and if this other student is correct, there are girls at the school suffering...like Hannah must have suffered." Her voice trails off, and Stephanie drops her eyes to her lap. She takes a deep breath and looks up at Keith. "Keith, I want to shut that school down. I spent a long time hating Logan Echolls, but I don't blame him anymore. I blame myself. I sent Hannah there; I ruined her life." She begins to weep again, and Keith pulls her into a hug, patting her back ineffectually.

"Stephanie, of course I'll look into the school if that's what you really want. But you can't blame yourself. It sounds like this school preys on the worries of parents. You were trying to do the right thing for your daughter. No one ever knows how to deal with a teenager."

- • -

Wed. 1/28/09 afternoon: San Diego, CA

On campus at San Diego State University, Veronica, Wallace, and Duncan, carrying his daughter, walk toward the lecture hall where Lizzie is supposed to be taking a morning class.

"How do you know Lizzie's schedule?" Duncan asks.

"Miss Nosy-Pants here got Mac to break into the registrar's computer," Wallace says teasingly. He has been trying to distract Veronica all morning, but her responses have been very muted.

Veronica says matter-of-factly, "We had to get her schedule to talk to her last fall. Mac can do a hack like this in her sleep."

"Remind me not to piss you off," Duncan says to Veronica.

"You're just figuring that out now?" she replies halfheartedly.

Duncan and Wallace exchange a glance.

"Daddy, let me down!" Jane/Lilly cries.

"No, Jane. We'll be there in a minute."

"Aunt Lizzie?" Jane asks.

"Yes, Jane."

"All right, there's the building," Veronica says, pointing at the large lecture hall. "Dun–I mean, Daniel, you and Jane wait on the bench by the tree until I signal you. Wallace, you intercept Lizzie, then I will come from behind to make sure to make sure she doesn't run away."

The double doors at the entrance to the hall suddenly open and a multitude of students hurry out of the building. Wallace scans the faces until he recognizes Lizzie. He quickly walks to her and says, "Lizzie? Can you hold up a minute?"

"What? Wait a second, aren't you that friend of Veronica's that got taped to the flag pole?" Lizzie asks.

"That's what you remember from high school? You don't remember me playing varsity basketball, or tackling Lucky?" Wallace asks in disbelief.

"Get away from me. I don't have to talk to you," she replies. She turns and runs right into Veronica standing behind her.

"You're right; you don't have to talk to us, but I promise we'll make your life hell if you don't. I'm not in the mood for games today," Veronica says. "Lizzie, you know I told you the truth last fall."

Lizzie stares at her in silence.

"It wasn't me that was blackmailing your family, it was Sheriff Lamb," Veronica adds.

"Doesn't matter, Dad says you're the one that told Lamb..." Lizzie's voice trails off.

"Will you listen to yourself? It's my fault because I exposed your dad's abuse to a man who should have stopped it, but instead began to blackmail your family?"

Lizzie just glares. Veronica nods at Duncan, who walks over slowly, holding Jane/Lilly by the hand.

"What the hell is this?" Lizzie exclaims. "I'm out of here." She turns to leave, but Wallace grabs her arm, forcing her to stop.

"Lizzie, we thought you might like to meet your niece," Veronica explains.

Duncan says warily, "Uh, Lizzie, this is Jane. We, uh, changed her name because of the f-e-d-e-r-a-l a-g-e-n-t-s." He raises his eyebrows at Lizzie.

"Duncan?" Lizzie gasps. "I...never would have recognized you."

"Actually, I'm going by the name Daniel now," Duncan explains.

"Daddy! She knows your secret name! Is she playing the game too?" Jane whispers excitedly, looking up at Duncan and tugging on his hand.

Duncan says, "Yes, Jane. This is your Aunt Lizzie."

"Aunt Lizzie? You're my mommy's sister! Do you want to see my dolly?" Jane asks.

Despite herself, Lizzie kneels and looks at Jane. "She looks like..."

"She looks like Grace. It's remarkable," Veronica says.

"Guess how old I am?" Jane says, then cups her hand around Lizzie's ear and whispers, "I'm three now!" She grabs Lizzie's hand and says with glee, "Aunt Lizzie! Let's go to the playground. Daddy is always busy now and never has time to play."

"I'm sorry, Jane. I promise; we'll have lots of time to play soon," Duncan says apologetically. "Lizzie, I'm taking a big chance showing you my new face. Will you at least listen to me?"

Lizzie stands up, dropping Jane's hand. Jane tugs on Lizzie's pant leg and reaches again for Lizzie's hand. Lizzie reluctantly acquiesces to Jane's demands, saying to Veronica, "God, you're a manipulative bitch. Did you coach her to do that?"

Duncan interjects, "No, Lizzie. Jane is just a happy kid, who deserves more than a life on the run."

"I don't know what you want from me. My dad is determined to get custody. He's lining up experts on epileptic seizures and psychiatrists who will testify that your fleeing the country is a sign of a sociopathic mental illness," Lizzie protests.

Duncan says slowly, "Lizzie, I'm prepared to offer you a chance to have a life of your own, without having to follow your father's insane rules. I remember what he did to you when I was dating Meg. I know you wanted to go to college on the east coast, and Veronica told me that you were admitted to Georgetown. I bet they would take you as a transfer student, if only you had the financial resources to take advantage of it."

Lizzie remains silent as Duncan removes an envelope from his breast pocket. He pulls out a check and hands it her.

"50,000?" Lizzie gasps.

"That's ten percent of what I'm prepared to offer you if you will testify against your father at the custody hearing. That's enough to pay for college and quite a few wild parties besides. Enough for a year abroad. Everything you want could be yours. All I'm asking for is the truth. I don't want you to lie," Duncan says somberly. "Lizzie, I gave up my life for Jane. Won't you please help me to keep her away from your parents?"

Lizzie looks from Duncan to Veronica to Wallace and hesitates.

Jane looks up at her and says, "What's 'bitch', Aunt Lizzie?"

Lizzie flushes and drops Jane's hand. "I'll think about it." She shoves the check back at Duncan, who holds up his hands.

"Lizzie, you can keep the check for talking to us today," he explains. "Call Veronica with your answer as soon as you can." He picks up Jane in his arms. Duncan, Veronica, and Wallace walk away, with Jane waving good-bye from Duncan's arms. Lizzie stares thoughtfully at the check in her hands.

- • -

Wed. 1/28/09 afternoon: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Keith remains lost in thought long after Stephanie Denenberg leaves the office. Her intense guilt was no less debilitating than Logan's. The serial killer's actions was having an intense effect on all the people who knew Hannah. Keith understands Ms. Denenberg's compulsion to shut down the Briar Hill school all too well; it reminds him of his single-minded, obsessed pursuit of Lilly Kane's murderer. He begins to make some notes on the case, deciding to begin by running background checks on the school's founder and employees and by investigating the licensing procedure for private schools in Vermont.

Keith decides that he also needs to get the perspective of Hannah's teachers. Stephanie seemed uncertain that her daughter actually had the mental problems that Briar Hill Academy reported; surely the Neptune school psychologist would have noticed the extreme symptoms relayed by the Vermont staff. He leaves a message for Rebecca James, asking for an appointment next week.

He has a sobering thought; Keith reluctantly concedes he might need Veronica's help on this case to talk with Hannah's school friends. He grimaces and decides to try to keep her out of this case as much as possible. _There's no way in hell I'll allow her to investigate a serial killer._ He has another thought, realizing that Logan would be an invaluable asset in this case. He sighs, knowing that Logan truly needs to be away from the media frenzy.

Wallace knocks on the door frame and Keith is jarred from his thoughts. "Yo. What's happening? Vee said Hannah's mother was here."

Keith hesitates, then says, "Yes. I'm going to be investigating the school where Hannah Griffith was sent. I'd like you and Veronica to stay away from this case, though. I don't want to have to worry about either of you accidentally stumbling on something that will draw the attention of this Slasher person."

Wallace shrugs and replies, "Of course. You're the boss. You tell Veronica, though."

Keith nods. "I do have something else for you to work on today. I need you to do some research on how to detect items hidden underground." Keith adds to himself, _I can't let Wallace know too much about this. He can't be involved in a murder coverup._

"How about a metal detector?" Wallace asks.

"What I'm going to be looking for is unlikely to be metallic or radioactive, so a metal detector or a Geiger counter are useless. Is there anyone you could talk to in the engineering department who might have some ideas?" Keith replies.

_I just happen to know a grad student who might have some expertise with this,_ Wallace thinks. Aloud, he says, "I'll check it out. Can you give me any more details? What depth are we talking? If it's not metallic, what is the composition?"

"Less than 10 feet, I'd say. Probably wood or plastic, something like that," Keith says evasively.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Guise Gone Wild**  
Logan hides his tracks; Wallace and Candice  
on a date; Keith meets with Vinnie.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Vinnie Van Lowe:  
Ken Marino. Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
Candice Pauling: Toy Connor.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SIXTEEN: "GUISE GONE WILD"

Wed. 1/28/09 afternoon: Somewhere in the United States

Logan sits in his car outside a Walmart. He looks at the new ID he procured that morning in a rather sketchy part of town. _Not as good as Veronica's ID's, but it'll do the job._ He waits for a likely candidate for his next task to pass by. Finally, a young Mexican boy, around twelve years old, walks by. Logan steps out of the car and approaches him.

"Do you want to make some money?" Logan asks.

The boy looks at him suspiciously. Logan holds up two folded hundred dollar bills, and the boy reaches for them. "Not so fast," Logan says, pulling the money out of reach.

"What do I have to do?" the boy says, looking around.

"Go in the Walmart, buy me some clothes. Western style, OK? Here's a list, with all the sizes. And also two disposable cell phones." He hands the kid the money. "And don't just take off. If you come back with everything on the list, I'll give you five hundred dollars." The boy looks at Logan solemnly, then nods his agreement.

Thirty minutes later, the kid finds Logan waiting in the car and hands him the purchases. Logan tries on the cowboy hat he asked for and grimaces at his reflection in the rearview mirror. "Thanks," he says, handing the boy the agreed upon amount. The boy walks away, counting the bills.

Logan starts the car and parks near a post office. He opens the cell phone packages, cursing the hard plastic wrapping, and programs a number into each phone. He then goes into the post office, purchases an express mail envelope, and sends one of the cell phones. He hesitates over the return address on the mailing label, then writes, 'Thurs. 4:00pm'. He encloses a note that says, "Call speed-dial 2 when you get this."

He drives to a section of town which has numerous used car lots. Logan puts on one of the Western shirts, the cowboy hat, and the boots that the boy bought for him and packs the rest of his items in the backpack. He crumples the Kenny Chesney poster that the boy bought him, shoves into the backpack, and puts his cane in the poster's cardboard container to disguise it.

Logan checks to make sure he's taken everything, then carefully wipes anywhere he might touched in the last two days, including the rearview mirror and the seat shift lever. _For once I'm glad Veronica made me watch all those CSI episodes while she nitpicked every detail._ He leaves the key in the ignition and exits the car, leaving the door unlocked and carefully smearing the door handle. He dons his sunglasses and walks a short distance to the most run-down used car lot. He ignores the pain in his leg from walking without the assistance of the cane and willfully forces his body not to limp as he enters the sales office.

"I'm interested in purchasing that pickup truck," Logan says, sitting down and pointing with his thumb at a ten-year-old tan Ford F-150 outside the window. "And I'm hoping you can do me a little favor with the paperwork. I'm willing to pay extra if we can get this done quickly. Cash, of course."

- • -

Wed. 1/28/09 evening: Neptune, CA

Wallace and Candice are having lattes at Java the Hut after seeing the movie, 'The Secret Life of Bees'. "Everyone raves about Jennifer Hudson and Queen Latifah, but Sophie Okonedo was amazing," Wallace says.

"She was great in 'Hotel Rwanda', too," Candice says. "That movie was very powerful. I think it influenced my decision to go into the Peace Corps."

"Tell me more about your time in Mali. For my internship with the Invisible Children Project, I worked in Gulu as support staff for the Schools for Schools project. I helped to coordinate the Teacher Exchange program," Wallace comments. "I still volunteer at the San Diego offices of Invisible Children when I have a chance."

"I'd like to do that as well...Mali is such a beautiful country, but it's the third poorest country in the world. The culture shock when I returned home..." Candice shrugs expressively. "The droughts in Mali over the past ten years have wreaked havoc on the economy, and the Peace Corps mission focused on improving safe water supplies. I worked for a project that dug new wells in remote villages. Because of my engineering background, I was responsible for implementing a solar-powered battery system that operated the pumps in the wells. Other volunteers worked on literacy programs and training villagers to maintain our systems, so that the wells could continue to function long after we left. It was fantastic; I got to see so many remote areas of the country and met wonderful people."

Wallace presses her for details, truly interested in her experiences overseas. He tells her about his work in Uganda and his travels around the African continent after his internship ended. Candice also tells him about her award-winning senior project in hydraulics at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

"It sounds like you could have gone to any graduate school in the country. Why did you pick Hearst? We're not exactly the caliber of M.I.T. or Stanford," Wallace asks curiously.

"The scholarship combined with a teaching assistantship put Hearst over the top for me," Candice says.

Wallace wonders; he's been looking at graduate schools recently, and he's pretty sure that summa cum laude at Georgia Tech would guarantee close to a free ride anywhere Candice wanted to go. _Perhaps I've been working at Mars Investigations too long; I see a mystery everywhere._ He remembers what Keith asked him to research, and he asks Candice, "What do you know about detecting objects underground? Is that something you have any experience in?"

"Why do you ask?" she replies.

Wallace explains about his job at Mars Investigations. He tells Candice the condensed version of Veronica's past mysteries, including a brief summary of his own investigation into the anonymous letters last fall.

"It was an old girlfriend of your boss? And she hated Veronica enough to frame her for murder?" Candice says incredulously.

"She was off her rocker. Veronica was definitely on her game that day though; she saved her dad and Logan Echolls from that whack job."

Candice regards Wallace for a minute, then says, "So the underground detection is for a case?"

"I guess. Keith didn't give me all the details." _I know he's protecting me from something, as usual._ "He said what he's looking for would be less than 10 feet underground and not metallic or radioactive. He won't tell me exactly what he's looking for, but he said maybe wood or plastic."

"Well, the easiest way to detect an object underground would be with ground-penetrating radar. You transmit electromagnetic radiation into the ground, and then the reflected signal is detected and interpreted. If you knew the exact composition of the item you're looking for, software could be written to analyze the data to pinpoint probable locations. GPR is used to detect utility lines by power companies and sewer installers, and by archaeologists to detect underground excavation sites. I bet there's a local company that does scans for contractors before they dig at a new construction site," Candice explains.

Wallace hears the word 'archaeologist' and instantly makes the connection that Keith is probably looking for a body buried somewhere; he barely hears the rest of Candice's explanation. He realizes she has stopped speaking and quickly comments, "That's great; that's exactly what he needs, I bet."

- • -

Wed. 1/28/09 evening: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Veronica returns to her dorm room from a night of studying at the library. She finds a printout on her pillow with a note from Mac.

_V-  
Finally got the info you wanted. These are all the pickups made by Checker Cab at the beach near Logan's from Sunday 1/25 to Tuesday 1/27. Hope it helps.  
Mac_

Veronica begins to work her way through the list.

- • -

Thurs. 1/29/09 morning: Lompoc State Penitentiary, Lompoc, CA

In the interview room at Lompoc State Penitentiary, Keith presses Vinnie for the specific details he needs. "Vinnie, when Liam showed you the gun evidence, what did it look like? You said the gun was in a plastic bag? Was it a food storage bag? Gallon size?"

Vinnie looks at Keith incredulously. "How can this be important? We're not freezing a meat loaf here, you know."

"Vinnie, just answer the question. A regular plastic bag, or a freezer one? With the yellow and blue make green closure or a white zipper? Here, look at these pictures and tell me which one is closest." Keith shows Vinnie a contact sheet of photos. Each picture shows the gun that El Cajon Gun Exchange located for him in a different type of readily available plastic bag.

Vinnie frowns, then looks up at Keith. "I think I understand what you're doing now. That's Keith Mars, always thinking," he says, tapping the side of his head. "It looked like this one." He points at the photo of a Ziploc freezer bag. "But more crumpled, like it's been shoved under something, or jammed into a small space.

"Tell me again about the shooting. You're sure that the bullet did not go through the kid, there's definitely a bullet in the remains?"

"Yes, it lodged in his chest. I checked for an exit wound when I was trying to see if he was alive."

"What about the cartridge casing?"

Vinnie thinks a moment. "It was in the bag with the gun."

"You're positive?" Keith asks.

"Yes, I'm sure of it."

Keith puts the photo sheet back in his briefcase. "It's going to go down in a few days...the next time Cliff comes to see you to discuss your case. You said that the guard who's Liam's snitch is named Gallagher?" Vinnie nods. "All right, I'll have to get the work schedule and make sure he's on duty. Vinnie, I've set up an identity for you as well. I've prepared a package with your new ID, a plane ticket, and all the details. It'll be waiting for you in the vehicle, assuming the rest of the plan goes as scheduled."

"You're a standup guy, Keith. I always said that once Keith Mars was bought, he stayed bought," Vinnie jokes.

Keith grabs Vinnie's collar. "Listen, asshole. I'm not enjoying this, and I'm not doing this as a favor for you. When my daughter asked for your help with Duncan Kane, a decent man would have told her 'no' and come to me with your concerns for her safety. Instead you helped her with her naïve plan, and then you used what you knew to blackmail me into helping you get off on a murder charge. You dragged me into the scum where you live, Vinnie, and if I run into you again when this is all over, I might just take my own revenge on you."

The guard knocks on the window and says, "Hey! No touching!"

Keith releases Vinnie and says, "Sorry."

Vinnie stands up and leaves the room, saying, "We're done anyways." He looks back at Keith nervously.

Keith closes his briefcase and leaves the interview room with the guard. As he walks toward the exit, he feels someone staring at him–not an unusual feeling in a place like this. He turns around as casually as possible and sees a blond prisoner unknown to Keith looking at him intently. Keith asks the guard quietly, "Who's the guy?"

"Oh that's Ivan. Well, that's what we call him. Russian mob guy, in on a weapons charge. I think his name is Sorokin. Gorya or something like that. Guy's a real psycho," the guard comments.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Dream Is Man's**  
Duncan pursues custody; Wallace and Candice on  
a study break; Keith reconsiders his actions;  
The Instigator reports on Logan's whereabouts.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Wallace: Percy  
Daggs III. Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack.  
Dick: Ryan Hansen. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Candice Pauling: Toy Connor.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN: "THE DREAM IS MAN'S"

Thurs. 1/29/09 afternoon: San Diego, CA

Duncan shakes hands with his attorneys and takes a seat in their office. The senior partner shuts the door and sits down, offering Duncan a glass of water. Duncan refuses, impatient for the meeting to begin. "You talked to Lizzie? Did she agree to testify?" he asks.

"Yes. We set up the trust fund as you specified. There will be no paper trail to the Kane family. The fund goes into effect upon the date you receive custody of Faith Manning, also known as Lilly Kane." The lawyer pauses, then continues, "We have an appointment to go over her testimony later today; but she did summarize what she has witnessed, and I think we can safely say that Stewart and Rose will not be granted custody. Lizzie can testify as to the veracity of the videotaped evidence that we have. There's just a few other formalities to take care of. We'll sign the documents accepting the prosecutor's deal on child endangerment a week from Monday; you'll surrender yourself and Lilly, then we'll ask to proceed to the custody hearing as soon as possible. Hopefully, once Stewart Manning realizes that Lizzie is going to testify against him, he'll withdraw his petition for custody."

"That's great," Duncan replies.

- • -

Thurs. 1/29/09 evening: Neptune, CA

Wallace knocks on the door of Candice's off campus apartment. "Ready for your study break?" he asks.

She smiles and says, "Just give me a minute," and walks into the bathroom.

Wallace looks around the room and sees Candice's laptop. He calls out to her, "Hey, do you mind if I check some scores on your computer?"

"Sure, go ahead," she answers from the bathroom.

Wallace looks up the results of the UNLV game, then checks the stats on one of the players from that team. He hits the back button on the browser, intending to read about the Wyoming game, but accidentally triggers the drop down menu on the back button. He's surprised to see several stories about Mars Investigations from the local Neptune newspaper listed on the menu. Quickly checking to see if the bathroom door is still shut, he checks the browser history and sees that Candice has been reading stories about Keith Mars and his detective agency all evening. Wallace hears the water shut off in the bathroom, and he closes the history window and surfs back to the ESPN College Basketball page.

For the next hour, as Wallace and Candice eat pizza and chat about their classes, Wallace wonders why Candice was reading up on Mars Investigations.

- • -

Thurs. 1/29/09 evening: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Mac's cell phone rings; she sighs when she reads 'Casablancas, R.' on the caller ID, but hits send. "I'm working on it, Dick. I should have your computers up and running by tomorrow or the next day. You guys will be ogling Jenna Jameson's boobs before you know it."

"Not why I'm calling. Is Veronica with you? There's a story in 'The Instigator'," Dick replies.

"Crap. Another story about Logan?" Mac says.

Veronica looks at her sharply. Mac says, "It's Dick. A story in 'The Instigator'," and hands the phone to Veronica.

"Dick?" she asks.

"Veronica, there's a photo and article about Logan. It's online too, hangs up the phone and looks up the site. There are two blurred pictures of Logan at Los Angeles International Airport, and the article states that he boarded a flight for Amsterdam. There is also a picture of Veronica crying in her car outside Mars Investigations, with the caption, 'Veronica Mars Detects A Problem in Her Relationship with Bad-Boy Logan'.

- • -

Thurs. 1/29/09 evening: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Keith walks into his office at Mars Investigations and sits down heavily in his chair. He sighs and massages what's left of his hairline in a feeble attempt to release the tension of the day.

_I suppose in the grand scheme of things helping Vincent Van Lowe get away with an accidental murder isn't so bad if it means Liam Fitzpatrick goes away for a very long time. But I feel dirty, discouraged. This is the second time I've had to tamper with evidence to keep my daughter safe from the consequences of her crusades. What has happened to my ideals? What happened to the man who allowed himself to be forced out of office rather than cave to the pressures of a corrupt town? But I can't lose her. I would not survive without her._ He remembers the devastation from the fall, when Veronica was in custody, with an impossibly large amount set for bail. _I would go to the prison for her; I would do what it takes to ensure her freedom. A crisis of conscience pales in comparison to the thought of her behind bars again._ He thinks about the moment of Veronica's birth: when he became a father and everything changed for him; when he was filled with an all-consuming love for this tiny, difficult baby.

Keith reaches for his bottom desk drawer and removes the bottle of Scotch and a shot glass he keeps there. He pours a drink for himself, laughing a little at the private dick cliché, but needing the comfort tonight. He muses about the story Stephanie Denenberg told him about the Briar Hill Academy. If any part of her story is true, he wants to confront Tom Griffith and punish him for his failings as a father. _How could a father ever think that sending his daughter away is the solution?_ He finishes the drink and pours another, allowing himself to wallow in his moral despair for a little while longer.

- • -

Thurs. 1/29/09 evening: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

After accomplishing almost nothing in three hours of working on her criminology project, Veronica finally pushes her work aside and goes to bed. She lies awake for hours, obsessing about the news story on The Instigator. _Amsterdam? Why Amsterdam? Of all the places Logan could go, why Amsterdam?_ She thinks about Amsterdam's unsavory reputation. _Drugs? Legal prostitution?_ She tries not to consider that Logan might be on some hedonistic pilgrimage, although a tiny voice inside her nags at her, _Tijuana, Veronica...Amsterdam is just a prettier, more legal Tijuana._ She shudders at the thought of Logan window-shopping for a suitable hooker on a street in Amsterdam.

Amsterdam...to her knowledge, he has no friends or relatives there. She racks her brains, trying to remember a conversation about Amsterdam, or Europe, anything that might give her a clue. She remembers Duncan talking about traveling around Italy the night they made love for the first time, but Logan has never expressed an interest in Europe. _It's always surfing with Logan; there's something about the water for him._ Finally she realizes that Amsterdam is a hub airport; of course the flight was to Amsterdam–from there he can go anywhere in Europe, to any beautiful Mediterranean beach. _And if he rents a car or goes on a train, there'll be no way to track him,_ she thinks hopelessly. She laughs mirthlessly, _I'm still thinking of tracking a man who's made it pretty clear he doesn't want to be around me._

She thinks about the conversation she had with Logan at the high school when Duncan ran away to Cuba junior year. _All my boyfriends run away eventually–I don't know why I'm so surprised when they do it over and over again,_ she thinks sardonically. Logan found her at her locker that day and said, "Hey...so, uh, what do you think?"

She remembers gently snarking back, "Like...in general, or is there a specific arena in which you'd like my opinion?" She wanted to add, _Are we ever going to talk about the kiss at the Camelot?_

Logan replies, "Do you think maybe I should just cool off, maybe hole up in some hotel room, dye my hair, and file my fingerprints off?"

Veronica answers, "Honestly, I have no idea. Why do you want to run away, anyways? It was just a kiss." She looks in her locker and to her surprise sees a unicorn music box. When she opens it, she finds a note that says, 'Veronica, I have to leave for a while. I'll be back for you soon. Love always, Logan.' Shoving the music box back in her locker, she says aloud, "What the hell, Logan?" Veronica slams the door shut, intending to press him for his reasons for running away. The bell rings, but suddenly the halls are deserted. She walks toward her classroom. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees the back of Logan's head as he walks around the corner just ahead, his overshirt flapping as he hurries to his own class.

"Logan? Stop, I want to talk to you," she calls out. She hurries after him, but when she turns the corner, he has disappeared. She runs down the hallway, trying to catch him. She pushes open the door of the girls' bathroom, searching the green-and-blue tiled room for him, flinging open each stall door in turn. Veronica runs frantically out of the bathroom, saying, "Logan? Where are you?"

She comes to a junction in the hallway. She turns right, then left, and sees a door closing at the end of the hallway. She hurries to the classroom and pushes open the door. It's the health classroom, and Kendall Casablancas is standing in front of the class. Kendall says, "Ms. Mars, you're late. Take your seat, please. Today's topic is mastering missionary." She points a ruler at a large graphic drawing of a man and woman copulating on the blackboard. Dick Casablancas pumps his fist in the air and whoops with delight. Madison Sinclair titters and says, "How do you spell chlamydia again, Veronica?" Veronica says shakily, "I'm not in this class..." and runs out of the room.

She frantically rushes down the hallway, peering in each class window by raising up on her tiptoes. There is no sign of Logan anywhere. Suddenly she hears a quiet voice behind her saying, "Veronica?"

Veronica spins around and sees Hannah Griffith standing the middle of the hallway. She's wearing a tan turtleneck, just slightly too large; the sleeves extend past her wrists. and the material bunches around her chin. Hannah says, "Help me, Veronica," as she pulls down the neck of her sweater to reveal a large bloody horizontal gash across her neck. Veronica gasps and runs toward Hannah, who flees down the hallway. Veronica pursues her, her heart beating, shouting, "Wait, Hannah, tell me what happened!"

The hallway begins to subtly change; the lockers and classroom doors disappear and turn into pockmarked concrete. As she follows Hannah, Veronica suddenly bursts into blazing sunlight, and she sees Logan ahead of her, standing on the edge of a concrete platform, empty space below, with his arms outstretched to his sides. Veronica screams, "Logan, no!" but Logan falls forward, soundlessly, unhesitating and purposeful. She runs to the edge and falls to her knees, sobbing. Hannah approaches behind her, silently, reproachfully, and Veronica turns to her. "Why, Hannah?" she says.

"I couldn't stay away," Hannah says solemnly. She walks to the edge of the platform and steps off, following Logan over the edge. Veronica screams...

and sits upright in bed. Mac is shaking her, saying, "Veronica, you're having a bad dream, wake up, wake up..."

* * *

A/N: The chapter title "The Dream Is Man's" is a puzzle. A virtual cookie to the first person who figures it out!!


	8. Chapters 18 to 20

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy and Poniesforall. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility. If you didn't realize by now that I'm a total geek, you will after you read this update. My betas are very kind; they make sure that I don't see them rolling their eyes at me.

* * *

? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿  
Answer to the chapter title conundrum:  
'The Dream Is Man's' is an anagram of 'He's in Amsterdam'.  
Apparently I have been watching 'Lost' too much. Sorry!! I thought it was humorous.  
? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ? ¿ ?

* * *

**"I want to call my dad! If he knew what was going on here..." Veronica screams.**

**"Listen, princess, you don't deserve the right to make a phone call. Telephone privileges are earned. And you have resisted every step of the way. You received observation placement within the first twenty-four hours; I think that's a new record, Connie. You've given up your right to be with your family and to live free in society. Until you accept your treatment, you're going to find your behavior restricted."**

**"I know my rights! I want to call my dad. This is fucked up!" Veronica yells.**

**"That's it! Do you have some sort of auditory processing problem? You're expected to live by our rules here." The counselor turns to one of the guards and says, "I want her in restraints until she learns how to respect the program."**

**Veronica continues to struggle and call out obscenities as the guard takes her away.**

**Seven weeks earlier...  
**

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Deep-Seated Dear Issues**  
Logan all emo; Keith investigates the school;  
Mac tests a flirt-bot theory; Kristen Bell has  
a day off and shoots a movie.  
Logan: Jason Dohring. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Dr. Friedman: Lorraine Bracco. Mac: Tina  
Majorino. Leo: Max Greenfield. Gracie Jane:  
Jill Brennan. Sacks: Brandon Hillock.  
Mordroc: Gabriel Tigerman.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN: "DEEP-SEATED DEAR ISSUES"

Fri. 1/30/09 morning: Somewhere in the United States

Logan pulls off the road and into a gas station. His leg has been aching as he drives cross-country the last few days, but he decides he can't afford to use his cane, even in this backwater location. Carefully trying not to limp, he walks into the small store to prepay for his gas. He pushes four twenties across the counter to the attendant, who barely nods, keeping his attention on the small television screen.

As Logan starts to walk back outside, he hears the words, "Echolls Family Legacy" and reflexively turns his head without thinking. He sees a bold, lurid graphic, 'Statutory Rape, Hollywood Style' and the interviewer, Gracie Jane, with a guest. Logan feels frozen to the ground as he hears the guest say, "In California, of course, statutory rape is defined as an act of sexual intercourse with a person who is not the spouse of the perpetrator, if the person is a minor under the age of 18 years. In this case, with the three year age difference between Hannah Griffith and Logan Echolls, it is considered a misdemeanor."

Gracie Jane responds, "A misdemeanor? That seems awfully lenient. In this case, the immorality is clear. From what we've seen of Logan Echolls, this girl was easy prey. Of course, you have to keep in mind the Echolls family tradition of corrupting young girls. Apparently, anything goes in Hollywood. And now, Logan Echolls, following in the steps of Roman Polanski, is fleeing the country to avoid prosecution." On-screen, a picture of 'Logan' in LAX is substituted for the 'Statutory Rape' graphic.

Logan feels his stomach heave. Feeling the eyes of the attendant on him, he tries to walk calmly out the door. Trying not to limp as his leg begins to throb painfully, he goes to his truck and fills it with gas. He controls his trembling by bracing himself against the pickup; it seems to take hours to fill the tank as he deliberately avoids looking at the attendant. When he finally finishes pumping his gas, he gets in the truck cab and drives off, with his hands shaking and his vision clouded.

About a mile down the road, he sees a dirt road turnoff, and he stops the truck. Logan leans out of the cab and throws up his breakfast; he rests his forehead against the steering wheel, trying to control the nausea.

_Not rape...not like Aaron..._

But a nagging voice says, _You were eighteen. She was fifteen. If her father hadn't come in, you would have–_

_Not rape!! NOT LIKE AARON!! _He screams back in his head.

The voice continues relentlessly. _You targeted her. She was a minor. The immorality is clear. The girl was easy prey. Following in the steps of Roman Polanski._

For a fleeting moment, he wishes Veronica were here to hold him; he closes his eyes and conjures up an image of her that is so strong he could swear that she is rocking him in her arms.

When he thinks he can control the shaking in his voice, he uses the disposable cell phone to call his attorney, who reassures him that no charges have been filed, and none will be filed, according to his source at the LAPD. But the attorney mentions that Carrie Murray called him, asking for a reaction to the story that Logan Echolls was possibly guilty of statutory rape and was fleeing the country to avoid prosecution. Upon hearing Carrie's name, he strikes the dashboard viciously with his fist. The rage subsumes his nausea, choking him with a bitter wrath for the woman who continues to target him so relentlessly._  
_

Fri. 1/30/09 morning: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Keith stares at the brochure he has downloaded from the internet.

_(You can see this brochure at: i259•photobucket•com/albums/hh302/VanessaGalore/BHBrochure2•jpg_  
_Replace "•" with ".")_

* * *

**Is your teenager**

**• OUT OF CONTROL ?  
• DEFIANT ?  
• DIFFICULT ?**

Today's permissive society encourages our youth to act out, to seek mind-altering substances, and to engage in dangerous sexual practices. A return to discipline, with true limits and specific expectations defined and enforced, is the only solution.

Does your teenager exhibit any of the following symptoms of drug abuse or sexual promiscuity?

1) Refusal to communicate?  
2) Sullen, disagreeable mood or depression?  
3) Poor grades, or a downward trend in grades?  
4) Inappropriate friends?  
5) Lying to parents?  
6) Stealing from parents and friends?  
7) Inappropriate use of the Internet, such as pornography?  
8) Drinking?  
9) Using illegal drugs?  
10) Staying out overnight, or running away?

If your child has been diagnosed with a learning or psychiatric disorder, they are even more at risk!! Teens with ADD struggle to reach their potential and may act out their frustrations. Depression is an epidemic among today's teens.

Many parents dismiss these symptoms and problems as 'typical' teenaged behavior, but the truth is that a typical teenager does not act this way. Without drastic action, an at-risk teenager is likely to spiral further out of control, resulting in: teen pregnancy, sexually-transmitted diseases, juvenile offender status, even incarceration or suicide. Tragically, the events at Columbine and Virginia Tech might have been avoided if parents had taken steps to moderate their teens' behavior.

Traditional psychotherapy or family counseling is not enough. Today's parents are frustrated by the lack of help provided by schools and doctors, who are overwhelmed by problem students. Your teen's bad behavior threatens the stability of your entire family.  
**  
WE CAN HELP!!**

We take children away from modern pressures to misbehave and act out, and enforce a strict code of behavior, away from the influences that caused your children's problems. Our program has proven results and is recommended by the Vermont Probation Department and the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Successful graduates frequently volunteer to stay with the program and act as counselors for the next generation.

Our program has a proven record of graduating teenagers who have learned self-discipline and respect, and who go on to become productive members of society. Listen to our graduates tell their own story:  
_  
"Without Briar Hill, I would have been dead from using drugs by the time I was eighteen." –Julie B._

_"I didn't realize how my addiction and my actions hurt my parents." –Sean T._

_"I was so frustrated by my ADD. I used it as an excuse to act out in school. Briar Hill showed me how to organize my life and get back on track." –Chris B._

_"By the time I was thirteen, I had had sex with twenty of my classmates. I was out of control. I love my parents for caring enough to send me to Briar Hill so I could learn to respect myself and my body." –Hilary C._

Our campus, located on 20 acres on the outskirts of Manchester Center, Vermont, offers hiking trails and an exercise facility for therapeutic recreation. Our staff features a board-certified psychologist in residence and learning specialists. Your child's safety is assured by our security staff.

Briar Hill Academy  
A Therapeutic Boarding School  
Manchester Center, Vermont  
1-800-555-9840

Counselors available to answer your questions 24 hours a day.  
Payment plans available.

* * *

At first glance, the brochure seems innocuous enough. But Keith notes the phrases 'security staff' and 'payment plans available'. When he considers the symptoms of an at-risk teen, he thinks that just about every teenager he knows would have at least a few of the listed symptoms. The brochure seems designed to play into the fears of every concerned parent who worries about their teenager.

He runs the name of the CEO of Briar Hill Academy, Peter Klein, but finds little information about the man. When he digs a little deeper, he discovers that Klein changed his name in 1994 from Russell Meyers. He runs a search on Meyers and finds that he was a high-ranking employee of a program called STRAIT, that was forced to shut down in the early 90's. STRAIT, a 'Tough Love' program, was originally lauded by supporters as disparate as Nancy Reagan, prominent Democrats, and Time Magazine. It was finally closed down when former participants were finally able to win a successful lawsuit after years of legal battles trying to expose the excessive, abusive, and ineffective tactics of the anti-drug program. Keith surmises that Briar Hill is merely continuing the programs of STRAIT. When he computes the yearly cost and realizes that each student's family is being charged upwards of 50,000 yearly and many students are held for years, he realizes that the school is an incredibly lucrative enterprise. He finds a news story that implies that in the '80's STRAIT had been donating heavily to political campaigns in order to avoid government interference.

Keith checks the American Psychologist Association's complaint database and finds that the school's consulting psychologist has a record of complaints and alleged ethics violations a mile long. When he runs a credit report on the psychologist, he finds records of substantial payments from an entity listed as BHA; Keith researches BHA and finds that it has made large contributions to political campaigns as well as regular payments to the consulting psychologist.

Keith finds a listing of Briar Hill employees through the Workmen's Compensation database and is appalled to find that several employees have extensive criminal records. The employee who is listed as 'learning specialist' on the Briar Hill Academy web site does not have a college degree in education; the employee, Monique Cavalleri, was a business major at a community college who dropped out after one year.

Every bit of information that Keith obtains troubles him more and more; on the surface, the school appears squeaky-clean, with endorsements from local politicians, law-enforcement specialists, and grateful graduates and parents, but the truth appears to be that Briar Hill is a glorified detention camp that brutalizes its residents and systematically bankrupts their parents._  
_

Fri. 1/30/09: Neptune, CA

At the Neptune Stardust Diner, Mac slides into the booth across from Mordroc. He smiles and says, "Hey, I've been waiting for you." Mordroc inserts a dollar into the mini jukebox at their table and 'Mack the Knife' begins to play.

"Really, 'Mack the Knife'?" Mac comments. "I much prefer 'Mack Daddy' by Sir Mix-a-lot."

"Touché. So I got your email. What's up?" Mordroc replies.

"Well, I've been nosing around a little, trying to get a handle on the flirt-bot program. I wanted to show you what I found; I thought it might be helpful." She puts her laptop on the table between them, opens it and swivels it around to show Mordroc.

He stares at it intently, then sighs. "That's good. You're good. I've been trying to track that server for two days now. How did you come up with that?"

"I worked with the Tor encryption software that you mentioned." She turns the laptop back and types a few keystrokes. Mordroc stands up and joins her on her side of the booth. Mac smiles and says, "So when I tried reverse decryption–"

"You got the server address. It's brilliant," Mordroc types a while and stares at the screen intently. "You just saved me several days of work."

"So...that means you might have time to have some dinner, maybe hang out a little?" Mac asks hopefully. "I wondered if you'd tell me where you got the name 'Mordroc'. I mean, I know it's the wizard in 'Dragon's Lair'..."

"My uncle had one of the original laserdisc machines. We used to play it all the time when I was a kid. Then when I was a little older, I wrote an emulation program. It's still posted at Daphne-Emu, the emulator site. That was my first big project. Then later I got into hacking and, well, I just kept using my old Dragon's Lair name." Mordroc looks at Mac and laughs. "You want to know what my real name is, don't you?"

"Well, you know my name. It's only fair," she replies.

"Rick Picket," he answers.

"Nice to meet you," she says, shaking his hand. "Now that I've helped you with the flirt-bot, I wonder if you can help me. I'm working on a project to remotely hack a Bluetooth wireless keyboard."_  
_

Fri. 1/30/09: Ranchita, CA

Deputy Sacks triggers the call button on his radio. "Sheriff? Sacks here. I've located the source of the fire. Looks like arson...Yeah, someone torched a car and the shed it was being stored in. The property looks deserted. There's no sign of any injuries, so there's no need for the coroner. I'll wait for the fire marshal. Here's the address so you can contact the marshal and the owner of the property." He reads the address to Leo from his notebook._  
_Fri. 1/30/09: Somewhere in the United States

Logan jumps nervously when the disposable cell phone rings. He pulls to the side of the road as soon as possible, stops the truck, and answers the phone.

"Hello? Dr. Friedman?"

Logan's therapist, Dr. Leah Friedman, says, "Logan, is that you?"

"Yes."

"Where are you? Are you all right? At first I didn't know what to think when I got your package today. But then I realized that Thurs. 4:00pm referred to your regular appointment time and knew you had sent the phone."

"I'm all right. I don't want to tell you where I am so you don't have to lie to reporters or to Veronica," Logan replies.

"Veronica doesn't know where you are? Oh, Logan...is that really what you want? I know you're worried about her–"

"She won't be safe if I'm around," he states flatly. "The asshole reporters hurt her at the funeral you know."

Dr. Friedman pauses, then says, "But you were worried about being around her even before that happened."

Logan doesn't answer.

"Logan, I heard that disgraceful Gracie Jane interview," the therapist tries.

Logan laughs bitterly. "Yeah, she's got me pegged." He grasps the phone tightly, his fingers aching with the tension.

"It's not true, you know. It's usually not considered statutory rape in this kind of a situation."

"Except I was taking advantage of Hannah."

"You yourself told me that she forgave you and still wanted to be with you."

He scoffs. "She was deluded. Blinded by the Echolls charm," Logan snaps back.

Dr. Friedman takes a breath. "Why did you send me the phone, Logan? Was there something you wanted to talk to me about?"

Logan sighs. "The other night I was thinking about Veronica...and...well...I had a terrible fantasy about her."

"A fantasy? You mean a sexual fantasy?"

"Is there any other kind?"

Dr. Friedman says cautiously, "What was so upsetting about the fantasy?"

"It was a fantasy I used to have, when we were broken up. I was around Veronica all the time then; she was dating my friend Duncan, and I was living with him, so I had to see them together pretty often. I was having an affair with an older woman; just an easy fuck, not someone I loved."

"So at the time you were angry with Veronica for breaking it off with you and going back to your friend Duncan?"

"And rubbing it in my face. It wasn't just that she was dating him again. She left me when I really needed her; my mother was dead, my father in prison, I was accused of murder. I felt abandoned by Veronica."

"What happens in the fantasy?"

"She comes on to me, and–" he hesitates. He plunges on, "I fuck her, really fuck her, as violently as I can, make her mine."

"In the fantasy you're punishing her for going back to Duncan?" Dr. Friedman asks.

"Ye-es," Logan replies. He suddenly thinks, _going back to Duncan...she went back to Duncan...shit, Duncan's back, now_. Aloud he says, "Duncan just came back home. When he left three years ago, he got Veronica to help him kidnap his baby. He used her to help him elude the FBI. Now he wants her to help him again, to get amnesty and permanent custody of his daughter."

"You say he used her. Did he put her in danger?"

"Yes, dammit. And she went along with it. And now she's helping him again, even though she could still be arrested for helping in the kidnapping. Putting herself in danger again, and he just lets her...encourages her."

"So you're worried she's going to go back to Duncan again?" Dr. Friedman asks.

"She did it before. As soon as Duncan was available, she dumped me and went to him. Now he's available again." Even Logan is surprised by the amount of bitterness in his tone.

"So why not fight for her? Why run away and make it easier for him?"

Logan just breathes. Finally he says, "I still think she's going to get hurt if I'm around." _I'm going to hurt her. Everyone gets hurt, because of me._ "Maybe it's better if she ends up with him."

"I don't believe you mean that. You love her desperately, Logan."

He stays silent, clenching the phone.

Finally Dr. Friedman says, "Logan, please come back to L.A. We can work on this. You can work on your relationship with Veronica."

"No. I can't come back. It's not just Veronica. I can't...deal with the reporters. I'm afraid of how they make me feel. It's hard enough, knowing that Hannah was killed" _because of me _"but the paparazzi are all over me, accusing me, blaming me. They're relentless. I can't take it."

"Logan, I'm sorry, we're going to have to stop; my next patient is here. I'll call you tomorrow. Please think about coming home."

_Every minute,_ he thinks, hanging up the phone.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Frankly, Madeira, I Don't Give a Damn**  
Wallace tries to distract Veronica with his  
own questions; Logan settles in; Carrie  
returns like a bad penny.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason  
Dohring. Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Carrie:  
Amber Heard. Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER NINETEEN: "FRANKLY, MADEIRA, I DON'T GIVE A DAMN"

Fri. evening 1/30/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Veronica is trying to study. After a sleepless night of dreams chasing Logan all over Europe, she vowed to put him out of her mind; but today she still found her thoughts wandering in class. Even her favorite seminar this semester on "Ethics in the Criminal Justice System" failed to hold her attention today. Finally she gives up and runs Logan's credit cards again. She is rewarded by new charges on the card: a meal at a restaurant in Amsterdam, and another charge to KLM Airlines. She is trying to think of a way to get the details on Logan's latest flight when she hears a knock at the door.

"Yo, Vee?" Wallace calls from outside the door.

Veronica puts her laptop aside and lets Wallace into the room. She resumes her crosslegged position on the bed and Wallace joins her. He puts his arm around her, and she leans her head on his shoulder. "Hey...I was worried about you today. I looked for you in the Food Court, but you weren't around."

"I just grabbed a sandwich. I'm not very good company today," she replies.

He sees the display of Logan's credit charges on the laptop screen and points to them. "Hey, at least he won't have seen that Gracie Jane interview in Amsterdam. That was pretty bad."

"Really bad...I hope he never has to see it. There's nothing more terrifying for Logan than the thought that he might be like his father."

"Has your dad talked to you?" Wallace asks.

"About what?" she replies, sitting up.

"Something's going on with him. He asked me for help on a project, but he wouldn't tell me what case it was for," Wallace explains. He tells Veronica about the information he gave Keith on ground penetrating radar. "I'm pretty sure he's looking for a corpse somewhere. And there's no active Mars Investigation case that I know of that's missing a body."

Veronica frowns and accesses her dad's files remotely with her own password. "Mac's helping him with something too, a program to hack into a computer using the wireless keyboard...Okay, there are files on Stephanie Denenberg and the trust attorney case he asked me to help with. Then it's just the usual insurance fraud cases and a couple skip-traces. Nothing else." She ponders the screen for a moment. "Has Dad said anything about Vinnie Van Lowe to you? I know he's been helping Cliff with Vinnie's defense, but there's no notes on the case in his files."

"He hasn't said a word except for telling me when he's going to Lompoc."

"You haven't helped at all? You haven't done any research for him?" Veronica queries. "That's unusual; he always says your research is very thorough, better than his own." She thinks a minute, then accesses the PryingEyez database with Keith's account information. She asks for a listing of all searches over the last thirty days and prints out the results. She and Wallace look over the list. They compare the names to those they find in Keith's open files and discover one name, Matt Dannon, that is not listed. When Veronica runs a search on that name, she discovers that Dannon is a suspect in a liquor store robbery from twenty-five years ago, and there are no records of his whereabouts or activities since that time. Wallace and Veronica look at each other in puzzlement.

Wallace thinks, _At least I got her to think about something other than Logan._ Aloud, he says, "Veronica, maybe we shouldn't mess with this. There might be a reason Keith doesn't want us involved."

Veronica sighs. "Yeah, I know." Reverting back to Keith's case files, she clicks on the Stephanie Denenberg icon. "Password protected and encrypted. Dad's serious about this one."

"He said he wants us to leave it alone; he doesn't want to take a chance we'll stumble on something that will draw the attention of the serial killer," Wallace comments.

_Lots of secrets,_ Veronica thinks._ What are you up to, Dad?_ She says to Wallace, "How's it going with Candice?"

"Oh, man. She is fine. I wouldn't kick her out of bed for eating crackers. In fact, I would go to the Sac-n-pac, buy her crackers, and serve them to her on a platter while bowing down before the goodness that is Candice." Wallace grins at Veronica.

"Wow, what's next, toe sucking?" Veronica teases back.

He makes a face and pinches her lightly, and she mock-flinches, saying, "So it's going well? All love notes and hand holding in the park?"

Wallace hesitates, then says, "Yeah, everything's great."

"What?" Veronica sits up on her knees and faces Wallace. "You paused. What's up?"

"I was looking up some basketball scores on her computer, and I accidentally saw that she's been looking up old Mars Investigations cases. The original Lilly Kane murder investigation, too."

Veronica sits back down and muses, "Maybe she's just curious about your job. A lot of people are interested in private investigators. Look at all the crappy shows on TV."

"So why not just ask?" he replies quietly.

"You're really worried about this," Veronica notes.

"I just...I really like her. I don't want to find out she has a criminal past or does drugs or something."

"I did a pretty thorough check on her. She's not a criminal, and I don't think a drug user would be able to graduate summa cum laude...especially from a tough school like Georgia Tech." She looks at Wallace's downcast face and adds, "Why don't you take her to the office and meet Dad? Maybe she'll say something. I'm sure it's nothing, Wallace. She's probably just a PI groupie."_  
_

Late Fri. 1/30/09: St. Mary's Cemetery, Neptune, CA

Keith watches the priest's residence at St. Mary's Church. He sees Father Patrick hurriedly getting in his car and driving off into the darkness. Ten minutes earlier, Keith called pretending to be the administrator from a nursing home in a far corner of the county; the 'administrator' said that a resident at the home had taken a turn for the worse and had requested that Father Patrick administer the last rites. Even driving at a fast pace, the nursing home is an hour away, giving Keith a couple hours to carry out his plan.

Cautiously looking around the premises for witnesses, Keith unloads the ground penetrating radar equipment he rented for a stiff fee from a local sewer contractor. _I'll add it to Vinnie's bill_, he thinks sarcastically. Wallace mentioned that he needed to run several scans over each possible location, and then Wallace would average the data and try to identify the most likely spot using software the sewer contractor had recommended. The equipment is smaller than the average lawnmower, with a wheel about the size of a child's bicycle wheel attached to the front; this model runs off a battery pack and was completely silent when Keith tested it earlier that afternoon.

It takes Keith an hour to complete three scans each of the two graves he thinks are most likely to conceal the remains of Vinnie's victim, Cormac Fitzpatrick and Mary MacDonald, plus three scans of another grave that he intends to use as the control data Wallace suggested._  
_

Sat. 1/31/09: Somewhere in the United States

Logan selects his new temporary residence carefully. He scouts several medium-priced motels before he settles on one that is near the beach but seems to be somewhat unpopular with tourists. After he drops off his few bags, he decides to run one errand. He finds a sporting goods store and purchases free weights and weighted ankle cuffs. _If nothing else, I can work on my physical therapy. At least I can control that._ After he drops off his purchases, he parks the pickup a few blocks away. He doesn't intend to do much other than keep a low profile here, but realizes the truck might come in handy and decides to hang onto it; he's pretty sure that the steps he took will make it difficult for anyone to track him through this vehicle.

From inside his motel room, he can watch the ocean. It's not the same spectacular ocean view he's grown accustomed to in Venice Beach, but on days when the surf is up, he'll be able to watch the local surfers catching the waves and to imagine himself out there with them. Today he sees a solitary windsurfer negotiating the wind and the waves, and the longing to be out there as well is powerful.

He checks the duffel with his supply of cash. Logan calculates his daily expenses and figures he will have at least two months before he will need a cash infusion, assuming he is able to stay here undetected. He settles into a chair in front of the window and straps on the ankle weights; he does the exercises assigned to him by the physical therapist in L.A., rests a while, then repeats them. He's determined to get rid of the cane as soon as possible. While he does reps, he watches the windsurfer making long passes across the bay._  
_

Sun 2/1/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Veronica awakens on Sunday morning to a knock on her dorm room door. She glances across and sees that Mac has not woken, and she gets up to answer the door. She looks through the peephole and scowls, then throws open the door.

"What the hell do you want?" she snipes.

Carrie Murray smiles falsely. "Hello, Veronica. I'm so sorry we've never met before. I wondered if you wanted to give me a quote about your reaction to the video of Logan Echolls in Madeira. You know, the one that shows him partying with a pretty young thing late into the night. I guess he's not worried about the statutory rape charges after all."

Veronica is gutted by Carrie's words, then she begins to feel anger trickling into every cell of her body...anger at Logan for running away, and anger for this woman who is the physical manifestation of Logan's torment. "Quote this," she says, and Veronica punches Carrie in the face with the heel of her hand, just the way she was taught by the FBI. Carrie falls backward to the floor, and Veronica follows her down. Veronica grabs Carrie's arm and flips her facedown, pulling the arm painfully across Carrie's back. "How the hell did you get on campus? The dean prohibited all reporters, and you need a magnetic card to get in this building."

From behind her, Mac, awoken by the commotion, says, "I'll check her purse," and begins to search through Carrie's belongings.

"This is assault!" Carrie screams. "I know my first amendment rights!"

"You fell and hit your face. And here I am trying to be nice, trying to help you up," Veronica says sarcastically. "Your word against mine."

"And mine."

"And mine."

Veronica looks up and sees that a few girls in their bathrobes have gathered. One says, "Don't worry, Veronica, we'll say that she fell." Veronica recognizes her as Heather, one of YourCheatingHearts' first clients. The other girls nod their agreement.

Mac says, "She has a fake Hearst College ID. And a magnetic card. Should I call security?"

"No," Veronica says, letting Carrie go. "Get out of here, you bitch. Leave me and Logan alone. Why can't you go after Britney Spears like everyone else?"

As Carrie walks away quickly, she says venomously, "Because Logan was such a great fuck, and an even bigger fuckup." She turns and begins to run.

Mac restrains Veronica, who is beet red with anger. Veronica turns to Mac and says, "I want to find this video of Logan. What the hell is he doing in Madeira? He's never talked about wanting to go there."

Mac stares at Veronica compassionately, then shrugs 'all right'.

They turn on Mac's laptop and Mac googles 'Logan Echolls Madeira' with Veronica looking on. The site is listed first among the results, and Mac clicks on it.

The site prominently features a video of Logan Echolls at a casino in Madeira. His arm is around a young girl. The video shows the two of them entering the club, with Logan leaning on his cane, then crossfades to a later video that shows Logan drinking heavily, laughing and generally enjoying himself with other club patrons. The last segment of the video shows an obviously drunk Logan leaving the club with several girls around him.

Mac quickly shuts the laptop and stands up, grabbing Veronica in a hug. Veronica whispers, "It's not true, it can't be true..."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Put the Hurt On**  
Veronica drowns her sorrows in work;  
Logan throws himself into writing; Wallace  
helps Keith; Duncan drops a bombshell.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Logan: Jason Dohring. Keith: Enrico  
Colantoni. Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER TWENTY: "PUT THE HURT ON"

Sun 2/1/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Veronica lies on the bed in her room, staring at the ceiling. Mac tries to get her to go to breakfast, then suggests taking a drive for a change of scenery, and finally gives up and begins working on a computer science project. Veronica, after an initial bout of tears, refuses to talk about the Madeira video, but Mac is reluctant to leave her alone and works quietly on her side of the room.

"You don't have to baby-sit me," Veronica says suddenly.

"Veronica...I don't know what to say. I know Logan was upset about Hannah. Maybe he couldn't help himself; he started drinking and didn't know what he was doing."

"Not helping," Veronica comments quietly.

"I'm sure he'll get over this and come back," Mac says quickly. "I know he loves you."

Veronica doesn't respond aloud. But she thinks to herself, _Why did this have to happen now? We were finally trusting each other. I thought...I actually thought we had a chance of being happy. I thought our biggest problem was the long-distance relationship. What a crock of shit. I can't believe he ran away and went back to drinking and screwing around. I thought he was stronger than that. And the whole fake trail to Tijuana and all the bullshit about 'know that I'll always love you'...I guess he meant 'I'll always love you' until the next crisis starts, and then it's 'I'll do whatever the fuck I want in order to feel better'._ She's suddenly flooded with anger and spite, and sits up on the bed.

Mac watches as Veronica gathers her toiletries and heads for the showers. "Veronica?" she asks.

"I'm not going to lay around moping about him," she replies. "My dad had some work for me to do. It's better if I keep busy."_  
_

Sun 2/1/09: Somewhere in the United States

Without the distraction of his various subterfuges to elude Veronica, Logan begins to obsess about Hannah. He writes about her compulsively: a lighthearted look at what her childhood must have been like before her dad turned to drugs and her parents divorced; then a soul-searching examination of their own relationship together; and finally, an imagination of a future life, where Hannah is happy and carefree. He writes pages on this alternate life of Hannah, a Hannah who never met him, a Hannah who was never exposed to the menace that is Logan Echolls. This Hannah becomes a school hero for her accomplishments on the track team; this Hannah runs for student council and champions the causes of deserving fellow students; this Hannah is elected homecoming queen, accompanied by a sweet boy who would never get in fights or fuck trophy wives for the mindless distraction. This Hannah goes to college and majors in English or history; this Hannah meets the man of her dreams in a chance circumstance and marries him in a fairy-tale wedding, complete with doves and strolling violinists. This Hannah never says "All I hear you saying is I want to have sex". He tortures himself with the what-could-have-beens, trying desperately not to picture a drug-addicted Hannah selling herself in an alleyway and being viciously slashed by an unspeakably insane killer.

Logan types furiously on his laptop, accumulating pages of stories. He pauses in his work only to do some physical therapy exercises; finally late in the afternoon he is forced to leave his motel room to find something to eat. When he returns, he has a few bites and begins to type again, trying to find some salvation on his computer screen._  
_

Sun 2/1/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

On the way to Mars Investigations, Veronica finds a pay phone and calls 1-888-555-GUNZ, the tip line for the Smoking Gun web site, and claims she saw 'Veronica Mars' buying an airplane ticket at the San Diego Airport. _Fricking gullible paparazzi,_ she thinks to herself as she observes the media that had been swarming the office pack up and move their search for fresh meat elsewhere.

She sits at the desk in the outer office and opens the file on the trust attorney, Douglas Stern Jr. A relative of one of Stern's clients has accused Stern of getting himself appointed executor and power-of-attorney, and then convincing an elderly, barely mentally-competent client to leave a large bequest to Stern. There are also allegations that necessary medical care was withheld. Keith has asked Veronica to come up with a list of Stern's clients and, in the case of deceased clients, to get copies of will and trust documents filed by the county courts. By searching the power-of-attorney filings for Balboa County, she is able to compile a list of clients. When she runs the names on the list, she is not surprised to discover that the clients are among the wealthiest residents of Neptune.

A significant portion of Stern's elderly clients are residents at the Neptune Garden Courts, an expensive assisted living facility that resembles a high-class hotel more than a nursing home. When she examines the power-of-attorney filings, she notes that almost all were deemed 'medically necessary' by a prominent local psychiatrist, Gordon Wilks. She makes a note 'investigate psychiatrist?' on a post-it and attaches it to the front of the file for Keith. Veronica runs another search on past lawsuits against Stern and finds that he has settled out of court on several suits that alleged 'fraud and undue influence', but the attorney has never acknowledged any wrongdoing. She prints out the details of the settlements for Keith.

Suddenly feeling exhausted after her long afternoon of research, Veronica sighs and puts her head down on her arms. She knows she should be upset that this attorney is committing fraud on elderly clients who are unable to protect themselves, but she is completely unable to work up a righteous anger about a man who victimizes wealthy '09'er's today. All she can think about is that she misses _him_.

She picks up the computer mouse and lethargically clicks on the Planet Zowie bookmark. She types in 'Logan Echolls' and despondently browses the top results. She watches the Madeira video twice, trying to catch a clear glimpse of the young woman with Logan. Despite her anger, she wishes the video would zoom in closer so she could really see if he was all right. She ruefully realizes that Logan is wearing the green shirt she bought him for Christmas. Another site has a report that mentions that Logan was also seen at a party held on Johnny Depp's private estate on the outskirts of Madeira's largest town, Funchal. Veronica frowns. She can easily believe that Logan was partying into the wee hours at a casino, but a glitzy party with starlets, 'Hollywood posers', and fawning entertainment reporters was always Logan's idea of hell. Another reporter on a different site also details Logan's presence at the star-studded event. Veronica goes back to the video and watches it over and over again, becoming certain that something is not quite right about the video.

Several hours later, Keith comes into the office and finds her fast asleep with her head on the desk and the video paused on the computer screen, showing Logan leaning on his cane outside the club in Madeira. He gently wakes her up, suggesting that she come home for a late dinner and spend the night at the Sunset Cliffs apartment. She sleepily agrees and allows him to walk her out to his car.

Mon. 2/2/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Wallace puts his book bag on the desk at Mars Investigations and sits down, prepared to put in a morning of research work for Keith.

"Hey, Wallace," Keith says, coming out into the waiting area. "I got some scans with the GPR over the weekend. Can you help me with the software?"

"F'diggity, Boss Hogg," Wallace replies, then, grinning at Keith's expression, continues, "Show me what you got."

Keith shows Wallace the scans he has already downloaded into the computer. He watches carefully as Wallace uses the software to translate the data into a fuzzy gray image. Wallace reviews the technology for Keith again. "The transmitter antenna sends short pulses of radio waves into the ground. Then the receiving antenna picks up any variations in the reflected return signal. The variations represent an object or a boundary of some sort that registers as a difference in the electromagnetic radiation." Wallace points out the hyperbolas within the graphic representation and explains that they represent reflection points where objects are most likely to be located. He uses the software to overlay a multicolored representation that looks similar to a PET scan to simplify and highlight the reflection points. "So as long as you have absolute coordinates to match with the coordinates on the scan, you have a pretty good representation of the topography underneath the surface." Keith nods his understanding. Wallace sends the scans to the printer and says, "So are you gonna tell what case this is for?"

"Nope," Keith replies, returning to his office and shutting the door._  
_

Mon. 2/2/09: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

Veronica knocks on the door of a familiar room at the Neptune Grand. Duncan opens the door, and Veronica is shocked at his appearance. His eyes are bloodshot, and Duncan, not known for his ability to hold his liquor, appears to be completely drunk although it is only late afternoon.

"Duncan, what happened? I got here as soon as I could," Veronica says anxiously. "Why are you here? Where's Lilly?"

"Astrid is baby-sitting for me. I had to get out of the house, and I don't want Lilly to see me so upset. My mother and I had the worst fight we've had since she found out about Meg's pregnancy." Duncan throws himself onto the couch. "Veronica, I got the results of the paternity test. I'm...I'm not the father."

"What? Meg said–" Veronica starts.

"Meg lied to us," Duncan replies. "And so did my mother. What a surprise."

"What do you mean, your mother lied?" Veronica asks, sitting down next to Duncan.

"Veronica, she told me that she always knew I couldn't possibly be the father, and that was the real reason why she refused to support my custody petition. Mother said," Duncan continues, his voice breaking, "that the medication for my seizures makes me infertile. Doctor Levine told her it was a probable side effect of the drugs. But Mother," he spits out, bitterly, "didn't think I needed to know that."

Veronica says, "But what does that mean? Can you still get custody?"

"I don't know. My attorneys said we'd have to determine the real father, and he would have to relinquish his parental rights. Veronica, I don't see that I have a choice. I have to leave the country again," Duncan says despondently. "I was just beginning to hope I would have a normal life again. I love Lilly; I can't give her up." He leans on Veronica for comfort and support, and instinctively she folds him into her arms. "I'm going to leave tomorrow, and I have to give up on the idea of coming back here ever again."

As Veronica hugs him, she thinks to herself, _Why would Meg lie to us? Who is Lilly's real father? Poor Duncan... _

* * *

_A/N: The following is not part of the update; I'm just showing off my inner-geek._

**IS LOGAN ECHOLLS GUILTY OF STATUTORY RAPE?**

**If Logan is actually 18 and Hannah is only 15 during their affair, he would have been technically guilty of statutory rape (a misdemeanor) in California if they had consummated their relationship. In fact, even if there was only oral-genital contact ('carnal abuse'), he might actually BE guilty. I'm not sure that such contact is 'canon', but in my fic, Logan states, "Hannah and I...we made out, a lot...I saw her entire body. She definitely was not a cutter." So that might imply...ahem...contact, and therefore guilt. If Hannah was only 14 and Logan was 18, it actually would have been FELONY statutory rape; but I don't want Logan to actually be prosecuted, so I made Hannah 15 years old at the time. He'll punish himself enough anyways!**

en•wikipedia•org/wiki/AgesofconsentinNorthAmerica#California

California

The age of consent is 18, with a misdemeanor if the minor has 3 or less years of difference with the major. Penalties increase if the minor is under 14 and the major is above 21.

Texts :

California Penal Code - Part 1. of crimes and punishments -  
o Title 9. of crimes against the person involving sexual assault, and crimes against public decency and good morals  
Chapter 1. Rape, abduction, carnal abuse of children, and seduction. - Section 261.5.  
(a) Unlawful sexual intercourse is an act of sexual intercourse accomplished with a person who is not the spouse of the perpetrator, if the person is a minor. For the purposes of this section, a "minor" is a person under the age of 18 years and an "adult" is a person who is at least 18 years of age.  
(b) Any person who engages in an act of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor who is not more than three years older or three years younger than the perpetrator, is guilty of a misdemeanor.  
(c) Any person who engages in an act of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor who is more than three years younger than the perpetrator is guilty of either a misdemeanor or a felony, and shall be punished by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, or by imprisonment in the state prison.  
(d) Any person 21 years of age or older who engages in an act of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor who is under 16 years of age is guilty of either a misdemeanor or a felony, and shall be punished by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, or by imprisonment in the state prison for two, three, or four years.

•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-  
**COULD DUNCAN KANE BE INFERTILE?  
**

**It's absolutely true that antiepileptic drugs can affect fertility.**

Eeva Löfgren  
Effects of Epilepsy and Antiepileptic Medication On Reproductive Function  
Academic dissertation, Faculty of Medicine of the University of Oulu  
Presented: December 21st, 2007  
Accessed: March 7, 2008 at  
herkules•oulu•fi/isbn9789514286414/isbn9789514286414•pdf

P. 35: Antiepileptic drugs affect reproductive endocrine function in both men and women. Changes in reproductive hormone levels, decreased potency, and diminished sexual interest in men and menstrual disorders, polycystic ovary syndrome and decreased fertility in women can be manifestations of the reproductive endocrine effects of antiepileptic drugs. These disorders are frequently seen in association with certain antiepileptic drugs. However, there is only limited information available on the effects of novel antiepileptic drugs, e.g. oxcarbazepine on reproductive endocrine function.

P. 71: Conclusions:

3. Three of the most common anti-seizure medications are associated with high prevalence of sperm abnormalities in men with epilepsy. The testicular volume of valproate treated men with epilepsy with abnormal sperm quality is reduced. The possible association between valproate therapy and testicular atrophy calls for further studies.

4. Active epilepsy with antiepileptic medication during adulthood reduces fertility in both men and women in a population based setting.  
**  
So in conclusion, we can say that IT'S NOT DUNCAN'S FAULT that he's not a love machine. (Also not Teddy Dunn's fault.) Poor Veronica-'Testicular Atrophy'-no wonder she always looked at Logan so longingly.**_  
_


	9. Chapters 21 to 24

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy and Poniesforall. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

* * *

**Veronica has been restrained for an entire day, wrists and ankles handcuffed to a chair in a dark room. Every six hours, she is released and led to the bathroom, where she uses the facilities while her companion watches closely through the doorway. Even though Veronica knew this would be the situation, she feels degraded and humiliated by the constant scrutiny. Only the oldest residents are allowed any bathroom privacy, and they use their privileged positions to mock the newcomers.**

**Every muscle in Veronica's body aches from the unrelenting position she is forced to maintain by the restraints. She seethes inside, but forces herself to relax. She starts by concentrating on relaxing her toes, willing them to release their tension, moves up her legs to her torso, arms, neck, imagining each muscle becoming fluid and flexible; then she starts the process over again, keeping her breathing steady and slow.**

**When she has done the relaxation exercise ten times, she begins doing arithmetic in her head. She subtracts 8 repeatedly from 100. She adds 21 repeatedly until she reaches 840. She tries to remember all the squares, 1, 4, 9, 16...until she blanks on 15x15 and shakes her head. Then she tries to remember the name of every person in her kindergarten class. The mental exercises help pass the time; she thinks _they are not going to drive me insane._ She whispers, _ I'm okay, I'm okay._**

**The guard looks up and says, "Shut up, Connie, this is punishment. If you don't straighten up, you're going to be doing this a lot."**

**_If I have anything to say about it, no girls are going to be locked up like this again, _she vows.**

**Six weeks earlier...  
**

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Revenge of the Coma-Baby  
**Veronica gets help for Duncan;  
Leo finds new evidence in the desert;  
Logan obsesses.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico  
Colantoni. Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack  
Cliff: Daran Norris. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Special guest star:  
Katherine Heigl as the Blonde Woman.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE: "REVENGE OF THE COMA-BABY"

Mon. 2/2/09: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

Veronica rocks Duncan in her arms for a few minutes, thinking how they should proceed. She comes to a decision and stands up. She goes to the phone and calls room service, ordering two pots of coffee and a couple burgers. Then she calls her dad and Cliff and asks them to come over, saying it's an emergency. After she hangs up, she finds the scotch bottle that Duncan has been drinking from, and she grimly pours it down the drain. Duncan protests feebly, and Veronica says matter-of-factly, "Booze is not going to help you with this. I want to hear what my dad and Cliff have to say."

When the room service arrives, she gets Duncan to drink a cup of coffee, then pushes him into the bathroom, telling him to take a shower. He emerges ten minutes later, considerably more sober, and Veronica convinces him to eat a burger and drink another cup of coffee along with copious amounts of water and some ibuprofen she finds in her purse.

By the time Cliff and her dad arrive, Duncan is morose but coherent. Veronica explains the situation. She concludes by saying, "I want to know what the legal situation is here. Duncan, give Cliff a dollar."

Duncan finds his wallet and gives Cliff the money. Veronica says, "Okay, Cliff, you're hired. What's your opinion here?"

"Well, I think you summarized it pretty well. We can't apply for custody without knowing who the father actually is. You say Duncan's attorneys haven't notified the district attorney of the results of the paternity test?" Veronica nods, and Cliff continues, "So, fortunately, the amnesty deal for the babynapping is still on the table. Speaking as your low-rent attorney: no matter what else you do, Duncan, you have to accept that amnesty. Don't be a fool; this is a one-time offer."

"But I have to surrender custody of Lilly at the same time," Duncan protests. "I'm not going to do that if there's a chance I'll lose her."

Keith breaks in, "If Duncan's not the father, who is? Duncan, did you know of anyone else who was sleeping with Meg?"

"She led me to believe that the one time we had sex was...her first time, and there was nothing about it that led me to believe she was lying," Duncan responds.

"You're telling me you believed you were unlucky enough to get a girl pregnant the very first time?" Cliff says incredulously.

"It happens, and the condom broke," he replies defensively.

"Who provided the condom?" Cliff says.

"I don't know...I don't remember. It was almost four years ago."

Cliff looks at Keith. Keith says, "Duncan, is it possible she purposely brought a defective condom to make you think you could be the father of her child?"

"Dad, that doesn't sound like Meg. She wasn't a devious person," Veronica protests. "She must have just hoped that Duncan was the father."

"Veronica, one of the nurses at the hospital told me that she suspected Meg had awakened from her coma long before anyone realized. I think Meg was capable of being more devious than we thought," Keith says. "Duncan, when you spoke to Meg after she woke up, what was her plan?"

"She wanted to get married, at least long enough to make her baby 'legitimate'. She said she would sign any pre-nup I wanted and would agree to minimal child support from me," Duncan explains.

"It sounds like Meg wanted to conceal the true parentage of her child. When the birth certificate is filled out, the husband is presumed to be the father, unless the mother declares otherwise," Cliff says.

"For what reason would Meg want to hide the father of her baby?" Veronica asks. Cliff and Keith stay silent, and Veronica bursts out, "No, I don't believe it. You think Stewart Manning is the father. Why would she protect him like that?"

Keith sighs, "She might not have been protecting her father. She might have been protecting her mother."

"It's possible," Duncan chimes in. "Meg always defended her mother. She said her father bullied her, threatened her if she argued against his rules or punishments."

"What about someone else? Someone that was sleeping with Meg?" Veronica says, still shaken by the idea that Stewart Manning could have been this evil. "She was going out with Cole before she started seeing you, Duncan. Maybe they hooked up again and weren't careful. Or that creep she was baby-sitting for, the one who came on to me?"

"What?" Duncan and Keith ask simultaneously.

"Mr. Fuller, he invited me to come to his boat and smoke a 'jay'" Veronica adds air-quotes "and fool around. Maybe he invited Meg too, and she took him up on it." Keith looks pissed and begins to pace around the room.

"Meg smoking pot? I don't think so," Duncan says positively.

"We're not worried about Meg getting high, Duncan," Veronica says with frustration. "We're trying to find out who knocked her up."

"Jesus Christ, Veronica, do you have to say it like that?" Duncan protests. "Have some respect for the dead, will you?"

"Duncan, she played you for a fool. And both of us jeopardized our futures because of her lies," Veronica says angrily. "Saint Meg didn't tell you everything."

Cliff clears his throat. "This is all very dramatic, but you're missing the point. Would Meg have lied to protect Mr. Fuller or Cole? I can't really see a reason why she would. But protect her mother? That's a pretty powerful reason to take such drastic action. Don't forget, if Mr. Manning was committing incest with his daughter, Mrs. Manning might even be criminally liable for allowing it to happen."

"But by protecting her father, she was allowing her sister Grace's abuse to continue," Duncan says.

"Maybe not," Veronica realizes. "Maybe that's why she was trying to have the Child Protection Services investigate Grace. Have Grace taken away from the family, or at least put under close supervision by CPS, but not expose the family to a horrific incest case that might put her father and mother in jail. Lizzie is old enough that Meg might have thought she'd be okay."

Keith says quietly, "You have to remember that the victim sometimes refuses to prosecute their abuser. On half of the domestic abuse calls we got when I was sheriff, the wife would refuse to press charges against her husband. When it's a family situation, logic has nothing to do with people's actions and reactions."

"Dad, that's horrible. That means...that means that Meg might have been being abused when..." Veronica can't finish, and instead walks over to her dad, who puts his arm around her.

"Duncan, is it possible?" Keith asks.

"Mr. Manning was creepy. He controlled every moment of Meg's life. When we went out, Meg had a strict curfew, and she had to phone home at several points during the evening. It was several months before we were allowed to go somewhere without an adult chaperone."

_I'm surprised Meg was able to get you alone long enough to glaze the donut,_ Veronica thinks. Aloud, she says, "Duncan, if there's even a chance that Stewart Manning was molesting his daughter, I'm not going to allow you to run again. You have to stay and expose him."

"Allow me? You think you're going to stop me?" Duncan retorts angrily.

"Duncan! You have to do this. He can't get away with this." She turns to Keith and asks him, "Dad, what can we do? Can we compel Stewart Manning to take a paternity test?"

Cliff chimes in, "If Duncan's not the father, he has no legal standing to request a paternity test. You would need sufficient cause, some other evidence, to ask the court to order the test. But...there is such a thing as a sibling DNA test. If you can get Lizzie Manning to agree to provide a sample, we can have a test done to see if she and Lilly are siblings."

"And if the test shows that they are?" Veronica asks.

"The police would use the positive sibling DNA test as reasonable cause to investigate and charge Stewart Manning with child abuse. He would be compelled to provide a DNA sample, and if it proved that he was the father, he would be charged. Lizzie can act as an interested party on Lilly's behalf and request that Stewart Mannings' parental rights be terminated due to child abuse. Duncan could request custody at that time."

"And Rose Manning? Would she be prosecuted? Could she try to retain custody of Lilly?" Veronica asks.

Cliff replies, "I don't know. I guess it would depend on whether the courts felt she was aware of the situation. If Lizzie knew what was going on, she might be able to provide some information, and then we'd know how to proceed."_  
_

Mon. 2/2/09: Ranchita, CA

In Ranchita, California, near the Anza-Borrego Desert, Leo consults with the fire marshal. The fire marshal points to a distinctive burn pattern and says, "They definitely used an accelerant, probably gasoline. But what's unusual was the amount of care used to destroy the vehicle itself. My best guess would be a General Motors or Ford car from the early seventies. All combustible material was burned away in the fire."

Leo and the fire marshal walk over to the remains of the car. Leo peers at the burnt metal and asks, "Do you think you can get any vehicle information off this?"

"Maybe your crime scene techs can find something, but I've found all I can here." The fire marshal signs his report and hands it to Leo. "You know, it's weird. The owner hasn't responded to our attempts to contact them. Usually people are freaking out about their insurance claims."

As Leo returns to his car, he sees something in the dirt near his car's tire. He dons a pair of latex gloves. Leo carefully digs up the item and seals it in an evidence bag, marking it into his evidence log. He peers at it through the plastic bag and decides it's some sort of small electronic device, but the item has been crushed beyond recognition, probably by one of the official vehicles that have been investigating the arson._  
_

Late Mon. 2/2/09: Somewhere in the United States

Logan decides to avoids the newspapers. He doesn't want to know the details of Hannah's murder, which at first occupied vast front-page real estate and have now begun to disappear into interior sections as the reading public yearns for the next big scandal. He refuses to turn on the television in his economy motel room; he even unplugs it so that the extra step may dissuade him if he weakens in his resolve.

His thoughts wander to Veronica more than he would like; he's determined to stay out of her life, to keep her safe from him, but she refuses to leave his memories. He imagines Veronica's comments on his voluminous Hannah stories: "Aww, that's so sweet"; "God, Logan, you're such a girl"; and "How could she have stayed away". He tries to push judgmental Veronica out of his head; hopelessly he realizes that Veronica has always been his audience, that he desperately needs her approval. She will always be the one who matters the most._  
_

Late Mon. 2/2/09: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

Cliff and Keith discuss the custody issue with Duncan and Veronica for several hours. Cliff admits that there are few precedents in a case like this. "If Meg had been able to marry you and had fraudulently named you as the father, it would have been a different situation entirely. There is a wealth of case law that could be applied from the days before DNA testing made paternity an exact science."

Keith thinks, _Dammit! it would have been preferable if Duncan had merely let this play out at the time_, and says aloud, "Duncan, I'm sure it will all work out. If Stewart Manning is the father, you will be regarded as a hero who saved a child without even knowing for certain that she was your biological daughter."

Duncan regards Keith bleakly. "In what world are you living? In the Neptune I know, you can kill a girl with an ashtray and be acquitted."

Keith purses his lips and privately agrees.

Duncan continues, "She's my daughter. I can't live without her."

Keith says, "Cliff and I will talk to Lizzie. Let's see if she'll agree to do the sibling DNA test before we even think about any other plan of action."

When Cliff leaves the room to use the bathroom, Veronica pulls Keith aside. "Um, Dad? There's something you need to know about Lizzie." She steals a glance at Duncan, then continues, "Duncan offered her a half-million dollars in return for testifying against her father. She receives the funds when Duncan is awarded custody."

"Oh, Veronica, that was really not the smartest move. Bribing a witness?" Keith asks incredulously.

"Compensating her for the loss of her father's support when she testifies against him is more accurate," Veronica replies defensively. "How can Lizzie be impartial when she is dependent on her father for support? I'm sure she wants to have a college education at least as much as I do, and, in her case, that's her best chance to get away from her family eventually."

Cliff walks back in, saying, "You rich kids and your lavish lifestyle. Your bathroom's bigger than my apartment, Duncan. Ah, to be young and wealthy in Neptune."

"I'll take care of it," Keith says to Veronica. _Another cover-up,_ he thinks.

As Keith and Cliff leave, Duncan begs Veronica to stay for awhile. "I'm going to move in here. I can't deal with my mother and think about this. I'll call Astrid and ask her to pack a bag for Jane and bring her here. Please stay until they get here. I need you, Veronica."

Veronica and Duncan sit together on the couch for a long time, both of them remembering the simplicity of their time there in the past before they knew Meg was pregnant. Duncan holds onto Veronica as if she is a lifeline to normalcy. When Astrid arrives with a sleepy Jane, Veronica stands up to go, and Duncan hugs her tightly. He whispers in her ear, "I need you, Veronica. I still love you. I've thought about you every day since I left Neptune."

Veronica stiffens, but whispers back, "I'm here for you, Duncan. It's going to be okay."

As she leaves the Neptune Grand lobby, Veronica notices a beautiful woman with blonde hair checking in. Something about her seems familiar, but even though Veronica stares at her profile for a long minute, she can't place her.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Down the Rabbit Hole  
**Keith locates the evidence in Vinnie's  
case; Candice comes clean with Wallace.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico  
Colantoni. Cliff: Daran Norris. Gallagher:  
Christian Stolte. Father Patrick: James  
Joseph O'Neill. Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
Candice Pauling: Toy Connor.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO: "DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE"

Tues. 2/3/09 morning: St. Mary's Cemetery, Neptune, CA

A pickup truck labeled 'Neptune Coroner's Department' with a back hoe in tow pulls up to St. Mary's cemetery. Keith, wearing thick black plain-glass spectacles and a salt-and-pepper colored wig under his hardhat, goes to speak with the supervisor of the cemetery while Eli Navarro waits in the truck. "I have an order here to examine the casket in plot #79," he explains to the supervisor. "There's been an accusation that the funeral director put certain items in the casket that were supposed to be returned to the family. I think there's a lawsuit involved. I don't really know what it's about, but the word came down from my boss to check the casket." He shows the supervisor some official-looking paperwork and offers it for signature.

The supervisor shrugs, saying, "I don't know what to do. Father Patrick is out of town at a diocesan conference. He really should be here." He looks through the paperwork, which is lengthy and filled with legal terms and a plethora of official stamps and signatures.

"Come on, it's no big deal. We'll be out of your hair in a couple hours," Keith wheedles, preferring to do this excavation during the daylight hours rather than attempting a midnight stealth operation. He's well aware that Father Patrick is out of town for the day and in fact is giving a speech on community relations at a diocesan conference in San Diego that morning.

The supervisor signs the form and motions that Keith should go ahead. Keith nods a thank you and hopes that Cliff is doing his part up at Lompoc this morning.

Keith gets back in the truck, and Eli, scratching at his unaccustomed baseball cap, asks, "Are we good to go?" Keith nods, and Eli continues, "Let's get this crackhead operation over with. I don't want to have to come back here again. You know I'll do whatever you need to help Veronica and jack those pinches culeros for what they did to my uncle, but I hate this fucking dirtnap motel." Eli crosses himself and mutters, "Ave maria purísima."_  
_

Tues. 2/3/09: Lompoc State Penitentiary, Lompoc, CA

Cliff enters the prison and prepares to have his belongings searched. When the guard wearing the name tag 'Gallagher' opens Cliff's briefcase, the guard says, "What the hell is this? You can't bring a weapon in here."

Cliff looks in his briefcase at a Smith & Wesson 539 in a plastic Ziploc bag. "Where is my head? I forgot to drop that off. That's new evidence in a case I'm working on. Just hold on to my briefcase, will you? I'll pick it up after I finish meeting with Mr. Van Lowe."

Before Cliff has cleared the area, the guard is on the phone with a worried expression._  
_

Tues. 2/3/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Wallace is eating lunch in the Food Court at Hearst College. Candice spies him and gives him a little wave. Wallace halfheartedly waves back, and Candice frowns and comes over to join him.

"What's up, Wallace?" Candice says.

Wallace regards her thoughtfully, wondering just how much to say. _I know she's hiding something. I remember how much it hurt when I found out about Jackie._ Finally he says, "Candice, I really like you. In fact, I've never met a girl like you, smart and beautiful and kind. But I think you're hiding something from me, and I had a bad experience with a girl a few years ago. It messed me up when I found out the truth about her. It wasn't even that bad what she was hiding; what hurt was her not trusting me. And I think you don't trust me either."

Candice looks down at her tray of food.

Wallace continues, "I don't want to get hurt again, so I think I'm just going to walk away." He starts to stand up, and Candice puts her hand on his arm.

"Wait...I'll tell you everything. I've been wanting to," she says.

Wallace sits back down and looks at her.

"I don't know where to start," Candice says.

"Try the beginning. I have a lot of time to listen," Wallace replies. _What the hell is going on?_

"Wallace, I have a half-brother. His name is Shawn. We have different fathers, so his last name is Blake, but my father raised him and we were very close growing up. Shawn went to school here at Hearst. About two weeks before Christmas last year, he disappeared."

Wallace replies, "Shawn Blake? I don't remember reading anything about anyone with that name. What happened?"

"He told his roommate that he was going home. But he never got home. He was last seen in Neptune on Dec. 15, but the family wasn't expecting him until Christmas Eve. By the time my parents realized something was wrong, no one had seen him for ten days. I was in Mali and didn't know anything about it. My parents didn't want to worry me at the time; they were hoping he would show up. Finally, around New Year's Eve, my father flew out here to Neptune and talked to your sheriff, Vinnie Van Lowe."

"Uh-oh," Wallace says. "Vinnie wasn't a very good sheriff."

"And not very nice to my father. Sheriff Van Lowe said since Shawn was over eighteen, there wasn't much he could do," Candice said. "He said Shawn was allowed to disappear if he wanted to. My father contacted all the hospitals in the area and talked to my brother's roommate, who didn't know anything. Apparently, they were just roommates and weren't good friends."

"What about a private detective?" Wallace asks.

"My parents don't have very much money. My mother hasn't been able to work for years because of her health problems. My father didn't stay out here long because he needed to get back to take care of her," Candice replies.

"So you decided to come to school here and look for him?"

"Yes, but so far I haven't been very successful."

Wallace looks at her. "Candice, why wouldn't you ask me for help? You know I work at Mars Investigations; I can help you."

Candice sighs. "My brother had a lot of problems with drugs when he was younger. I guess...I guess I didn't want you to find out. And...well, I've been looking into Mars Investigations. At first, I found a lot of articles that implied that your boss was a crooked sheriff. But I read his book and researched a little more, and I've come to believe that Mr. Mars is an honest man."

"Candice, I want to help you. And I have to tell you, the person you should be talking to is my friend Veronica."_  
_

Tues. 2/3/09: Sunset Cliffs Apartments, Neptune, CA

Keith enters the apartment. He gets a plastic bag to store the bullet he retrieved from the corpse in Mary MacDonald's grave. He stares at the bullet for a long time, thinking that this was the most heinous thing he's ever had to do. _I didn't have a choice!_ he protests to himself._ Vinnie insisted that I had to get the bullet from the corpse; one of his fellow inmates at Lompoc was convicted because of similar evidence. I know he would turn in Veronica to save himself; it's the 'Vinnie Special', taken to the max.  
_  
Keith undresses to take a shower; he starts to throw his clothes in the hamper, but changes his mind and bags them in a plastic, intending to throw them out instead. In the shower, he turns the water to the hottest setting and scrubs every inch of his body with Veronica's loofah. Still, when his hand comes near his face, he thinks he still smells the stench of decay and corruption. Keith stays in the shower long after the water turns icy cold; the frigid blast makes him shiver, but he welcomes the pain of the stinging cold water._  
_

Tues. 2/3/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

VERONICA

I've been trying to study all afternoon, and I've accomplished nothing. I can't stop worrying about Duncan. He's fled the country twice now when confronted with a problem, and I'm certain he'll run again if we can't get Lizzie to take the sibling DNA test. Even with a positive result, custody isn't a certainty. He loves Lilly, and it would kill him to give her up. How the hell am I going to help him?

Dad promised to speak to Lizzie first thing tomorrow; I argued with him, tried to get him to talk to her today, but he said he would be busy all day and couldn't reschedule. His phone has been off every time I've tried to call him today. He's been very secretive all week; Wallace says he has no clue what he's up to.

I keep thinking about Meg...poor Meg: what it must have been like for her, how desperate she must have been to come up with her plan; and then Duncan broke off their relationship and began pursuing me again. No wonder she hated me. God, what a mess.

And then...there's Logan. I've watched the casino video a hundred times now. Something is wrong with that video, but I can't figure out what it is.

I wish...I wish I knew what was going on with him._  
_

Tues. 2/3/09 evening: St. Mary's Church, Neptune, CA

A short distance from St. Mary's Church, Keith sits in his car monitoring two laptops. The first one is showing all surveillance activity on the devices Keith placed in the priest's residence and in the church. The second laptop has the hacking program that Mac created for Keith. When Father Patrick logs on to his computer, the Bluetooth device in the laptop, enhanced by a range-extender, will automatically seek a connection with the Bluetooth wireless keyboard in Father Patrick's office. The laptop will ping the keyboard, seeking the PIN number of the device, and will use the algorithm Mac designed in order to compute the PIN and make a secure connection. All the information Father Patrick types in from that point will be mirrored to the laptop screen.

While Keith waits, he thinks about the bullet he retrieved that morning that is now stored in the freezer at the Mars residence behind a carton of Rocky Road. He feels like he still reeks of the smell of decomposition, but he forcibly tamps down the panic, knowing it can't possibly be true.He thinks, _I know today's 'exhumation' will help to sell the ruse of the gun from the robbery and make Father Patrick react the way I need him to, but damn Vinnie to Hell!_

Keith watches as Father Patrick turns into the driveway and parks in his reserved spot. The cemetery supervisor immediately accosts the priest, and Keith surmises that Father Patrick is learning about the exhumation from the morning. Father Patrick appears to be angry and walks quickly into his office.

Keith selects the surveillance device that provides a live audio feed from the office, and hears a beep and an electronic voice saying, "You have five new messages. Tuesday...11:14 am" A voice says, "Father? It's Gallagher, from Lompoc. That shyster McCormack was here today; he had a gun. I think he's got the gun from, you know, that thing we talked about. Call me right away." -beep- The electronic voice continues, "Tuesday...11:58 am" It's Gallagher again, asking Father Patrick to call. There is one message from a parishioner asking for an appointment, then two more messages from Gallagher.

Keith hears the priest say a very unecclesiastical "Shit!" and sees from the video feed that the priest has picked up the phone. He dials a number, and Keith, switching to monitor the phone bug, hears that the phone is ringing and is picked up by an answering machine. Father Patrick slams the phone down, and logs onto his computer.

Mac's program automatically pings the Father's computer and retrieves the PIN number of the Bluetooth keyboard. Keith watches on the second laptop screen as Father Patrick types:

"(ctrl) N

gallagher at gmail•com (tab) (tab) Re: Your Message (tab) (tab) Are you sure it's the same item? Item location has not changed to my knowledge. Please describe item. (alt) S

(ctrl) N

roastbeefman at yahoo•com (tab) (tab) Re: VVL (tab) (tab) Someone may be helping VVL. Need to activate contingency plan immediately."

From his video feed, Keith sees Father Patrick suddenly stop and pick up an envelope from the stack of mail on the desk. He opens the letter and reads with an expression of shock. Keith peers at the screen and thinks that the envelope has a sticker indicating it was forwarded from another address.

Father Patrick turns back to the computer screen and types.

"There was a fire at L's property in Ranchita. The shed was destroyed. VVL rep appears to have other evidence. Please advise. (alt) S"

Keith watches as Father Patrick shuts down the computer and begins to pace around the office. He seems to make a decision; he unlocks a desk drawer and removes a key ring. He exits the office, and Keith slouches in his car seat to prevent his being seen as Father Patrick hustles out of the priest's residence and into the church.

Keith switches the video feed to the devices in the church, toggling between them until he picks up an image of the priest. He watches as the priest locates a hidden door behind the lectern on the alter, unlocks it, and pulls it open. The priest's relief is palpable; Father Patrick looks around the church, closes the compartment, and returns to the priest's residence.

Keith immediately exits his car and stealthily enters the church. He locates the compartment. The lock is almost invisible, set into the fine woodwork of the panel. Keith uses lock picks to open the compartment, and he retrieves a gun in a plastic bag and quickly leaves the church.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Gazing Into the Abyss  
**A new development in the serial murder case, and  
Veronica is curious; Keith talks to Lizzie; Vinnie  
makes a deal; Veronica works a case; Logan  
confronts his demons.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Cliff: Daran Norris. Lizzie: Anastasia Baranova.  
Vinnie: Ken Marino. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE: "GAZING INTO THE ABYSS"

Wed. 2/4/09 morning: Hearst College Food Court, Neptune, CA

At breakfast, Veronica reads the latest news headlines on her laptop. She sees an update on the investigation into Hannah's murder and clicks on it for more information.

"The Los Angeles Medical Examiner's Office has released additional information regarding the autopsy of Hannah Griffith, the most recent victim of the Saturday Night Slasher serial killer.

"A representative for the office confirmed today that toxicology tests performed on the hair of the victim indicate that Ms. Griffith was not a habitual drug user, although urine screens at the time of death showed large amounts of heroin in her system.

"Ms. Griffith, 18, was found murdered on January 18, and the FBI and Los Angeles Police Department have confirmed that the murder appears to be consistent with the previous victims attributed to the so-called Saturday Night Slasher. A representative from the FBI has stated that there are no new leads in the investigation."

Veronica wonders about this latest development. _What the hell is going on? Hannah wasn't a drug user, but she was found with heroin in her system. It's a big jump from clean-and-sober to on-the-nod._ She remembers her promise to Weevil not to investigate this killer, and she hesitates. She knows her dad, too, would be upset if he finds out that she's thinking about looking into this, and, up to now, she fully intended to leave this investigation to the professionals. But a part of her thinks helplessly that maybe Logan would come back to her if the serial killer was caught. She finally gives in to her curiosity and calls her old boyfriend, Mike Fields, the FBI agent. She gets his voicemail and asks him to call her back._  
_

Wed. 2/4/09: San Diego State University, San Diego, CA

Keith consults the printout of Lizzie Manning's class schedule that Veronica gave him and a copy of Lizzie's Neptune High School yearbook photo and scans the faces of the students milling around the SDSU campus. He sees a likely candidate exiting a building across the courtyard and hurries to catch up with her.

"Ms. Manning? Elizabeth Manning?"

Lizzie looks up, surprised, and says, "Sheriff Mars. Did Veronica send you to do her dirty work?"

"Lizzie...it's okay if I call you Lizzie?" Keith asks, and Lizzie reluctantly nods. He continues, "Can we find a private place to talk? It's important. I know you have...an arrangement with a certain party, and I know you don't want to jeopardize that. Am I right?"

Lizzie nods sullenly. "There's a place over there," she says, indicating a distant bench well apart from the rest of the courtyard. She walks toward it, and Keith follows her.

They sit, and Keith begins to speak. "Lizzie, this is not going to be easy to hear. Duncan Kane received the results of a paternity test, and it indicates that he is not the father of Meg's baby."

Lizzie goes white. "That's impossible. Meg said...Meg said it was Duncan's."

"I know. We all assumed that Meg was telling us the truth. Are you aware of anyone else who could be the father?" Keith probes in a gentle voice.

"What are you implying?" Lizzie cries harshly.

"Please tell me what you know, Lizzie. I can't change what happened to Meg, but I'd like to help you if I can. And I know Duncan is still committed to going through with your arrangement with him if you'll be honest with us. You see, we can't really figure out why Meg would lie about who the father was. Maybe you know something that we don't," Keith says.

"You're just as crazy as your daughter; there's nothing to know," she replies.

"Lizzie, someone fathered Meg's baby. And Meg concocted a desperate scheme to make the world think that Duncan was the father. Why would she go to such lengths to conceal the father of her baby? I know it's hard to think about, but I think you know who the father is."

She stares at him angrily, remaining silent.

"No one will blame you for keeping quiet. You were a child, and you couldn't possibly have understood what was going on," he continues. "Lizzie, you were a victim too."

Lizzie looks down at her lap, and Keith waits for her respond. Finally, he asks, "Lizzie? Are you okay?"

When Lizzie raises her head to look into Keith's eyes, his heart breaks to see the tears streaming down her face. She whispers, "I think Meg...I think Meg was trying to protect me. She...saw Daddy watching me, and she told me it was going to be alright. Then...Meg was so worried. She would hardly talk to me, but I knew she wasn't sleeping or eating. Then one day, she seemed relieved, as if she had figured something out. She was happy. Duncan made her so happy. But when he broke it off, Meg became the biggest bitch. She complained about Veronica all the time, said that Veronica had ruined her life. Meg started talking back to my parents. You just don't do that to my father. He locked her in her room for an entire weekend."

Keith tries to put his arm around Lizzie, but she flinches and he drops his hand. She begins to sob inconsolably. "Lizzie, are you confirming that it's possible that your father...is the father of Meg's baby?"

She nods.

"Lizzie, there's a DNA test that can prove that you and Lilly are sisters. If it shows that you are, the courts can compel your father to do a paternity test. Duncan still wants to try to adopt her. Are you willing to help? I'm not going to lie to you, it's going to be awful. People are going to say and write terrible things about you and your family. But if your father really did this, we need to get Grace and Lilly permanently away from him. And you need to be free of him as well."

Lizzie nods again, hiccuping through her sobs.

He hesitates, but he knows he has to ask the question. "Lizzie...did he ever...did your dad do anything to you?"

She looks up, panicked. "No! Will people think he... Oh my god! People will say..."

"He never touched you? Or Grace?"

"After Meg died, something changed. I think that's when someone started blackmailing my parents. I thought it was Veronica, but she said..." Lizzie explains.

"Yes, we're pretty sure that it was Sheriff Lamb who was blackmailing your parents. If it kept your dad from touching you, I'm grateful to Lamb for that at least," Keith replies grimly. He adds, more gently, "Lizzie, what about your mother? Do you think she knew what was going on with Meg?"

"Why?" Lizzie replies, quizzically.

"You need to know before you decide what to do. If she was aware, she could be charged with child abuse herself. And...if she was not aware, you and she are the closest blood relatives, and as such could claim custody rights."

"I could ask for custody?" Lizzie says incredulously. "No way."

"So you think Lilly should stay with Duncan?"

"You keep saying 'Lilly'. The family calls her 'Faith'," Lizzie comments distractedly.

Keith looks at her with concern. "You can be declared an interested party in Faith's case, and you can support Duncan's petition for custody. Your support would help his case a great deal. You don't have to testify against your mother. You can say that you don't know what she knew, because that's what it sounds like to me. I'm sure that you didn't want to know, Lizzie. It's not something you want to think about your mother."

Lizzie begins to sob again. Keith moves to comfort her again; she tenses, but reluctantly allows him to hug her. He rocks her, trying futilely to calm her, damning Stewart Manning to hell for hurting his children.

Finally, she looks up at him and says, "I'll do it. I'll take the test, and I'll support Duncan's petition for custody. Maybe my...sister will have a better life because of it."_  
_

Wed. 2/4/09: Lompoc State Prison, Lompoc, CA

Vinnie Van Lowe, meeting with two representatives of the district attorney's office along with Cliff, prepares to sign the paperwork accepting a deal for probation in return for his testimony against the Fitzpatricks.

Cliff says, "And are we agreed, we'll be transferring Mr. Van Lowe to the protective custody of the Neptune Sheriff's Department? Mr. Van Lowe feels that you will not be able to provide adequate protection here in Lompoc, even in solitary confinement, and he has family in Neptune that he wishes to spend time with before he enters the witness protection program. This is a deal-breaker, gentlemen."

The attorneys finally acquiesce, and the deal is executed. Vinnie shakes Cliff's hand and whispers in his ear, "Tell Keith he totally rocked the house on this."

Cliff merely raises an eyebrow. "I'm not sure what you're referring to. Congratulations, Vinnie, you're on your way to becoming a free man again."_  
_

Wed. 2/4/09: Le Coq d'Or Restaurant, Neptune, CA

Veronica tails Douglas Stern, Jr., trust attorney to Neptune's wealthy elite, to a local restaurant, Le Coq d'Or. Keith has explained that they need to have proof that he is colluding with the beneficiaries in order to pursue fraud and undue influence charges. He has told Veronica that she should try to get photos, or even better, video or audio surveillance, of the attorney meeting with the brother of their client. The client has explained that he suspects that his brother, who is currently excluded from their father's will, is seeking to have the trust attorney influence his father to once again include him in his estate.

At the restaurant, she watches from her car and takes a long-range photograph as the attorney joins two men at a table near the rear of the room. Veronica goes into the restaurant and asks the maitre d' if there are any tables available. He replies, snootily, "All tables are reserved, madam." While she is speaking, Veronica reads the names on the reservations list upside-down and recognizes the surname of the brother they are seeking. She turns away, walking slowly and trying to come up with a way to hear the conversation.

There is a commotion in the kitchen, and the maitre d' heads back to see what is going on. Veronica smiles to herself. She looks under the shelf of the reservation desk and finds a vest similar to the maitre d's. _Bingo._ She dons the vest, glad that she wore a plain white shirt that day, and gets a T9 audio transmitter from her purse. She stows her purse under a chair, takes a few menus for cover, and heads into the main area of the restaurant. She grabs a flower from a vase on a convenient table and, hiding the bug in the petals, heads for the back of the room where her targets are sitting.

"How are you gentlemen doing today? May I get you anything?" She brushes against the table and 'accidentally' knocks over the table's flower vase. "Oh, I'm sorry!" she exclaims. As she rights the vase, she substitutes the flower with the bug.

The three men mutter that they don't need anything, and Veronica says, "Your server will be right with you." She quickly exits the restaurant, retrieving her purse from under the chair where it was stowed and depositing the vest where she got it. In her car, she launches the Sonic Snoop Audio Surveillance application on her laptop, selects the serial number of the audio device, and hits record. _Gotcha,_ she thinks, as she hears the men laughing and bragging about the money they're scamming from 'the old man'. _It never gets old, catching a con artist dead-to-rights, especially a sleazy '09'er con artist._ As she listens, she realizes that the third man is Gordon Wilks, the psychiatrist that she had earlier noticed had signed off on many of the failed competency exams for the elderly clients of the trust attorney.

After lunch, the men stand up and shake hands. Keith had mentioned that he wanted her to pursue her instincts regarding the psychiatrist, and, checking her watch for the time, Veronica decides to follow the shrink and plan her next move. Wilks gets in his car, and, at a discreet distance, Veronica follows him as he drives to a building prominently labeled, 'Neptune Medical Associates'._  
_

Wed. 2/4/09: Somewhere in the United States

Logan has ventured out of the motel room for a midday walk on the beach. _So far, so good, _he thinks. His new appearance and clothing have changed his look enough that no one has given him a second glance. His commitment to his physical therapy has only strengthened; each day, he is able to do more reps, walk a little further, lean on his cane a little less strongly. It feels good to move and get stronger; it's the only thing that feels good right now, and he holds onto it desperately.

Some days the surf on the beach is wild, kicked up by the wind, and he can feel the blowing sand particles stinging against his face. Today, however, the water is calm, and the sun is out; a few die-hard sun-worshippers are on the beach even though it's only in the mid-70's. It's too early for the spring break crowds; these people are locals taking their lunch break. He hates the baseball cap he's wearing, but he knows it's very 'anti-Logan' and conceals his identity more than the change in hair color and the facial hair. The sun beats down on him, and for a moment he actually feels okay. _ I feel okay today. I feel okay; maybe...maybe the worst is over._

He hears laughing and a camera clicking and whirring behind him, and he whirls around, panicked. _No, I'm not ready! No, please leave me alone for a while longer, I can't, I can't, I can't..._ He's about to hurry back to his motel room to pack up and run again when he realizes it's not a paparazzo; it's just a father taking pictures of his wife and children some distance away. Logan forces his agitation back down as the father stares at him curiously. Logan gives him a little wave and says weakly, "Beautiful day, huh?"

The father nods and turns back toward his happy family. The kids romp in the surf; it's way too cold to swim without a wet suit, but the children are enjoying themselves immensely just splashing in the shallow water. _What the hell is wrong with me that it's so hard for me to be happy? How has the rest of the world figured this out, but I'm still completely at a loss how to be a happy person?_

Suddenly, he thinks, _I wonder what Veronica's doing. I hope she's happy._ But a small, mean voice replies, _No, you don't. You don't want her to be happy. You want her to be sad and lonely...especially if she starts up with Duncan again; you want her to be miserable inside. You want her to be miserable like you._

Fiercely, he thinks, _No, no, I'm protecting her. I want her to be happy._ The mean voice says, _Bullshit. You're just being selfish. You're scared because she sees all of you; she sees what a total fuckup you are. Suck it up, asshole. Go back and beg her forgiveness and spend the rest of your life making up for running away from her. She was right to kick you to the curb senior year; you're fucking it up again, just like you did with Madison and Kendall, and if you don't fix it, she'll write you off forever._

He roars back, _She fucking deserted me when I needed her the most! My mother was dead; my father had killed my girlfriend; I was on trial for murder! She ran back to her wimpy safe little boyfriend, ran away from me, ME who loved her helplessly, completely, desperately; ran right back to that shit-eating coward Duncan. I needed her, and she ran away! She always lets me know that I can't possibly measure up to her impossible standards. She just toys me with me until it's time to dump me again. It's her fault I was even with Hannah; if Veronica had stayed with me and helped me, I never would have gone after Hannah._

The mean voice just keeps repeating, _What BULLSHIT, you fucking loser; she was right to leave you. You're so full of shit; now you're blaming Veronica for Hannah. How low can you go, Logan? Your old man has nothing on you._

That day, Logan walks twice as far as he's ever gone since the cast was removed. His leg is throbbing when he finally returns to his motel room, and he is exhausted. His mental battles have raged on, only increasing in intensity as he gritted his teeth and walked just a few hundred yards more, just a few hundred yards more...

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Sleazy Does It  
**Mac upgrades the Pi Sig computer security;  
Veronica bumps into Keith, learns some  
disturbing information and has a revelation.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico  
Colantoni. Mac: Tina Majorino. Dick: Ryan  
Hansen. Dr. Frazier: Chris Sarandon.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR: "SLEAZY DOES IT"

Wed. 2/4/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Dick opens the door to the Pi Sig frat house. When he sees Mac, he calls out to Chip Diller, "It's just another chick who can't stay away from me."

"Hilarious," Mac comments, brushing past Dick into the foyer. "How are your computers behaving?"

"Well, you know, I can't really say I've put my laptop through a full workout, but I've been making up for lost time downloading porn. It's like Christmas all over again."

Mac looks at him quizzically.

"You know...ho, ho, ho," he explains, making a lecherous face.

Despite herself, she laughs.

"You do miss me, admit it," he prods her. "I always made you laugh, Mac."

"Except for that one time, when you made me cry," she replies drily. "Take me to your computer, earthling."

Dick shuts up for once and escorts Mac to his room. She seats herself at his desk and opens the laptop to be assaulted by a picture of three generously-endowed models servicing a man. "It burns!" she cries sarcastically, pretending to cover her eyes.

"Whoops, my bad, let me get rid of that," Dick says. He taps a few keys, then tells her, "Okay, it's safe for impressionable children now."

Mac looks at the screen which is refreshingly blank, showing only a few icons. She performs a system profile and searches the computer drive for any malicious intrusions. "So far, so good." She takes a cd out of her bag and installs an application.

"I thought you said it was fixed before," Dick comments, pulling his chair closer to try to rub against Mac's leg.

She moves her chair slightly, frowning at him, and replies, "That was just a temporary fix to get you guys up and running, you know, just in case one of you wanted to do some schoolwork–"

"Not likely," Dick interrupts.

"Well, this is a more powerful security protocol. It uses a rotating encrypted password scheme that kicks in whenever a remote server asks permission to download a program, no matter how innocuous it seems. You're going to have to start up the password generator before you run your browser; now when a flirt-bot tries to initiate itself, the browser will ask for the correct password in order to continue, and the flirt-bot will not initiate. For now. This is only going to work until the flirt-bot programmers figure out a way around it. You will have to set a master password, and you'll still have to watch for any unusual behavior and let me know right away if anything seems weird."

"You are Mackalicious! Master password, huh? I'm thinking...TrouserSnake."

Mac chuckles. "All right. Look, here's how to change it." She goes through the steps slowly several times. "You should probably change it every day, if you're going to continue engaging in such risky behavior. Think of it as a condom for your computer."

"How d'you come up with this anyways?" Dick asks, impressed.

"I had a couple consultants helping me," Mac explains. "I'm actually glad you brought this to my attention; it had infected our website as well."

"Always happy to serve you, mistress," he replies. As he escorts her out of the frat house, he surprises her by suddenly grabbing her in a hug and whispering in her ear, "I really do miss you, babe."_  
_

Wed. 2/4/09: Neptune Medical Associates, Neptune, CA

Veronica waits in her car as the psychiatrist enters the medical building. She is considering her disguise options in case the shrink remembers her from the restaurant when she suddenly sees her father exiting the building. _Dad? What are you doing here? Could this be your secret project?_ Her dad had said that he wanted her to take the lead on the trust attorney case for now. She scooches down in her seat, hoping that her Saturn is a common enough vehicle that her dad won't notice her. _I'm being ridiculous! He knows I'm working on this case._ Still she stays concealed until Keith's car is out of the parking lot. _He looked upset about something,_ she thinks.

She makes up her mind. In her back seat, she finds a brown wig, glasses, and a colorful sweater, and puts them on. She walks into the lobby of the medical center and looks at the directory of offices. There is a physical therapist taking up the entire first floor; a general practitioner and Gordon Wilks, M.D., the psychiatrist, on the third floor; and on the second floor, a gynecologist and Robert Frazier, M.F.C.C. Uncertain what M.F.C.C. stands for, she pulls out her iPhone and runs a search on the initials, learning it's a social worker qualification: 'Marriage, Family and Child Counselor'.

She climbs the stairs to the second floor and enters a door marked 'Robert Frazier, M.F.C.C. Family Therapy and Educational Consultant'. There is no one in the waiting room, but Veronica sees some brochures in a display on the wall. She peruses them quickly, stopping short when she sees a brochure for Briar Hill Academy. Recognizing the name as the school where Hannah was sent, she skims the pamphlet. Her skin crawls; something about the brochure seems totally off to her. The quotes of the successful graduates are a little too perfect.

"May I help you?" a man says.

Veronica jumps in surprise. "Um, I was just looking at this information."

"Would you like to come and talk for a moment? Is something bothering you?" the man says. "I'm Dr. Frazier."

Veronica thinks, _according to my google search, you're not really a doctor at all._ "Okay," she replies. She follows the 'doctor' into his office and sits across from him in a comfortable chair.

"Let's start with your name," Frazier suggests.

"Vicky Warshawski," Veronica says.

"Vicky, tell me what's going on in your life." Frazier leans forward in his chair, appearing attentive and concerned.

"Well, uh, Dr. Frazier," Veronica says, stalling while she thinks about the phrases she just read on the brochure, "I'm not getting along too well with my parents. I'm thinking I need a change."

"Give me an example, Vicky," the counselor says. He stands up and moves to a chair next to Veronica and leans in, effectively closing off her personal space.

"Well, they found some pot in my room, and, like, they grounded me for a month. Then I snuck out to see my boyfriend, and my mom got totally hyper and said I was going to get pregnant if I didn't watch out. I said I wanted to get pregnant, and she went ballistic." Veronica starts to get into her role a little. "I don't really want to get pregnant. I just, I don't know, I act out because they're so ridiculous. It's just a little weed. They don't remember what it's like to be a teenager. Then there's the internet thing. They checked my browser history and went nuts because I was reading some blogs on livejournal. Shit, it's just stories about TV shows. Ooh, sorry, I mean, 'shoot'. What's the BFD?"

"Let's see, Vicky. The big deal is that your parents are very worried about you, and rightly so. It's a different world today. And the rules are changing every day, and your parents are having a hard time keeping up and trying to keep you safe. You might be right about needing a change. The school you have there" he motions to the brochure in Veronica's hand "is a very strict school. But students come to appreciate the rigorous discipline. And at the beginning, there's no contact with the family while you work on your program."

"That sounds great; they're making me crazy," Veronica says.

"There's intensive group therapy, and the school itself is very good. Once you get away from your friends who are doing drugs and putting pressure on you to have sex, you might find that you enjoy your school work more and will apply yourself to your studies in a new way."

"Discipline sounds tough, though. I'm not good at following the rules."

"Well, Vicky, I hate to tell you, but you sound like the perfect candidate for this school. It's the rules in life that ultimately give you freedom. When you are confronted with the craziness of an unregulated world, you have too many choices, and you end up struggling. In a disciplined environment, you actually have the freedom to explore your inner self and discover the real you."

_What a load of crap,_ Veronica thinks. _Is this guy an educational consultant or a reeducation mind-control consultant?_ "You might be right," she says, pretending to be rueful. "What if I decide I don't like the school? Can I quit?"

"No, Vicky. We ask our students and their parents to sign a contract committing to a six-month residency. Without a commitment, there's no possibility of improvement and achievement," Frazier responds.

"That sounds scary. And what about the security guards? That doesn't sound good."

"The security guards are just for the students' own protection," Frazier answers smoothly. "Some students have trouble with the transition at first, but you'd be surprised how many students actually end up applying for positions as counselors after graduation. And of the students who graduate Briar Hill successfully, over 90 go on to college. Most say that they wouldn't have made it through high school without the support system at Briar Hill. It's really quite a successful program."

_For your bank account, _she thinks sarcastically. "Is it expensive? It sounds good, but my parents don't have a lot of money."

"How expensive would a criminal defense attorney be if you got into serious trouble? How much is your parents' peace of mind worth? I bet they'd be willing to spend a lot of money to ensure your happiness and safety," Frazier replies. "Vicky, here's an inquiry form. I'd like you to fill it out, and someone will contact your parents. How did you hear about me, by the way?"

Veronica thinks fast. "Oh, I was across the hall at the gyno, and they're running really behind, and when I saw 'educational consultant' on your door, I just thought, 'I wonder what that's about.'" She reaches for the inquiry form and fills it out 'Mr. and Mrs. Stuart Warshawski, 23 Emperor Court, Neptune, CA 90909' "Thanks for talking to me today; I feel better just knowing there's another option." She waggles her fingers and gets out fast, feeling sick to her stomach that Hannah had to go to a school like that. _Hannah wasn't my friend, but she didn't deserve to go to some gulag like that. No wonder she ran away._

When Veronica gets down to the lobby, she sees a therapist working with a patient learning to use a cane through the large window of the physical therapy offices. She flashes on Logan, learning to use his cane after he got his cast off. _The last day I saw him happy,_ she thinks. She watches for a second, ruefully thinking that Logan should be concentrating on rehab instead of running away and blotting out the pain of Hannah's death with drinking and carousing.

Suddenly, she realizes what's wrong with the Madeira video. _In the video, Logan's not using the cane the way the therapist taught him. I remember the therapist said, 'Don't use it on the same side as the injury.' Logan joked back, 'What about "House"? That's how he does it.' The therapist replied, 'TV shows get it wrong all the time. Use it on the opposite side; it'll take the weight off your bad leg.'_ She realizes she barely saw him use the cane before he took off, but still she berates herself harshly for not noticing the discrepancy before now.  
_  
It's not Logan in Madeira. It's not Logan in Madeira._ Veronica can't breathe. She leans against the wall in the lobby until someone stops and asks her if she's okay. She nods and pushes herself off the wall. After retrieving her bug from the restaurant, she plans to head back to Mars Investigations. _There's no way I'm going back to classes at Hearst today; I'm going to investigate Logan's disappearance again, now that I know he's not really in Madeira. Shit, Madeira. I can't believe I didn't know it was a ruse right away._

* * *

pinches culeros – fucking assholes

Ave maria purísima – Hail purest Mary or protect me, Mary, mother of God_  
_


	10. Chapters 25 to 27

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy and Poniesforall. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

* * *

**After her period in restraints, Veronica finds her reentry into the regular routine to be disorienting. She flinches when another girl comes too close to her; she has to force herself to pretend to participate in the group therapy sessions. At lunch, she concentrates on eating her meager meal slowly and doesn't look at any of the other girls at her table. When she leaves the lunch room, she keeps her eyes down on the floor and tries her best to look cooperative and docile. When she passes by the guard, she notices him looking at her in surprise.**

**That night, she dreams that she is still in the restraints. She wakes up in a cold sweat and for a moment is scared to death that she cried out in her sleep, and the guards are coming to take her back to the room. She stays frozen in position, terrified, imagining that she can hear their footsteps. Her muscles ache with the memory of her confinement as if the cuffs were still attached to her wrists and ankles.**

**Six weeks earlier...**

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Tough Love  
**Keith speaks to Ms. James; Veronica  
investigates Logan's disappearance.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico  
Colantoni. Ms. James: Paula Marshall.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE: "TOUGH LOVE"

Wed. 2/4/09: Neptune High School, Neptune, CA

"Rebecca, thank you for fitting me into your schedule," Keith says. "How have you been?"

Rebecca James regards Keith across her desk. "It's good to see you, Keith. I've been busy lately; it's a tough time of the year with kids worrying about college acceptances. Is Veronica okay? I saw the fight at the funeral. Mr. Griffith acted disgracefully, although I'm sure I can't imagine the pain he's in right now with his daughter's murder."

"Veronica's fine. Well, I guess she's all right. You probably heard...Logan's, well, Logan has left the country. He's quite upset about Hannah Griffith and feels guilty, and Veronica is very worried about him. They were quite happy together until this happened," Keith says.

"Those two have been through so much. Both of them experienced so much sadness and grief over Lilly Kane, and then the whole situation with Cassidy was just devastating."

"I actually wanted to speak with you about Hannah Griffith. I have a release from Hannah's mother so you can talk about her." Keith pulls a sheet of paper from his briefcase and hands it to Rebecca.

She glances cursorily at the paper and looks up at Keith. "What would you like to know?"

"Ms. Denenberg is considering suing the boarding school where Hannah was sent. She feels their treatment was at least negligent, and possibly criminal, and she would like to shut the school down. The school reported that Hannah had serious psychiatric disorders; although Ms. Denenberg said that there were nightly battles over Hannah's relationship with Logan, she's not sure that Hannah's problems were truly as extensive as the school claimed. Briar Hill Academy advised Ms. Denenberg to limit her contact with Hannah and to keep Hannah at school over summer vacation for more treatment."

Rebecca says firmly, "Hannah did not manifest any extreme psychological symptoms in my opinion. I counseled her several times while her parents were divorcing. She was sad, but, like many children of divorce, she was hopeful that the fighting would diminish when her parents separated. She mentioned the brutality of her parents' arguments to me several times. I know she lost some weight at the time, and I mentioned my concern about it, and she promised to try not to lose any more weight. The last time I counseled her, she seemed to have made her peace with the divorce and was trying to adjust to the shared custody routine."

"What about her relationship with Logan? What do know about that?" Keith probes. "Is it possible she was depressed?"

"I didn't speak with either of them at the time, and obviously I couldn't reveal anything Logan said to me without a release from him. But I can tell you that I saw them around school. I wondered about the relationship from Logan's perspective. I know he was going through a terrible time with the accusations of murder, his mother's death, and his father's incarceration and trial, and I surmised that Hannah's relative youth and the simplicity of her attraction for him made for a very unequal relationship, but one that would be very compelling for someone going through Logan's situation," Rebecca muses.

"But Hannah? She didn't seem depressed? She didn't have anger issues? The school said she was cutting herself," Keith explains.

"Cutting? Well, that can be a very secretive behavior, but I usually have had a sense that something is wrong when I'm alerted to that particular problem by the parents. I'm astonished to hear that Hannah was cutting herself. In fact–I have to tell you, Keith–Mr. Griffith's eulogy at the memorial was shocking to me. He mentioned anger and depression, and I was quite surprised."

"What about the school where Hannah was sent? Are you familiar with it?" Keith reaches into his briefcase and hands Rebecca a copy of the school's brochure.

She reads silently for a few minutes, then looks up at Keith, quite distressed. "This was a tough-love school, then? I was not familiar with it when I heard about the transfer. A school like this can be very damaging for a sensitive girl like Hannah."

"So you know about the tough-love programs?" Keith presses.

"Unfortunately, yes. Several parents here in Neptune have sent their children away to these programs. I've only heard terrible things. Twelve-steps programs perverted into attack therapy sessions. Children placed in restraints and forced to maintain stress positions for hours on end. And the academics at these schools are practically nonexistent. Parents are told that it is the only solution to their family's problems, and children are committed there, sometimes for years, until they are damaged irrevocably. Keith, I've read about these schools, and it's very hard to shut them down. The Supreme Court has affirmed a parent's right to commit their children to these programs indefinitely without an independent psychiatrist's evaluation. And the schools are not subject to the same laws as a public school. The only real consequence of an investigation is a loss of accreditation, and many states accept an accreditation from a service that relies on self-reporting and ignores such complaints. Even if you succeed in shutting a school down, they merely declare bankruptcy and reform in another state under a new name."

Keith says grimly, "I'm aware of the problems. You didn't even mention the governmental officials who've accepted payments to look the other way. It's a veritable hydra-headed monster. It kind of reminds me of Neptune and its various sinners."

"Keith, I think there's a lawyer in San Diego who's working on a lawsuit against one of these schools. A colleague of mine mentioned it to me. I'll find out his name and forward it to you."

"I appreciate that, Rebecca."

Wed. 2/4/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Veronica sits, staring at the Madeira video paused on her computer screen. She still can't believe Logan would have gone to the extreme of hiring an impersonator and sending him to another country but the evidence is in front of her face. For a moment, she despairs, realizing just how upset and desperate he must have been when he concocted this ruse. He obviously used the phony, clumsy trail to Tijuana to lure her while he worked on a more definitive solution that would evade the media as well as her. _I can't believe I'm thinking this, but...I'm proud of him. This was classic misdirection._

She pulls out the list of taxi runs originating from near Logan's beach house that Mac had gotten for her. When she found out about Madeira, she set the list aside in anger, but now she looks at it again, trying to find a clue as to Logan's intentions.

Logan had to have had help, she realizes. _If he didn't ask me or Dad for help, who would he turn to?_ She thinks for a while, then she remembers the old P.I. adage to 'follow the money'. _Logan's accountant, Avi Kaufman._ She looks at the list of taxi destinations, and sure enough, sees one trip to Wilshire Boulevard in downtown Los Angeles on Monday, two days after the funeral.

Veronica considers several possible ruses, then pulls a cell phone out of the drawer in her desk. The phone number for this cell is 818-555-1200, and the caller ID comes up as Associates Inc. Veronica and her dad use this cell whenever they need to pretend to be a Los Angeles firm. She then sets up a new internet domain name under the name KaufmanAssociatesInc. She uses the cell to call Logan's bank.

"Yes, this is Jane, I'm calling from Mr. Avi Kaufman's office. I need to get a copy of all transactions made for the account of, hold on a sec, let me check the name again, yes here it is, Logan Echolls, that's E-C-H-O-L-L-S. All transactions in the last thirty days, please...The account number? 56426-47-2-7883...Yes, the PIN number is 5683 and the social security number is 345-12-8879...Mother's maiden name? Lynn Lester...Yes, I'll hold...Could you email that information to me at you so much for your help."

Veronica terminates the call. Drumming her fingers on the desk, she impatiently waits for an email to appear in her new account. While she waits, she thinks about the sightings of Logan that have appeared in the tabloids. She pulls up the Instigator web site and looks for the photographer credit for the shot of Logan in LAX. 'Hans van Dornward' is listed as the photographer. _How many people can there be with that name?_ She looks up the name on Planet Zowie and gets a phone number in Los Angeles.

"Mr. Dornward?...This is Veronica Mars. I'm prepared to give you an exclusive photo opportunity and a short interview if you'll answer a few questions for me...Yes, that's correct...I was wondering if you could tell me how you knew Logan Echolls was going to be at that airport that day when you took that shot?...Really? It was a lucky chance; you were there to photograph Jessica Simpson and just happened to see Logan Echolls. That's very interesting. I'll see you tonight at seven at, hmm, let's see, can we meet at Trattoria Acqua in San Diego?...All right, see you then." She hangs up and looks at the computer screen, willing Logan's bank information to appear.

Finally, a new email appears, and she opens the document and examines the record of Logan's account. There are very few transactions in the days just before and after Hannah's funeral. The most obvious is a cash withdrawal of 50,000. Veronica's heart sinks. If Logan withdrew that much cash, he must intend to stay away for quite a time. She tries to calm her shaking nerves and looks at the rest of the information. There is a check for 2000 written to a Robert Thomas, and Veronica assumes this is 'Rob' that she and Dick tracked down in Tijuana. There is only one other check written: 20,000 made out to Harvey Greenblatt. _Aaron's agent, and I guess Logan's agent too, if he's successful as a screenwriter._

Veronica ponders the information in front of her. It looks like Greenblatt performed some service for Logan, and Veronica considers how best to learn what it was. She decides to run a check on Greenblatt's cell phone calls.

When she accesses Greenblatt's account, Veronica sighs. _The man must make five hundred phone calls a day. I guess that's what agents do,_ she muses. She decides to start with Saturday, January 24, after she was released from the emergency room with the concussion. Veronica scans the phone numbers until she recognizes an incoming call from Logan's cell number, then begins the tedious process of looking up every outgoing call after it in the list. She begins to recognize certain nominally unlisted numbers that occur frequently as the private phone numbers of Greenblatt's most prominent, and obviously most demanding, Hollywood stars, and eliminates them as possibilities. Then she makes a list of the remaining numbers and starts attaching names. Most are familiar names of B-list and C-list celebrities.

One name, however, is completely unfamiliar. She types 'Jason Dohring imdb' into her Planet Zowie search engine and clicks on the result. Veronica gasps. The actor looks exactly like Logan. She reads that Dohring has done guest appearances on TV shows like 'Judging Amy' and 'Boston Public', had small roles in films such as 'Deep Impact', and did a commercial for Dominoes Pizza. When she runs a Planet Zowie search on him, she discovers that he was recently signed to play Logan Echolls in the Aaron Echolls biopic, 'For the Love of Lilly', that is slated to begin shooting in the summer. She looks up the actor's representation page on imdb pro and sees that he recently switched representation to the Greenblatt Talent Agency.

Veronica takes the ersatz Los Angeles cell phone and dials Greenblatt's office. Adopting a nasal tone, she inquires, "Yes, this is Cordelia Gray from Cannon and Associates. We have a last minute casting call for a film that begins shooting in London next week, and you have an actor on your roster who would be perfect for us. His name is Jason Dohring. What's his availability?...Really, he's unavailable for at least six weeks?...That's unfortunate...Certainly, why don't you fax those head shots to our office, marked to my attention."

Veronica terminates the call and sighs. She realizes that although she now knows for certain that an actor is playing the role of Logan Echolls, she still has no idea where Logan actually is. She has another thought and accesses the web page for Greenblatt Talent Agency. She sees on the client list that Greenblatt also represents Jessica Simpson and Johnny Depp, the host of the party that Logan supposedly attended in Madeira. _Logan, you are a sneaky bastard. You made sure that the paparazzi would see you. Or rather, see your impostor._ She thinks she should be pissed, but in actuality she's a little amused at Logan's creativity. _Using the paparazzi to get away from the paparazzi? Best. Plan. Ever. Guess that's why I love you. Now all I have to do is find out where you really are._**  
**

VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Chasing the Storm  
**Veronica helps Wallace with Candice's missing  
brother; Mac goes boldly into a new frontier;  
Veronica demonstrates her gastronomic  
prowess; Logan tries to heal.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Mordroc: Gabriel Tigerman.  
Hans van Dornward: Kenny Johnson. Logan:  
Jason Dohring.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX: "CHASING THE STORM"

Wed. 2/4/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Veronica is sitting lost in thought about Logan's possible whereabouts at the computer in Mars Investigations when she hears a key in the lock. She looks up, expecting to see her dad, but it's Wallace and Candice instead.

Candice says, recognizing Veronica, "Wait, this is the girl who dumped my lunch tray."

Veronica steps out from behind the desk and says, "Nice to see you again, Candice. Wallace has told me a lot about you."

Candice turns to Wallace and comments, "So that was a setup?" She gives him a stony look.

"C'mon, don't be that way. I just wanted to give you a chance to appreciate the mad flava of Fennel." He grins at her, and she relents, smiling back. "Veronica, I'm glad you're here. Candice...well, Candice needs your help with something."

Candice, urged on by Wallace, explains to Veronica that she is trying to locate her half-brother Shawn, missing for a year, and last seen at Hearst College in December of 2007.

"You talked to the roommate, and he didn't know anything?" Veronica asks. Candice nods, and Veronica continues, "What about other friends?"

"I think Shawn had some friends at the Alpha Rho Nu fraternity. The roommate said they didn't hang out at all; the roommate is premed and Organic Chemistry was kicking his ass that semester. He said he was at the library until closing every night and hardly saw Shawn," Candice replies. "Shawn didn't do sports at all, so there aren't any teammates to talk to, and I haven't really been able to find out who his friends were at all other than the guys at the fraternity."

Candice looks at Wallace for support, and he nods to go on. "Veronica, Shawn was pretty messed up on meth when he was younger. My dad and uncle saw what was going on and got him into a rehab, and he seemed like he was clean. My dad tried to convince Shawn to stay in Atlanta for college so he could have the family to lean on for support, but Shawn really wanted to come to California. Shawn took a year off before college and earned money to help pay for his education to prove to my dad he was mature enough to leave home. Then when Shawn got great financial aid here, my dad relented and let him come to Hearst. The first three years, Shawn did great. But the school sent us his final report card after Shawn went missing, and it was...well, two incompletes, an F and 2 C's. He'd been a solid B student before that."

"So you think he started using again?" Veronica asks. _Meth...shit, that means the Fitzpatricks._

Candice nods unhappily. "Veronica...I have the feeling that Shawn is dead. No matter how much he was tweaking, he always stayed in contact with me. But I have to know what happened to him." Wallace rubs her shoulders, trying to comfort her.

"Candice, I think the first thing to do is to check John Does in neighboring towns to see if there were any unidentified bodies in the time period just after your brother's disappearance. Sheriff Van Lowe should have done that for your father, but it's likely that he didn't bother." Seeing Candice's stricken expression, Veronica adds gently, "Candice, he's probably okay...maybe he got in trouble and didn't want to face your family. We just need to eliminate the possibility."

Veronica turns to Wallace, saying, "I'll help you get started on the John Does. And you should check all the databases, Wallace. Maybe he's in prison and was too embarrassed to contact the family. Check the court transcripts; see if there's any possibility he changed his name; vital statistics should be able to tell you if he applied for a marriage license; contact the county welfare office to see if he applied for welfare or food stamps; and DMV can tell you if he renewed his driver's license. Don't forget to check the credit reports: I'm assuming you have his social security number." Candice nods, looking vaguely relieved as Veronica lists all the places they can check for Shawn.

Veronica shows Wallace how to run a search for deceased John Does and leaves to change for her dinner with the paparazzo photographer, Hans van Dornward. She purposely selected the most expensive Italian restaurant in San Diego, vowing to at least make the photographer pay monetarily for his indiscreet photos. On the way to San Diego, she calls Weevil, asking him if he'd be free for a trip to Los Angeles. Weevil agrees to go with her on Friday.

Wed. 2/4/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Mac finishes her studying for the evening and gets her cell phone. _I don't know why I'm so nervous; this is ridiculous._ Finally, she gets up her nerve and dials Rick Picket.

"Hi Rick, it's Mac."

Rick/Mordroc replies, "Hey, what up, Mac?"

Mac clears her throat. "Well, there's a showing of 'The Empire Strikes Back' at the Film Forum on Saturday. I was wondering–"

"I'd love to go," he breaks in. "Can we meet for dinner first? At the Diner maybe?"

Mac smiles as she feels her nervousness dissipate. "Absolutely. How's it going with the flirt-bot investigation? Have you made any progress?"

"Well, thanks to your help, I think we're getting close. The Cult is hoping to have something to take to the FBI soon. There's a few of us working on the problem now, and we had a breakthrough last night. The program has much more widespread distribution than we thought. Any more incursions on your site?"

"No, it seems clean so far, thanks to you."

"I'm glad you called; I'm looking forward to Saturday. Do you want to meet at 6:00 at the Diner?"

Mac agrees, and as they end the conversation she smiles, anticipating a fun evening.

Wed. 2/4/09 evening: Trattoria Acqua, San Diego, CA

Veronica has dressed carefully for her dinner at the restaurant with the paparazzo. She is hoping that wherever Logan is, he'll see her picture and decide to come home. At the same time, she wants to avoid an overtly sexy appearance, thinking, _I've been overexposed as it is._ She settles on a sky-blue dress with cap sleeves and a fitted bodice; she knows Logan loves the color on her but the dress is not too revealing. Veronica adds a simple strand of pearls that Logan gave her for Christmas. She is careful to apply her makeup with subtlety and spends ages on her hair, trying different styles; she finally gathers her hair into a loose chignon with a few hairs strategically wisping around her face.

When she arrives at Trattoria Acqua, the paparazzo is waiting for her at the entrance. He notes her appearance appreciatively and asks, "Ms. Mars?"

"You must be Mr. van Dornward."

"Hans, please," he says, extending his hand for a handshake.

"Hans, could we possibly shoot the pictures before we eat? I tend to be...well, let's say a 'hearty' eater, and I'm afraid I might spill something on my dress," Veronica says with her most winning smile. _I haven't eaten since breakfast...I hope Hans has a high credit limit on his Amex._

Hans escorts her to the patio in the rear of the restaurant, and he takes a series of photos before they head into the restaurant.

Veronica spends a moment discerning the priciest options on the menu, then settles on Aragosta Fritti (lobster with an avocado and strawberry salad) for her appetizer and Filetto di Bue (Filet Mignon, with puréed squash, sautéed spinach, and smoked bacon, in a reduction sauce) for her entrée. Chuckling internally at van Dornward's expression, she finally takes pity and orders a relatively inexpensive Cappellini al Pomodoro for her pasta selection. "Sparkling water to drink, please."

Hans rouses himself from his stunned price calculations and asks quickly, "Are you sure you don't want wine? They have a great wine list here. Or maybe something from the bar."

_Not a chance in hell I'm going to drink a drop around a reporter._ "No, that's okay. I'm really not a drinker," she replies, flashing her most winning smile.

Hans orders Penne con Ragu Piemontese, one of the more economical options, and begins to raid the bread basket as Veronica is served her appetizer.

As the meal progresses, Hans watches in amazement as Veronica eats every bite of her order. She restrains herself from moaning in delight at the exquisite flavor combinations, but she is enjoying her petty revenge on the photographer as much as possible.

After the pasta course, Hans asks Veronica some questions about Logan. "Did you know that Logan was going to leave the country?"

Veronica pats her mouth delicately with her napkin and gives her carefully considered reply. "Logan has been understandably upset about the death of Hannah Griffith. He mentioned to me that he needed a change of scenery and an opportunity to relax away from the crowds of Los Angeles, so I wasn't surprised that he left. He knows that I am unable to take time off from my studies due to the requirements of my scholarship and was therefore unable to accompany him."

"But did he tell you where he was going?" Hans presses.

"Logan was concerned that his phone and email were not secure. There was an incident recently where his privacy was violated, so I'm sure he was being careful about telegraphing his intentions to the media." Veronica muses that perhaps she could have a career as a publicist if the private eye thing doesn't work out.

Hans asks, "So you're not upset with him?"

"Of course not. I love Logan, and I look forward to seeing him again as soon as possible. I'm sure that the FBI is going to have a break in the case soon, and everyone will see how ridiculous these allegations were." _Careful, Veronica._

"Are you investigating the serial killer? Are you trying to clear Logan's name?" Hans asks excitedly.

"Of course not. Logan is not suspected of any crime, and the serial murders are an investigation that needs to be left to the professionals," Veronica says, crossing her fingers under the table, thinking about her ex-boyfriend Mike Field's reluctant promise to get her copies of the pertinent information from the FBI's investigation.

Their server comes to the table and inquires as to their dessert selection. Hans proclaims that he is stuffed. Veronica smiles and says, "I was considering the dessert sampler, but I think I'd like the Cappicino semifreddo instead."

Hans looks at her as if she's a circus freak. When the luscious chocolate mousse arrives, Veronica digs in and can't helping moaning a little at the transcendent perfection of her dessert selection.

Wed. 2/4/09 evening: Somewhere in the United States

After terminating his cell phone conversation with Dr. Friedman, Logan sits thinking for a long time. They spent an hour discussing his anger; Logan is truly bewildered by the demons raging inside him, especially his anger toward Veronica, but he again refused to try anti-depressants. At one point, he asked helplessly what he could do to feel better without the drugs, and Dr. Friedman suggested finding a place to do volunteer work. The therapist told Logan that volunteering combining with physical exercise could help a lot, but she still wished that he would consider the anti-depressants.

To Logan's surprise, Dr. Friedman then offered to contact Logan's professors and arrange extensions on his schoolwork. Logan has admitted to her that despite his hatred of schoolwork in high school, he has come to enjoy the screenwriting program at UCLA, and he is missing the discipline of his classes. Dr. Friedman stressed to him that he won't feel better unless he continues the work he has begun on his own mental health, which includes his studies. Logan accesses the UCLA Film Department website on his laptop and looks at the assignments his professors have posted since he left Los Angeles.

_She didn't say it–she never says it, she's great that way–but I know the good doctor thinks I'm running away from my problems. Dammit, it's just not FAIR. I'm so goddamn angry about EVERYTHING. I had enough problems for ten lives already; I was just barely holding it together. Why did Hannah have to die? Maybe...maybe...maybe it's not my fault, like the doctor says. I just don't understand why it had to happen when things were finally going pretty well, finally things were almost okay. Then Duncan shows up, sniffing around Veronica again, then Hannah...I can't seem to escape the shitstorm. I can't bear to think that Veronica is ashamed of me. She's probably sobbing on Duncan's shoulder right now, regretting that she ever started up with me again. When do I get to be happy? Fuck, I'm not even asking for 'happy'; when I do get to feel OKAY?_

He thinks about Dr. Friedman's response from their phone call: "You have to decide to be happy, Logan. You can't choose how the world treats you, but you can choose how you react to the world. I guarantee you that if you decide to be unhappy, you will be unhappy. You can't live outside the world forever; you need to find a way to live in it and survive. Maybe even learn how to thrive in the world." Logan wishes it was that easy, to just decide to be happy.

Logan looks again at the posted assignments, realizing that he can use a story he has written about Hannah for one of them. He cringes at the thought of exposing the rawness of his emotions, but after reflecting for a long time, begins to edit his story, taking out some of his most personal thoughts, in order to submit the story as his assignment.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Family Values  
**Veronica insists on being let in on the Briar Hill  
investigation; Wallace and Candice search for  
Shawn; Duncan grows a pair; Veronica and  
Keith interview a satisfied customer of the  
Briar Hill experience.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Candice Pauling:  
Toy Connor. Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack.  
Celeste Kane: Lisa Thornhill. Jake Kane: Kyle  
Secor. Anthea: Lauren Ambrose. Mr. Gittlesen:  
Steve O'Neill. Mrs. Gittlesen: Rhoda Griffis.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN: "FAMILY VALUES"

Thurs. 2/5/09 morning: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

When Keith enters Mars Investigations, he's surprised to see Veronica already there. She usually doesn't come into the office before her classes; he thinks, _She's obviously waiting for me. Now what? Could she have found the bullet or..._ He tries to calm himself, walking over to her and kissing her on the top of her head. "You're up early, honey."

"I got the goods on the attorney yesterday," she replies. "Do you want some coffee?"

Keith unlocks his office door. "You don't have to ask; you know I have to have my morning cup of joe."

She gets two cups of coffee and brings them into Keith's office. She sits across the desk from him and plunges in. "I saw you leaving Neptune Medical Associates yesterday."

Keith looks at her sharply.

"The shrink in cahoots with Attorney Stern has his office in that building, but that's not why you were there. You were interviewing Dr. Frazier, weren't you?" she asks. "The educational consultant?"

"Honey, what did you do?" Keith asks, upset.

"I went in his office and saw a brochure for Briar Hill. I've read in the newspaper reports that that's the school Hannah was sent to." Veronica puts the brochure on her dad's desk. "The doctor, and I use that term loosely, came in, and I pretended to be a girl fighting with her parents. He gave me the hard sell for the school. Dad...you have to let me help. Wallace said Ms. Denenberg hired you to shut down the school, and you don't want us to help because you're afraid we might find something on the serial killer."

"That's right, I don't want either of you anywhere near this case."

"Dad, you have to let me help. The school sounds awful. And you have to admit, it might come in handy to have a partner who can look like a bratty teenager."

Keith sighs. "The school is worse than awful, Veronica. The girls are suffering. And it's going to be difficult to shut the school down. I spoke to a lawyer last night who's been trying to find a basis for suing them for two years with no success."

"Well, even more reason to let me help. Listen to what Dr. Frazier said." She tells her dad everything Dr. Frazier said, and Keith grabs a legal pad to take notes.

"Veronica, I really don't know about this. There's something you're not telling me."

_Yes, I found out Logan's not in Madeira, and I'm going to find out where he really is if it kills me._ "I want to do this for Logan. He feels guilty about Hannah. Maybe if we shut the school down, he'll...maybe he'll come home," she says helplessly. "Maybe he'll see that he's not responsible for what happened to her; it was what her dad and the school did that ruined her life, not Logan."

"Oh, Veronica. If Logan really believes that he's responsible–"

"He does. And he shouldn't. I know, he shouldn't have pursued her the way he did–she was so much younger than him–but Dad, I really don't think he's responsible for ruining her life. She cared about him. I...I saw them together. She...she might have been in love with him." Veronica begins to cry.

Keith's heart is breaking to see his daughter crying, but he is very uncertain about letting her help on this investigation. The educational consultant scared him; the plausibility of the man's claims could convince many a parent, even a well-intentioned one. Some of the stories Keith has found posted on the internet have been horrific. Keith thinks that the school scares him almost as much as the Saturday Night Slasher; at least the serial killer has a chance of being prosecuted if caught, whereas the school seems impervious even to state regulation.

"Dad, something good should come out of Hannah's death. Please let me help," Veronica begs. "I found a police report on the school. A girl was murdered there last year, and still the state didn't shut them down after an investigation."

Keith nods. He found the report too; the police report stated that several girls banded together and killed another to try to convince the police to investigate the school and shut it down. All that happened was the killers were sent to prison, and the school continued as it always had after a cursory inspection by the state. Keith had read to his surprise that 63 of the 65 students were returned to the school by their parents after the murder investigation was concluded. _What the hell are these parents thinking?_

But what really concerns Keith is that he knows his daughter very well: if he doesn't let her help with his investigation, she very well might start to investigate on her own, and that could be very dangerous. "Veronica, if I let you do this, you have to promise you won't do anything on your own, and we will work _together_. You will tell me _everything_. You will not keep secrets," Keith says seriously.

_You mean like you're keeping secrets about Vinnie's defense?_ Veronica thinks. She replies aloud, "Absolutely. And you're the boss. I do what you say. You have the lead on the investigation. Thank you, Daddy." She walks behind the desk and hugs Keith, murmuring, "I'm so lucky you're my dad."

_You don't know the half of it,_ he thinks.

Thurs. 2/5/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Wallace hangs up his cell phone and turns to Candice. "Shawn cashed in his airplane ticket last December."

"Why didn't your sheriff find that out?" Candice asks.

"Well, you'd have to know Vinnie Van Lowe to answer that. But in his defense, he was right that Shawn was over eighteen, and there was no suspicion of foul play. If you or I wanted to disappear, that wouldn't be breaking any laws in and of itself, and the sheriff wouldn't be required to investigate," Wallace replies. "Candice, it does sound like Shawn was raising money to buy drugs. We need to talk to his friends at Alpha Rho Nu. I have a couple friends at the frat; I'll ask them to ask around and see who knew Shawn."

"And you didn't find any trace of him in any of the databases that Veronica suggested?"

"No. But you can't lose hope. If he wanted to disappear, he would have been trying to avoid things like applying for a credit card or welfare. He could have secured a fake ID and be living under another name. I'll have to ask Veronica who's making the best fake ID's in Neptune now," he muses.

Candice sighs. "I can't believe I'm hoping he's doing drugs."

Wallace hesitates, knowing the next part will be hard. "I did get a few photos of John Does from the coroner's departments in neighboring towns. Unidentified men who superficially resemble Shawn: early 20's, African-American, six foot tall. You need to look at the photos and see if any of them are Shawn." He hands her the faxed sheets, and she goes through the pile slowly. At the end, she puts down the pile with shaking hands and says, "He's not in there."

"There will be more photos to look at, Candice. Those were just the photos from this county." Wallace looks at her sympathetically. Each dead-end convinces him more and more that Candice's suspicion was right, and her half-brother is probably dead.

Thurs. 2/5/09 evening: Pemberton Estates, Neptune, CA

"More wine, Duncan?" Jake Kane asks.

Duncan shakes his head. He looks across the table at his mother's sour face, then smiles at Lilly/Jane sitting next to him.

"Jane, are you ready for dessert? I think it's ice cream."

She bounces up and down in her chair, asking delightedly, "Chocolate? Daddy, is it chocolate?"

Duncan nods, grinning at her. Celeste puts her wine glass down a little too strongly, and the wine glass clinks against her water glass. Duncan frowns at her, then asks Jane, "Do you have to go the bathroom, sweetie?" She thinks a second and nods 'yes'. "Okay, you know where it is. Make sure to wash your hands, okay?" Jane slips out of her chair and heads for the bathroom.

"You know, you could be a little nicer, Mother. None of this is Jane's fault. She's a great kid, and you've hardly spent any time with her."

"When are you going to stop this ridiculous crusade, Duncan?" Celeste replies. "Move back home, accept the amnesty offer, and get on with your life. Let the authorities deal with the Mannings. I don't want the family to be tabloid fodder again. We've had enough bad publicity and tragedy in this family."

"What are you suggesting? Are you saying that I shouldn't pursue custody?" Duncan says furiously.

"Of course you shouldn't pursue custody. You're talking about spending your entire trust fund on this legal chimera. She's not even your da-" seeing Jane return to the table, Celeste amends her word, "progeny."

Duncan pounds his fist on the table and stands up angrily. "That's it! Mother, if you can't support me in this, I won't have anything more to do with this family."

Jane looks from Celeste to Duncan and begins to cry. Jake Kane says ineffectually, "Duncan, calm down. Your mother's just upset."

"Dad, I would appreciate if _you_ at least could support me." Duncan kneels and hugs Jane, whispering in her ear, "It's okay. It's just silly grown-ups talking about silly things. Everything's going to be fine."

Celeste continues, "Duncan, I have to say that I think that your attorneys are giving you false hope. You haven't even received your trust fund yet, and the bloodsucking lawyers have probably figured out how to milk you for every cent of it."

"And that's okay with me. I'd gladly give every dollar of my trust fund to try to retain c-u-s-t-o-d-y," he says, hugging Jane. "This is your granddaughter, not some...bête-noir." He glances at Jane and, switching to French to protect her, he continues, "Elle n'est pas un embarras ou un problème. Elle est votre belle petite-fille. Si vous m'aimez, vous devez l'aimer." He tickles Jane to distract her.

"Daddy, stop!" she giggles. "What did you say? Stop spelling!"

He pulls up her shirt and blows a raspberry on her tummy. "I love you, Jane, don't you ever forget that. Can you go find Astrid? She'll get you some ice cream. I have to talk some more with Grandmommy and Pop-Pop."

Celeste tsks loudly as Jane runs to find Astrid. "I told you, Duncan, I hate that name. It sounds like the Beverly Hillbillies. 'Pop-Pop'! Although it's good to see that you remember your French lessons; you didn't waste every advantage we gave you."

"I had several occasions to practice speaking French on my journeys, Mother," Duncan says bitterly.

"Duncan, we're going to support you," Jake begins. Celeste starts to interrupt, and Jake shushes her. "Celeste...let me talk. Duncan, it's all just a lot to get used to. You haven't been around. We're not accustomed to being grandparents yet. And these new revelations...it's going to be a media frenzy. Your mother is rightfully upset that our dirty linen will be aired in public again."

Duncan replies sarcastically, "I really don't think they're going to be talking about the Kane family when the incest story comes out, Dad." Celeste shuts her eyes in revulsion at the word 'incest'.

Jake continues, "Your mother and I just want what we've always wanted, what's best for you. We're just worried that you won't pursue your education and go on with your life."

"I don't have a life without my daughter," Duncan says in a cold voice.

Celeste sighs and picks up her wine glass.

Duncan continues, harshly, "I'll finish packing up the rest of my belongings tomorrow and have them delivered to the Neptune Grand. I expect both of you to be more supportive. When you speak to the press, I would prefer that you refer to Jane as my daughter, and you will say that you love her and fully expect that I will be awarded custody. You are looking forward to a time when the whole family can be together and put this whole mess behind us. If you can't say that, then I'd like you to say 'no comment'. Can you do this for me, Mother?"

Celeste sighs again and reluctantly nods her agreement.

"Good. Jane and I will be going back to the Neptune Grand now."

Duncan leaves the table and looks for Jane back in Astrid's quarters. He finds the two of them sharing a pint of chocolate ice cream. He smiles at Jane and comments, "Don't ever let Grandmommy see you eating out of the carton, Jane."

"Why not?" she asks.

"Grandmommy is...Grandmommy likes to be very grown-up about everything," he finally answers.

Astrid and Jane say together, "Poopiehead!" Jane says gleefully, "Grandmommy's a poopiehead."

Duncan laughs and says, "Astrid, really! Don't make any more problems for me. Jane, please don't say that to Grandmommy."

"I know, Daddy," Jane says giggling.

Duncan sits down and pulls Jane onto his lap. "Jane, try not to pay attention to Grandmommy. She's just...well, okay, she's a poopiehead. But we love her anyways." He thinks for a moment then continues. "The next few days are going to be confusing. Pretty soon, you're going to be able to tell everyone my secret name. Jane, do you know you have a secret name too? I'm going to tell you your secret name on Monday, that's...Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday...four days from now," he says, ticking off the days on his fingers. "And on Monday, you are going to get to be the fairy princess, and all your loyal subjects are going to take very good care of you and ask you lots of questions about the hide-and-seek game we've been playing. You must tell them everything. It's very important."

"Even your secret name? I can tell them your secret name?" Jane asks.

"Yes, Jane. They know it already. I won't be able to be with you, Jane, but I'll visit you as much as I can, and I'll be thinking about you every minute. It's all part of the game. And at the end of the game, do you know what we're going to do?"

"No," she says solemnly.

"Do you remember I told you about Disneyland, how wonderful it is? Well, we're going to go there, and we're going to see Belle and Cinderella. We're going to have such a good time. We'll have ice cream cones and hot dogs and everything you love."

"Disneyland!! I can't wait!" she cries, clapping her hands in glee.

Duncan hugs her, and Astrid looks at him sympathetically.

Thurs. 2/5/09 evening: San Diego, CA

On a quiet street in a suburb of San Diego, Keith and Veronica ring the doorbell of a modest home. The Gittlesens have agreed to speak to them about their daughter's experience at Briar Hill Academy. A middle-aged woman answers the door. "Mr. Mars?"

"Yes, I'm Keith Mars. This is my daughter and assistant, Veronica."

The woman looks Veronica up and down, with disdain. Veronica wonders what the problem is, but merely says, "Hello, Ms. Gittlesen."

"'Mrs.', please," the woman replies.

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Gittlesen. Thanks for meeting with us today," Veronica replies. She thinks about all the research her dad has shown her about these schools, and her first impression is _This woman doesn't seem so bad; a little rigid but not evil. Why would she send her daughter to Briar Hill?_

Mrs. Gittlesen steps aside to allow the Marses entrance. She leads them to the living room where a man and a young woman are seated. The man rises and shakes Keith's hand and nods toward Veronica. "This is our daughter, Anthea."

Anthea is dressed in a long skirt and a long-sleeved blouse and does not speak. Veronica realizes that Mrs. Gittlesen disapproves of her jeans and scoop neck top.

Keith pulls out a legal pad and says, "Mr. and Mrs. Gittlesen, as you know from our phone conversation, the parent of another student at Briar Hill Academy has made some allegations of abuse at the facility. The attorney in charge of the case has asked us to speak with recent graduates in order to determine if these incidents actually occurred before proceeding with a lawsuit. Can you tell what caused you to seek out an alternative educational situation for your daughter?"

Mr. Gittlesen clears his throat, glances at his daughter, and begins. "Anthea began to have problems at school in ninth grade. Her grades dropped precipitously, and the school psychologist recommended an evaluation by a learning specialist. The specialist decided that Anthea had a mild case of ADD and prescribed Adderall."

"Did the Adderall help?" Keith asks.

"No, in fact, Anthea used it as an excuse to stop doing her homework altogether. She sold her prescription medication to other students and used the money to buy marijuana and alcohol." The father's disgust at his daughter is palpable. Veronica regards Anthea curiously: the girl seems unmoved by her father's tale.

Mrs. Gittlesen continues, "Then Anthea was caught shoplifting. We let her stay in police custody overnight, hoping it would teach her a lesson. But things got worse from there. Anthea ran away. We hired private detectives, who found her and brought her home. We grounded her, restricted her television, phone, and internet access, but still her friends helped her to run away again."

Keith asks Anthea directly, "Anthea, what was going on in your mind at that time?"

The girl looks to her father for permission to speak; he nods, and she says, "Everything happens for a reason, you know. I really needed to get straight. I wasn't thinking right before Briar Hill."

"Why didn't you take the Adderall? It can really help students who are troubled by ADD," Veronica asks curiously, thinking of several friends who managed to achieve good grades after being prescribed medication for their learning disabilities.

"Medication isn't the answer; I just needed to get my mind straight. The school really helped me, because it was so organized and strict," she replies.

"We were opposed to the medication from the beginning," Mrs. Gittlesen says. "Our family philosophy is that you have to take responsibility for your actions, and society relies far too much on cure-all medications."

Keith takes a few notes, and continues. "So what was the school like, Anthea? How did you get there?"

"Well, my parents had me taken there."

"Taken there how?" Keith presses.

"We hired a transport service. They came in the middle of the night and escorted Anthea to the school. Since she had run away previously, we felt it was the best option, and the school recommended it highly," Mr. Gittlesen responds.

"Did the transport service use handcuffs or other restraining devices?" Veronica asks.

"Oh, I would probably have hurt myself if they hadn't used the handcuffs," Anthea responds. "You don't understand, I needed this. I wasn't thinking right," she repeats.

"And when you got to the school?" Keith presses.

"Some of the older students interviewed me and told me what to expect so it wouldn't be such a shock. They taught me the rules and told it would be hard, but if I worked the program, I would learn a lot. You see," she leans forward, trying to convince Keith and Veronica, "Change is never easy. You have to give up your current beliefs before you can learn a new way to live."

"Tell me about the discipline about the school. Were you ever restrained? Or confined in a small room by yourself?" Keith asks.

"Of course. I had a lot of anger issues, and I didn't want to admit my problems at first. Instead of confronting my own problems, I confronted the counselors. And because they cared about me, they enforced the rules. They even paddled me one time, but I know they did it to help me. And it did, it helped me a lot. When I advanced in the program, I got to help the newer kids. You don't know how great it was; when they trusted me to help counsel the newcomers, I knew that I really had made progress in my treatment." Anthea is genuinely enthused about her experience at the school. "I had to help the newcomers confront their own problems; sometimes it was hard because I had to be so strict with them. But I know that forcing someone to examine their weaknesses is an act of love."

"How long were you at the school?" Veronica asks.

"Three years. I was seventeen when I started, and they recommended that I stay there for three years."

"What's next for you, Anthea? Are you going to college?" Keith asks.

"No, I don't think so. I'm just going to take a few classes at the community college for now. It's too hard to go to a regular college; people don't follow the rules, and it makes me angry. I worked so hard to be healthy, and it seems like everyone else just doesn't care," she responds.

"Anthea still has a few credits before she can get her G.E.D.," Mrs. Gittlesen remarks. "We're so proud of her; we were worried she would never graduate from high school. And Briar Hill made it possible; I know she'll be able to do it now."

Veronica thinks, _Twenty years old. Two years past high school age, and the school couldn't even come up with enough credits for her to graduate._

Andrea adds, "I'm so grateful that my parents sent me there; I tell them over and over again 'thank you for caring enough to help me'."

Veronica knows from Keith's research that Briar Hill students have to admit that they needed the school before they can be allowed to graduate, but she's completely puzzled by Andrea's attitude. _I'd be pissed as hell._

Keith asks, "What about the finances? It's my understanding that the school is very expensive."

"We took a second mortgage on our house. It was well worth it. The counselors at the school told us that the way Anthea was going, she would have been in prison or dead by this time if we hadn't stepped in. Thank goodness we didn't take the advice of our school's guidance counselor. Can you believe it, he actually told us the academy would be damaging to Anthea's mental health!" Mrs. Gittlesen says indignantly.

"We recommend the school highly, Mr. Mars. Several of our close friends whose children were struggling have sent their kids as well based on our good experience," Mr. Gittlesen adds.

"And you received a discount on your daughter's fees because of those recommendations, is that correct?" Keith queries.

"What are you implying?" Mrs. Gittlesen says sharply.

"I'm not implying anything. I've heard that the school has a policy of refunding fees based on successful referral by satisfied customers, is that correct? You've certainly expressed your satisfaction with the academy," Keith replies smoothly.

"Yes, of course. That's the way of the world. I would never go to a new doctor without a recommendation from a friend, and my friends asked me for my advice when they had problems with their own children. The academy is grateful for recommendations, and I think their policy is fair," Mr. Gittlesen answers.

_Can you say pyramid scheme?_ Veronica thinks disparagingly. _Sign up all your friends so you can get a rebate. Satisfied customer, my ass._

Keith senses Veronica's anger and pats her on the shoulder soothingly. "Well, I'd like to thank you for your time, Mr. and Mrs. Gittlesen. I've got to get Veronica back to Neptune; she has early classes in the morning. I'll make sure to convey your satisfaction with the school to our employer."

Back in the car, Veronica turns to Keith and say, "Dad, it's BULLSHIT. Did you hear her? All memorized phrases, not a single original thought. She hasn't even finished high school yet. Anthea is completely brainwashed. No wonder Hannah ran away."

Keith starts the car and drives back toward Neptune. "Veronica, try to calm down. I told you this was going to be very difficult. If you're going to work this case, you have to know that we're dealing with very manipulative, very skilled con artists. They are using every trick from the cult handbook: psychological manipulation, peer pressure on the parents, fear of modern society. And they're astute salesmen, selling their con with high-pressure tactics."

Veronica remains silent for a minute, then says quietly, "I can do this. We can do this."

Keith looks at her. "So...heard anything from Logan since the video?"

Veronica glances at her dad, thinking, _What does he know?_ "No, I haven't heard from him. Why do you ask?"

"You just seem calmer about it, the last couple days. I sort of expected to see a video on Youtube of you chasing him all over Madeira with a pitchfork." Keith smiles at her.

She looks at her dad in surprise. "Not a pitchfork; maybe a sackcloth and ashes. He's grieving; I know that now. I think he'll come back when he's ready." _Except I know he's not there...and I'm going to find him. Then I'm going to...actually, I don't know what I'm going to do,_ she realizes.

* * *

chimera - WASP (White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, i.e. wealthy white American) for 'pipe-dream, fantasy'

progeny - WASP for 'offspring, heir'

bête noire - WASP for 'a person or thing especially disliked or dreaded; bane; bugbear.'

Elle n'est pas un embarras ou un problème. - "She is not an embarrassment or a problem."

Elle est votre belle petite-fille. - "She is your beautiful granddaughter."

Si vous m'aimez, vous devez l'aimer. - "If you love me, you have to love her."

Note Duncan speaks French like I do: lots of cognates, and present tense.


	11. Chapters 28 to 31

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy and Poniesforall. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility. I also wanted to thank everyone who has left me reviews; every comment is greatly appreciated.

* * *

**Veronica throws herself into the routine, determined to get along, to go along. When the girls are herded into the room with the hard plastic blue chairs, she knows what she's supposed to do this time, and she eagerly waves her hands in the air with the girls around her.**

**The leader announces that today they are going to do a new exercise. He directs the girls to circle their chairs. Veronica's heart begins to pound, but she is careful to do exactly as she is told and sits quietly with her hands on her thighs.**

**"This is called the 'Lifeboat Exercise'. Our ship has been wrecked at sea, and there are only a limited number of lifeboats. There are ten of you here, but there are only seven seats in the lifeboat. Each of you in turn will go around the circle. You will tell each of the girls, 'You live' or 'You die'. You can save yourself, or you can choose to give up your seat to someone more worthy. You know the exercise, Maria, we'll start with you."**

**Maria walks around the circle a few times, looking each girl in the face with cold, dark eyes; Veronica realizes she's deciding who merits survival. She passes by Veronica a third time, then spins around and screams in Veronica's face, "You die! You die!" The spittle flies into Veronica's face, and she flinches; Veronica is screaming on the inside but she keeps silent, shaking with the effort. Maria smiles chillingly and moves on to the next girl, shouting, "You live!"**

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Day In the Life of a Human Google**  
Veronica gets inside info about the Slasher  
from the FBI; Wallace finds out more about  
Shawn; Veronica and Weevil find out about  
Logan's new look.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Eli: Francis Capra. Mike:  
Michael Trucco. Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Andre:  
Melvin Jackson, Jr. Steve: Brandon Young.  
Woman in Beauty Salon: Lupe Ontiveros.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT: "DAY IN THE LIFE OF A HUMAN GOOGLE"

Fri. 2/6/09 morning: Federal Bureau of Investigations, Los Angeles, CA

The security guard at the front desk asks who Veronica and Weevil are seeing. She replies, "Michael Fields," and the guard checks the appointment list on his clipboard, issues them day passes, and instructs them to fill out the sign-in sheet and show ID. When Eli clips his pass on his jacket, he whispers to Veronica, "Never thought I'd come to the FBI willingly."

On the third floor, they find Mike's office, and his assistant tells them to go in. Mike stands up behind his desk, and Veronica remembers just why she went out with him. _Damn, he looks good._ Mike walks over to her and kisses her cheek, saying, "It's good to see you, Veronica." He looks at Eli questioningly, noting Weevil's disreputable appearance with his tattoos and leather jacket.

"This is my friend, Eli Navarro. He's helping me with an investigation today," she says.

Eli shakes Mike's hand and takes a seat. Veronica joins him, and Mike leans against his desk, staring at her. "How have you been, Veronica? I've...I've missed you." He glances at Eli, obviously wanting to say more, but hesitating. "I'm glad everything worked out okay for you after the shooting."

Veronica wants to ask if Mike is seeing anybody; she's still smarting from the revelation that Mike was still married while they were going out, but the immature part of her wants him to be pining away helplessly for her. _It's just as well Weevil's here; it's better not to get into it._ "Yes, everything worked out all right. All the manslaughter charges were dropped, and of course I was completely cleared of suspicion in the Wiedman case. I just have a little scar where I hit my head in the car accident." _And a few more trust issues, thanks to you lying to me,_ she can't help adding in her head.

"I can't say I was happy to get your phone call, Veronica; I don't like it that you're involving yourself in the Saturday Night Slasher case," Mike comments.

"I'm not involving myself; I just want to review the case files. The last girl who was murdered–"

"Right...you told me. She was an old girlfriend of _Logan's_," Mike interrupts.

Weevil notices the abrupt change in tone and glances at Veronica. She flushes a little at Mike's angry inflection, and rushes in with an explanation. "It's just that the media are spinning this in the worst possible way. I'm sure there's nothing I can do, but...Mike, he's run away because of this and I just...I just want to see if maybe I can help get this case resolved and get things back to normal for us."

"Veronica, you promise that if you learn anything, you will bring it to me? You won't go after some crazy killer by yourself?" Mike asks.

"Absolutely," she promises.

"Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on her," Eli adds. She glares at him. "Listen, chica, you're going to be careful, and we're going to check up on you," he adds.

She rolls her eyes.

Mike turns around and picks up nine manila folders from his desk. "These are unofficial copies. You didn't get them from me. But if you leak anything to the press, I promise you I will tell my supervisors that I caught you snooping in my office."

Veronica quickly looks at the folders; Hannah's is on top, and she notes that each folder contains a summary of biographical information, autopsy and toxicology reports, a crime scene report, and pictures of each victim, before and after their death. "Mike, if I think of anything, I'll call you right away...Can you do me another little favor?"

Weevil snorts internally. _Veronica and her favors: nobody's safe from this girl._

Veronica continues, "Can you run Logan Echolls' passport to see if he passed through Customs?"

"I thought he was in Madeira; I saw that video."

Veronica thinks, _Keeping track of me and my boyfriend?_ "I actually think he is still in the country. Can you check though? Here's his passport number." She pushes a piece of paper into Mike's hand.

Mike frowns, but goes behind his desk and enters a few keystrokes. He looks up to see Veronica watching him intently and comments, "Just stay over there, Veronica. I don't need you stealing my password again."

She decides to keep quiet and not to press her luck. After a minute, Mike looks up and says, "It looks like he hasn't passed through Passport Control. So the video is a ruse? Awfully elaborate, if you ask me. What's he got to hide?"

Weevil is also surprised at Mike's response; he glances at Veronica, gauging her reaction.

She merely says, "I was pretty sure the video was a fake. He's not hiding anything. The media have been relentless; I think he felt it was his only option. Thanks for confirming it for me."

Mike makes small talk as they stand up to leave. "So have you been down to the shooting range? I was working a case in your area last week and stopped at El Cajon to get some practice in; they said your dad was in buying a gun recently."

_Dad was buying a gun?_ "It's been a little crazy lately. I haven't been able to practice," she replies.

"You can't do that. You gotta keep your skills up. Use it or lose it," he comments.

"I know. I was lucky to get a clean shot off when I had to shoot Harmony," she says.

Mike hesitates, then reiterates, "You're going to be careful, right? And you're going to bring anything you learn to me?"

"Yes, absolutely, you have my word," Veronica answers.

When they leave the office, Eli says, "Guy's still in love with you."

She looks at him in surprise.

"C'mon, why do you think he's helping you? He's desperate to get you back," he continues. "Makes me sad I never went after you, you must have somethin'-somethin' going on to get all these guys drooling over you."

"Yeah, except for the ones who run away. Duncan Kane, Logan Echolls," she replies.

"Logan's coming back. I've seen the way that boy looks at you. Damn, girl, you must rock the sack. And hey, if Logan's stupid enough to stay away, you can always count on me for a midnight booty call." Weevil throws his arm over her shoulders.

"Is that why you wore your old gang clothes today–you're trying to win me over? I thought Mike was going to shit when he saw your leather jacket and tats."

"Yeah, that was fucking chingón. Your FBI dude wanted to get all up in my face." Weevil smiles at her. "You said we were going to East L.A.; I thought I should dress the part in case I have to blend in with my homies in Vatoland."

"And the sex appeal is just an added benefit?"

"Finally, she acknowledges the sexual tension," he snarks back. "You're afraid because you know once you let yourself have some spicy Weevil lovin', you'll never settle for a vanilla white boy again." He bats his long lashes at her, and she punches his arm, laughing.

Fri. 2/6/09 morning: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Wallace enters the Alpha Rho Nu fraternity and sees one of his basketball teammates hanging with some other residents. He goes over and extends his fist.

"Yo, Andre, how's it shakin'?"

Andre bumps fists and replies, "We bitch-slapped those TCU freaks last night."

"Pwned and owned. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." Wallace grins at Andre.

"So what up, bro?"

"You know I been hangin' with that girl Candice? She's lookin' for her brother; he was at the school last year, and he swayzed over Christmas break. His name was Shawn Blake." Wallace corrects himself, "His name is Shawn Blake."

"Oh yeah, I heard somepin' bout dat. Dude took a bounce. He was hangin' here all the time; we called him the X-Man," Andre replies.

"X-Man?" Wallace asks.

"Yo, Steve, Fennel wants to know about the X-Man," Andre calls to another frat guy.

Steve comes over to join them. "X-Man's got the most primo shit. Meth-X. We was tweakin' all the time with that ice."

"What's Meth-X?" Wallace asks.

Steve replies, "It's meth and ecstasy. That shit is ill."

_Shit is right, _Wallace thinks. "So when's the last time you saw the X-Man?"

"Long time ago. Last December," Steve answers.

"And if he's not around any more, who's dealin' it now?" Wallace asks.

"It's been dry lately, just a lot of sorry-ass herb. Wish that mother would come back to town."

"Can you ask around, see if anyone's heard from the X-Man lately?"

"You know it, dawg. I'll give you a holla back if I get the 411."

Wallace leaves the frat, more worried than ever about Candice's brother.

Fri. 2/6/09: East Los Angeles, CA

Weevil parks the motorcycle, and he and Veronica dismount and remove their helmets. "Okay, tell me again what we're doing here," he asks.

"So I'm pretty sure Logan was at his agent's office on Monday the twenty-sixth. He was arranging for an actor to take his place. The agent made a phone call to a car service that day. Someone like that would either drive their own Mercedes or call a limo; they wouldn't use a car service. I think it was Logan who called a cab. Mac hacked into the car service computer and found a trip from the agent's office to East Los Angeles, where we know–"

"That you can get anything illegal, if you've got the cash. So what was Logan buying in East Los Angeles?"

"I'm betting the first thing was a new identity," she replies. She looks around, saying, "So this is the exact address where he was dropped off."

"If it was Logan."

She looks at him. "I can feel that I'm on the right track here, Weevil. Up to now, everything I've found out about Logan's disappearance has felt wrong to me; but ever since I found out he used his agent to hire a doppelganger, I've felt that I'm making progress tracking him down."

"Doppelganger? Is that like a gangbanger?" he snarks.

She doesn't reply, but just continues to look at the businesses in the neighborhood. There are a couple bodegas, a check-cashing place, a furniture store, a drug store, and a hairdresser, 'Sala de Belleza'. She thinks a minute, then digs some photos of Logan out of her messenger bag. "Let's go," she says, dragging Eli into the beauty salon.

Once inside, she gives Weevil the photos. He comments, "Somebody's been busy with Photoshop." The photos all show Logan with different hairstyles and hair coloring.

"Ask if they remember this man. Tell them...uh...tell them his wife was in an accident, and we need to find him to tell him."

"Unh-unh. Not good enough. I think maybe the charges were dropped. Or a girl told her dad that Logan's not really the father of her baby."

"Okay, whatever. Just ask."

Weevil turns to the woman behind the counter in the beauty salon. "Oiga Seño, estamos buscando a un cuate. Se metió en una bronca y creemos que cambió su aspecto. Una chava se embarazó y le dijo a su jefe que nuestro amigo la violó; y no es cierto, él es buena onda. Pero la chava luego se arrepintió y le confesó a su jefe que no es cierto, así que ya no hay bronca para nuestro cuate. Estamos tratando de encontrarlo para decirle que ya puede regresar."

The woman looks at them uncertainly.

Weevil tries again, "Esta es su chava." He points at Veronica, and she nods vigorously in agreement. "Ella lo ama y quiere que regrese a casa." Veronica tries to look sympathetic and not bad-ass for once in her life. She opens her wallet and shows the woman a picture of her and Logan hugging and smiling.

The woman looks carefully at Veronica's photo, then stares at Veronica. Finally, she says, "Sí, estuvo aqui. Ay ay ay tan guapo, un taco de ojo. Se peleó con nosotros porque no queriamos arruinar lo guapo que es. Pero nos dio harta lana así que le enseñamos como hacerlo y como mantenerlo bien y le enseñamos a usar el tinte de pelo."

To Veronica, Eli says, "She says he was here; they didn't want to ruin his 'natural beauty'," he uses air-quotes while rolling his eyes, "but he gave them so much money that they finally agreed. They dyed his hair, and then they showed him how to do it himself."

"Ask what he looks like now."

Eli complies, saying, "¿Cómo se ve ahora?"

The woman stares at the sheet of possible Logans. Finally she selects one and says, "Se peina diferente ahora, se hace la raya del lado y se lacio el pelo. No se ve bien. Y no se ha rasurado en un par de dias; creo que se está dejando la barba."

In the picture she indicates, Logan has extremely dark brown hair, almost black. Weevil translates for Veronica, "She's saying that he parts his hair on the side now, smoothed down, maybe gel or something, and he's growing a beard. Uh, Veronica? She said your stud muffin is not lookin' too smokin' hot right now." She frowns at him.

The woman continues, "¿Están seguros que ya no hay pedo, ya no está en peligro? El nos dijo que estaba muy preocupado por su vida y nos dio lástima." She looks carefully at Weevil and Veronica, trying to assess if they are a threat to Logan.

Veronica says, with conviction, "I love him with all my heart. I just want him to come home." The woman nods that she understands.

Even Weevil is surprised at the depths of her sincerity. But he still can't resist whispering, "Yeah, you say that now, but I know you're going to spank him when you find him. Then...maybe you'll put him on a leash." Veronica narrows her eyes, glaring at him.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Standard Deviation  
**Mac and Wallace enlist Dick's help again to  
locate Logan; Veronica and Weevil find out  
Logan's new name and transportation; news  
about Gory Sorokin; Logan takes a step.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Dick: Ryan Hansen.  
Eli: Francis Capra. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Volunteer: Debra Jo Rupp. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE: "STANDARD DEVIATION"

Fri. 2/6/09: Hearst College Food Court, Neptune, CA

"Yo yo, what up, Big Mac?" Wallace sits down with Mac in the Food Court.

"Great game against TCU last night; you really posterized that mother. The 'dunk of doom'!" Mac puts up her hand for a high-five, and Wallace obliges.

"Have you seen Veronica today?" Wallace asks.

Mac replies, "She went to L.A. with Weevil. I think she's tracking Logan again."

"What?"

"She told me that she figured out it's not Logan in the video. She thinks he's still in the U.S., and she's trying to trace his movements after Hannah's funeral."

"No way," Wallace says. He pulls his laptop out of his bag, and they watch the Madeira video again. "It looks like him, but I guess...it never shows his face close up." He hits the play button again and pauses the video at one point. "Damn, he went to a lot of trouble to keep Veronica from finding him. Is she pissed?"

"You know, I think she's just thinking about finding him."

"Doesn't sound like Veronica. She's all about the getting even, not so much about forgiveness."

Mac shrugs. "She loves him. And he wasn't just running from Veronica you know. They still run that 'Tinseltown Diaries' show over and over again. That reporter Carrie keeps leaving messages on my voicemail, trying to get me to give an interview."

All of a sudden there's a commotion on the other side of the Food Court. They look over and see Dick arguing with a girl. She throws a milkshake on him, and Mac chuckles. Wallace glances at her and says, "Richard Casablancas, making friends and influencing people the world over."

"Yeah, Dick's got a talent for pissing girls off."

Dick sees them and comes over. Wallace offers him a napkin, and Dick tries to clean himself off as he sits down with them.

"What'd you do this time?" Mac says.

"I just told her she would look great with implants. I don't understand why she went all freakin' bitchzilla on me," Dick says aggrievedly. "It was a compliment."

"You haven't heard from Logan by any chance?" Mac asks curiously.

"What? You mean since he went to Madeira?" Dick says absentmindedly. "Shit, there's milkshake in my hair." He works his fingers through his hair disgustedly.

"Yeah. Has he sent you any postcards? Called?"

"No, but it looks like he's been pretty busy, if you know what I mean," Dick replies.

Wallace says, "What if we told you that Veronica thinks it's not Logan in the video?"

Dick stares at him. "Dude, what the hell are you talking about?"

Mac says, "Do you really think he would blow off Veronica like that? After everything they've been through?"

Wallace cues up the video again and shows it to Dick. Dick watches closely, then looks at Wallace and then Mac. "It's possible. It looks like him, but you never see him up close. Damn! He kutcher'd us. That's the shirt Veronica gave him for Christmas."

"So where would he be if he's not there? Any ideas?" Mac asks. "Come on, Dick, think. Work those last few brain cells."

Dick screws up his face comically in an attempt to concentrate. Wallace rolls his eyes at Mac. Finally, Dick says, "I don't know. He hardly talked to me that week before he left. He was really jacked up."

"Can you ask around? See what Enbom thinks. Maybe the other Pi Sigs would have some ideas where he might go," Mac says.

Dick nods his agreement, saying, "Anything for you, candypants!"

Fri. 2/6/09: East Los Angeles, CA

It takes several hours, but Veronica and Weevil finally find a man who, for a fee, admits that he made a new driver's license for Logan in the name of William Matthews.

"What's with the name?" Weevil asks.

"I don't know. I think he was trying to be very ordinary. I'm sort of impressed by how well he managed to disappear, but at the same time, it makes me sad that he felt he had to do this to get away from me," Veronica replies morosely.

"Come on, you know he's not thinking right now. He's just upset. Listen, you know I'm not even friends with him, and I was upset about the way the press treated him," Weevil says soothingly.

"But he should have felt he could turn to me for comfort and support."

"So maybe when you find him, you tell him that until he starts to believe it."

"When did you get so smart about relationships?"

"I'm not. Weevil standard policy is to love 'em and leave 'em begging for more." Weevil points to the used car lot across the street. "What do you think? I bet he bought a car. Even with the new hair..."

"...He wouldn't have risked public transportation. I agree," Veronica concurs.

"Why don't you wait here? Let me talk to them; they're not going to trust a gringa. Gimme the picture and some grease money."

Eli hurries over to 'Miguel's Pre-Owned Vehicles' while Veronica pretends to window-shop for discount jeans and knockoff shoes. She thinks, _Maybe I should be leaving him alone. Maybe he's not running away from his problems, just running away from me. He hasn't tried to contact me._ She sees a dress that vaguely reminds her of one that Logan bought for her, and she aches with the longing to see him again.

Weevil finds her a few minutes later. "Turns out this cholo Miguel knows my uncle Angel. Logan bought a Civic, about ten years old with a lot of miles. Sounds like a real piece of shit. And Miguel hooked up the paperwork for him, fake insurance papers and registration." He hands her a slip of paper with the information. "You okay?"

"Just...wondering if maybe I should leave him alone, let him be."

"Listen, Logan knew what he was getting when he started seeing you. He knew you're not some girly-girl that sits back and lets the world kick sand in her face. Some part of him is waiting for you to show up and ask him to come home," Eli comments.

Veronica looks at him.

"The Mars family is tough, and he knows that. Just look at your dad, that graveyard stunt."

"What? What graveyard stunt?" she asks curiously.

Weevil realizes his error. "Nothing. No big deal. Just something I helped your dad with. I thought you knew about it."

"Tell me. TELL ME. Something's going on with him, and he won't let me in,'' Veronica cries, grabbing Weevil's jacket.

"Can't keep your hands off me, huh?" Weevil says, trying to distract her.

"Don't change the subject. Tell me! What. Did. You. Do." she says, poking her finger on his chest with each word.

"Ow." He grabs her finger to stop the poking.

She continues to scowl at him.

"If you do end up in the FBI, all the criminals are just going to turn themselves in for fear you'll find them and look at them," he says shielding his eyes from her glare.

"Please," she begs him.

"Not the head tilt! What'd I tell you about that?" he teases.

"Eli...come on, I'll owe you a big favor. Anything you want. A get out of jail free card."

He hesitates, then tells her, "Your dad and I dug up a body in St. Mary's Cemetery. We were pretending to be from the coroner's office. He took something from the body. He didn't let me see it. We put the body back and got the hell out of there. Coño, I don't think I'm going to be able to go in a graveyard again after that smell."

"What was the name on the grave? Was it Matt Dannon?"

"I don't know, I didn't look. I didn't want to know. That's those pendejos, the Fitzpatricks, at St. Mary's."

"Yeah, I know." She thinks, _This must be the corpse that Dad was looking for with the ground penetrating radar. Vinnie, you piece of shit! What did you get my dad into?_ Aloud, she says, "Did he say why you were doing this?"

Weevil hesitates, then says, "He said we were doing it to help you. I wouldn't have agreed to do it just for some case." He throws his arm over her shoulder. "Veronica, you should leave it alone. Come on, let's get going. I want to get back to Neptune."

"Can we make one more stop? I want to talk to Logan's shrink, see if she has any idea where he is," Veronica says.

"All right, as long as I don't have to talk to her. I hate fucking headshrinkers," he replies.

Fri. 2/6/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Keith checks his email at the office and finds a new message from Cliff.

"That guy you asked me to check up on, Gorya Sorokin, was paroled today. He served 90 days on a weapons charge. He tried to purchase an illegal firearm from an undercover ATF agent."

Keith runs a search on Sorokin and discovers that he's the youngest child of the capo of a large Russian crime syndicate based in Brighton Beach, New York, with affiliates in Miami and Las Vegas. The capo, Vladimir 'Vlad' Sorokin, is serving twenty years on a murder rap. Keith wonders if the Sorokins are connected to the Chicago mobsters Sergei and Yevgeni Sukarenko that he helped put away several years before; he sends an email to a contact in the FBI asking about the Sorokins and any connections to the Sukarenkos.

Fri. 2/6/09: Somewhere in the United States

Logan hesitates outside a building on the outskirts of town. _I haven't really talked to anybody except Dr. Friedman for over a week._ He reads the sign again.

"Good Samaritan Rescue Mission. All are welcome here. Meals served at 11am and 5pm. Volunteers needed."

He finally screws up his courage and enters the building. At the front desk, he waits for a woman to notice him. She looks up and smiles. "How can I help you?"

"I'm...um...I'm interesting in volunteering. Maybe in the kitchen," he answers.

"Oh that's wonderful." She hands him a clipboard with a form. "Can you fill this out?"

He panics a little, but decides to just try to get through this. _Let's just see what I have to fill out._ He peruses the form. _Name, address, phone number, a waiver of liability; okay, I can fudge all that._ He starts to read the rules for volunteers.

1. Report any suspicious activity or any threatening words or gestures.  
2. Do not give rides or money to a client. Do not take pictures of the clients without their permission.  
3. Keep your scheduled appointment for volunteering. Call 555-2927 if you will not be able to keep your appointment.  
4. Kitchen volunteers must wear a hairnet or a baseball cap at all times. You will be provided with an apron. Dress comfortably and be prepared to work for a minimum of one hour.

Logan remembers the bullshit volunteering he did with his father junior year. _That was all for the paparazzi. This time...this time I'm hoping the paps don't find me. And I'm really hoping Friedman's right, that this'll make me feel better._

"Everything okay?" the lady asks. "Do you have any questions?"

"Yep. Where's my apron?" he replies, handing the form back to her.

"Oh, God bless you. I just need to make a copy of your ID," she adds.

Logan nervously hands it over. She comments, "It's just for the files. More paperwork for me everyday!!"

He smiles at her, hoping that's true. He knows his ID won't stand a lot of scrutiny, but from the appearance of this place, volunteers are desperately needed, and he's hoping it will slide by.

"Here's your ID. Okay, let's take you back and get you started!" the lady says.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Digging Deeper  
**Veronica meets with Dr. Friedman;  
Leo works the evidence.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Dr. Friedman:  
Lorraine Bracco. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER THIRTY: "DIGGING DEEPER"

Fri. 2/6/09: Los Angeles, CA

When Dr. Friedman emerges from her treatment room to the waiting room, she is surprised to see Veronica Mars sitting there. Dr. Friedman walks over to the chairs where Veronica is sitting. "Hello, Veronica. What can I do for you?"

Veronica had ten opening gambits prepared, but her voice fails her. Finally, she starts to speak hesitantly. "Well, I, uh, wanted to ask your advice. It's about a case my dad and I are working on. And, well, uh, I was in Los Angeles, and I remembered Logan said you were a really great shrink," Veronica inwardly winces, regretting her word choice, "I mean, psychiatrist, and I hoped you'd have a little time to help me." She really does need advice about the Briar Hill school. The interview with Anthea Gittlesen has completely puzzled her. _How could someone say that a demeaning, humiliating experience had helped them?_

"Why don't you come in? I have a few minutes," Dr. Friedman replies, reentering her treatment room. As she takes a seat, she motions to Veronica that she should also sit.

Veronica notices the couch and several comfortable chairs. _I get it, you're supposed to pick; that tells the therapist something about you._ She selects the least comfortable chair, trying to send the message that _this is just business; this is not personal._

Veronica summarizes what she and her father have discovered about Briar Hill. She asks, "How can a graduate of a school like that–someone who was subjected to isolation, beatings, and humiliation–be positive about their experience? Why wouldn't they just hate the people who did that to them?"

"The human mind has powerful coping mechanisms. When you are forced to live in an inhuman situation of terror and insanity, you try to make the experience into an uplifting one. They think, 'If I make it through this, I will truly be a better person.' And in this case, where the residents are forced to be complicit in the torture of others, they have to justify their actions by saying that 'the experience helped me; I'm only helping them. The school did cure me.' I can find some psychological studies for you to read. If you are going to continue to investigate this place, you need to understand why the graduates are defending their experience. And, Veronica, your work in this situation is very heroic. These schools are very damaging, and every exposé that shuts down a school saves children's lives. I see why Logan admires your courage and conviction."

Veronica flushes. "It's just a case."

"I don't think so. You seem personally invested."

Changing the subject, Veronica asks, "What about the parents? Why aren't they complaining when they're not allowed to see or talk to their children? And when their children return as zombies, emaciated like Holocaust victims, why don't they see that they made a mistake?"

"Again, the parents are relying on a defense mechanism. They were told over and over again that the school was the only thing that prevented their children from a horrific future of drug abuse, or a life in prison or on the streets. The fact that they paid so much, in some cases bankrupting themselves, only meant that the school must have been a highly effective treatment that their children needed desperately. Many were convinced to recruit other parents to send their children, so their complicity ensures that they will have to justify their actions to themselves. It would be very hard to get these parents to admit that they erred in sending their children to Briar Hill. They won't testify if there's a lawsuit."

"You mean, the parents did know that there was torture going on? I thought...I thought they just weren't aware of how bad it was," Veronica says.

"Perhaps some were not aware. But you told me yourself that the students had to thank their parents for sending them to the school in order to graduate from the program. The students had a powerful motive to tell their parents exactly what the parents wanted and needed to hear: that the school had saved them, cured them. So the parents' basic motivations were completely reinforced by the students' testimonials that the school was wonderful, that the harsh methods were completely justified and necessary."

"But that's...that's...diabolical. It's pure evil."

"I agree. Although there haven't been any studies using control groups, the data seems to indicate that students with mental disorders actually get worse at schools like this, and students who are just going through normal teenaged rebellion are permanently traumatized. So the schools are completely ineffective for the worst students and damaging to the best students. They actually make every child worse, and, in the process, they systematically take every cent they can from the parents. And they use methods that assure cooperation from every participant, willing or unwilling. It's going to be very difficult to eradicate these kinds of schools. It's going to take a federal initiative, to prevent the operators of the schools from reforming under new names each time a school is shut down."

Veronica is even more horrified than before, hearing Dr. Friedman's summary of the difficulties involved in their case.

Dr. Friedman continues gently, "Veronica, I think there must be a psychiatrist you could have consulted in Neptune. Why are you really here?"

Veronica flushes again. "I'm...worried about Logan. Have you talked to him? I know he's not in Madeira." She notices Dr. Friedman surreptitiously looking at her desk drawer.

Dr. Friedman takes pity on Veronica and says, "I have talked to him. He's all right. I actually don't know exactly where he is, but I'm hoping he'll come home soon."

"I just...miss him. I don't think that he's the cause of...everything bad. It's ridiculous."

"And it's hurtful that he ran away from you. Abandoned you, you might say."

Veronica looks at the therapist. _You mean like my mother abandoned me?_

Dr. Friedman continues, "It's not unusual for a deeply depressed person to push their friends and lovers away. Their concern seems to aggravate the anger that the patient is experiencing. Logan's very depressed, Veronica. You need to know that.

"But for you this is quite upsetting because he made sure that you saw his double acting out your worse fears, reliving the most painful part of your past history. That couldn't have been easy for you to see, and he knew how you would react...Maybe you should consider talking to somebody. I can give you a couple recommendations. This time apart must be very difficult for you." Dr. Friedman looks at Veronica sympathetically.

Veronica just stares. Finally she shakes herself and says, "I'll think about it. Thanks for speaking with me; I think I understand a lot better now."

"I'll find those psychological studies and overnight them to you." Dr. Friedman stands, escorts Veronica to the waiting room, and returns to her treatment room, firmly shutting the door.

Veronica thinks, _There was something in her desk, something about Logan._ She checks her watch and sees that it's 4:45; she assumes the good doctor will knock off work at 5:00. She quickly scans the waiting room and sees a closet with a flimsy lock. Veronica goes to the main door, opens it and shuts it without exiting, making a little more noise than necessary. She quickly pulls out her lock picks and makes her way to the closet. In a few seconds, she has popped the lock and opened the door. The closet contains office and cleaning supplies on several shelves. She quietly moves a few items, making a space, then crouches on the floor of the closet and shuts the door, making sure to engage the push-button lock on the doorknob. _Hopefully, Dr. Friedman won't be needing any office supplies right now._

In a few minutes, Veronica hears Dr. Friedman coming into the waiting room and then exiting through the main door. She waits a few minutes, then cautiously and silently opens the closet door. The waiting room is empty. Veronica quickly goes to the door for the treatment room. It is locked, but Veronica is able to pick the lock after a few minutes' work, and she enters the treatment room. She goes to the desk. The middle drawer is locked, but the side drawer is unlocked and contains a disposable cell phone. She turns it on, noting that it has never received any calls and has only made calls to one number, which she carefully transcribes. She turns off the phone, removes the battery pack, and writes down the serial number she finds in the battery compartment. She reassembles the phone, replacing it exactly as she found it and closing the drawer, and leaves Dr. Friedman's office as quickly as possible.

Fri. 2/6/09: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Sheriff Leo D'Amato opens the report from the Los Angeles crime lab where he sent the crushed electronic device he found in Ranchita. The report states that the function of the device is unknown and unlikely to be determined due to its damaged condition. The device has an antenna, an adjustment dial, and five LED lights, and apparently is capable of emitting either sound or vibration. The crime lab notes that it is powered by two AA batteries and weighs about 90 grams. Overall dimensions are 87mm long by 55mm wide by 24mm high, or 3.4 x 2.2 x 0.9 inches.

Leo wonders, _Some sort of pager? With an antenna to extend its range? It's difficult to get a cell phone signal in the desert; I wonder if it's also difficult to receive pages. Maybe this is an extended range pager._

He tries a few Google searches to see if such a pager exists, but comes up empty. He returns to the report, which concludes by enumerating the writing on the casing, or what writing is still visible after the exterior was damaged.

S??-?H??DV

The report says the second digit is most likely C, O, Q, 0, or 6; the third is I or 1; the fourth is S, 5, or 6; the sixth is O or 0; the seventh and eighth are S, 5, or 6 again. Leo sighs. _ What's that, 120 possible solutions? If they guessed right._

He begins the laborious task of trying each possibility. On the fifth try, when he inputs SCI-SH055DV into his Google search engine, he is shocked to see several results for a device labeled, 'Bug Detector - High Range Signal Detector'. Leo immediately clicks on the first link, and discovers that the picture matches the device in his hand exactly. He reads the description:

DETECT HIDDEN CAMERAS AND OTHER WIRELESS BUGS.

This unique high frequency scanner is used to detect peeping cameras, tapping, cellular phones and other radio frequency devices that may be hidden in your home or office. Avoid being the target of unwanted wireless peeping or tapping to protect your privacy or information from being disclosed secretly. Our new High Frequency Detector can detect wireless digital and analog signals up to 6 GHz. Stop disturbance of cellular phone communication within desired control area.

Wireless signals used in hidden spy cameras and other wireless eavesdropping surveillance equipment can now be detected. Now you can scan for high range hidden wireless signals that may be present in your home or office. Keep your business and family matters safe from unwanted viewers or listeners.

High Frequency Detector has 3 LED's. When a cellular phone or peeping camera is detected, the LED will light from level 1 to level 2 to level 3, and the beeping sound will change from slow to rapid indicating the strength of the detected signal.

The High Frequency Detector has vibration warning mode, just set the switch to silent. Silently scanning your environment will allow you to discreetly scan without your eavesdroppers knowing. A great tool for helping you to provide disinformation to your eavesdroppers. Use the included earphone to detect discreetly.

Specifically Designed For Easy Use, Which Does Not Require Complicated Installation or Any Professional Knowledge. (1)

Leo leans back in his chair thinking about the device. _It says 'does not require professional knowledge', but everything about this arson screams 'professional'. The car in the fire was destroyed completely, and the evidence techs said it was possible that someone used acid to obliterate the identifying numbers on the vehicle. And this device is something that a law enforcement or corporate security professional would use to make sure their actions were not being observed remotely. This was not just a random firebug; this was someone with a reason to destroy that car and prevent its identification. Someone with a professional reason and the knowledge how to avoid detection...except that they made a small mistake and left this bug detector behind.  
_  
Leo finds a toll-free number on the website and calls the company, SpyGear, to ask about purchases in Balboa County. He's not surprised when they ask for a court order; he hangs up and phones an amenable judge, receiving a warrant that requests a list of all purchases in Balboa and the three adjacent counties within the last five years.

--  
(1) www•spytechs•com/bugsweepequip/sho55dv•htm

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**In the Detective Business, We Call This a Clue  
**Veronica tries to track Logan and works on  
the serial murder case; Veronica helps  
Duncan get settled in.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Duncan 2.0:  
Chris Carmack.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE: "IN THE DETECTIVE BUSINESS, WE CALL THIS A CLUE"

Late Fri. 2/6/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Veronica sighs. Logan's car is a dead end. She has run the vehicle information through various databases only to find out that the car was abandoned in Phoenix at least a week ago. Apparently several teenagers found the car with the keys in the ignition and went joy riding. The teens were drinking, and the car ended up in a ditch somewhere just outside of Phoenix; luckily, no one was hurt, and the Phoenix police seemed disinclined to investigate the "William Matthews" who doesn't actually exist. She opens her browser to MapQuest and traces a route from Los Angeles to Phoenix. Her heart sinks to realize that he could have been headed for Tucson, Albuquerque, El Paso, San Antonio, Dallas, or Houston; or any other number of cities further along this route; or any small town that struck his fancy along the way. She ruefully considers that a man who hired an impostor to deceive her probably wouldn't hesitate to double back on his tracks as well. _He could be hiding somewhere under my nose here in Neptune, assuming I won't look for him so close to home._

She then runs a search on the identification number of the disposable cell phone she found in Dr. Friedman's office. It was purchased at a Walmart in Phoenix on the same day that the car was abandoned. She assumes that Logan has the phone with the number that was programmed into the one that Dr. Friedman had, and she begins to dial the number, hoping he'll answer. At the last digit, she changes her mind and terminates the call. _He'll run if I call him. Shit! I should have taken the other phone. He would have answered if he thought it was Friedman calling. But...he might have run anyways, and right now Dr. Friedman is his only contact to his old life. I don't want him to lose that. It sounds like she's trying to convince him to come home, and if he's willing to talk to her and not me, then...I'd better stay out of it._ The frustration that she is so close to finding him, yet still completely unable to make contact, overwhelms her.

She knows it's futile, but she runs a search on 'William Matthews' anyways. Logan chose well; the normalcy of the name results in an abundance of hits, and she abandons the search soon after. Veronica is positive anyways that he would have gotten new identification at the same time as obtaining new transportation in Phoenix. _I suppose I could take a trip to Phoenix and see if I can get lucky again. What if he's done this over and over again, determined to keep me away? How long will I keep chasing him?_ She imagines dragging Weevil, Wallace, and Mac around the country, fruitlessly searching for Logan as he becomes ever more accomplished at concealing his tracks._  
_  
She ransacks her brain, trying to come up with another way to find him. She starts to make a list of ideas, but each idea gets crossed out as either impossible to follow up on or unlikely to have results. After a while, she gets so discouraged that she just rests her head on the desk to try to clear her mind.

She looks at the manila folders she got from Mike Fields that morning and decides to spend some time going through them since she's not making any progress finding Logan. She creates a new file on her laptop and makes a list of serial killer's victims and a few pertinent details.

Catherine Kerr  
DOB: 4-28-86  
Date of Death: 7-31-04  
Born in Topeka, KS; moved to Los Angeles in 2003.  
Occupation: Prostitute  
Hair: Blonde  
Weight: 120  
Height: 5'8"

Theresa Drummond  
DOB: 6-23-87  
Date of Death: 1-14-06  
Born in Albany, NY; moved to Los Angeles in 2004.  
Occupation: Prostitute  
Hair: Blonde  
Weight: 115  
Height: 5'5"

Lysa Dean  
DOB: 2-5-88  
Date of Death: 5-13-06  
Born in Lincoln, NE; moved to Los Angeles in 2005.  
Occupation: Prostitute  
Hair: Blonde  
Weight: 122  
Height: 5'9"

Evangeline Bellemer  
DOB: 7-31-89  
Date of Death: 10-7-06  
Born in Portland, OR; moved to Los Angeles in 2006.  
Occupation: Prostitute  
Hair: Blonde  
Weight: 108  
Height: 5'2"

Gloria Doyle  
DOB: 6-17-88  
Date of Death: 3-3-07  
Born in San Diego, CA; moved to Los Angeles in 2005.  
Occupation: Prostitute  
Hair: Blonde  
Weight: 112  
Height: 5'3"

Elizabeth Kapp  
DOB: 4-3-89  
Date of Death: 6-30-07  
Born in San Francisco, CA; moved to Los Angeles in 2007.  
Occupation: Prostitute  
Hair: Blonde  
Weight: 120  
Height: 5'7"

Mary Alice McDermit  
DOB: 11-22-88  
Date of Death: 11-24-07  
Born in San Francisco, CA; moved to Los Angeles in 2006.  
Occupation: Prostitute  
Hair: Blonde  
Weight: 127  
Height: 5'9"

Linda Lewellen  
DOB: 10-19-90  
Date of Death: 8-16-08  
Born in Miami, FL; moved to Los Angeles in 2007.  
Occupation: Prostitute  
Hair: Blonde  
Weight: 105  
Height: 5'1"

Hannah Griffith  
DOB: 12-5-90  
Date of Death: 1-17-09  
Born in Neptune, CA; moved to Los Angeles (unknown date).  
Occupation: Unknown; presumed to be a prostitute  
Hair: Blonde  
Weight: 107  
Height: 5'6"

Veronica makes a list of all the correspondences between the victims: all are Caucasian, blonde, and thin, of varying heights, all are around 18-19, none are originally from LA, all are prostitutes. She looks at the toxicology reports and finds that all the previous victims were in fact addicted to heroin unlike Hannah, whose results from a hair analysis test showed that she had not been using regularly. She notices that one victim, Mary Alice McDermit, died two days after her birthday, and for some reason the coincidence overwhelms Veronica with sadness.

She looks at their school records to see if by chance any of the other girls went to tough-love programs like Briar Hill. Veronica knows from her research that similar programs are run as drug rehab centers or 'outward bound' type programs, and she scrutinizes each file for possible connections. One girl, Elizabeth Kapp, was a participant in a summer wilderness program for troubled youth, but none of the other girls appear to have attended any similar programs.

She lists the dates of birth in order; then the dates of death; then the cities where the victims were born, and fails to find any similarities. She peruses the medical examiners' reports and sees that all victims had the design of a crude heart cut into their lower abdomen after death. Veronica looks up, startled; she realizes this is the information that has been held back from the press. She compares Hannah's autopsy report and sees that her torso was defiled as well, and the heart appeared to be made with the same type of scalpel-like instrument as the other victims' wounds.

All of the remarks on Hannah's autopsy echo the comments on the other victims' reports: "The cause of death is a five-inch transverse knife wound located on the victim's neck. The direction and angle of the wound indicate the assailant was right-handed and apparently standing in front of the victim. Both carotid arteries and jugular veins were transected." "Lividity indicates that the victim was killed on Saturday, January 17, and the body was moved to the crime scene location more than twelve hours subsequent to the time of death. Time of death was also confirmed by pathology results."

One victim's name seems a little familiar, and she runs a background check on Gloria Doyle. She is surprised to see that Gloria is a distant relation of the Fitzpatricks and a cousin of Ed Doyle, the bus driver who drove the bus off the cliff her senior year. She looks at Gloria's criminal record and sees that Gloria spent time in juvenile detention for several minor offenses and was arrested in San Diego and in Los Angeles for solicitation numerous times, with most offenses reduced to misdemeanors. She frowns and looks at Hannah's file again; no arrests, in fact no information at all about Hannah since she left the boarding school. All the other victims have long rap sheets, with arrests and convictions for various crimes, but primarily featuring prostitution and drug arrests. _It seems like it's par for the course for a hooker to be arrested; if Hannah really was a prostitute, why didn't she have a rap sheet? So that's two differences between Hannah's case and the others._

Veronica spends a long time looking at the dates of the murders.

Sat. 7/31/04  
Sat. 1/14/06  
Sat. 5/13/06  
Sat. 10/7/06  
Sat. 3/3/07  
Sat. 6/30/07  
Sat. 11/24/07  
Sat. 8/16/08

She remembers when the murders began to occur closer together in 2006 that there was rampant speculation that the killer was 'decompensating'; unable to maintain his sanity, the killer was supposedly taking greater risks to kill his victims more often. Then when there was a lapse of six months and later one of nine months, FBI officials began to suggest that the killer had been incarcerated for other crimes that kept him off the streets and prevented him from killing more girls.

Veronica looks at her list of dates again and sighs. _If the FBI with all its resources is stumped by this killer, how can I hope to solve this case?_ Suddenly, her frustration turns into anger at Logan. _Damn you, Logan! If this is what I have to do to bring you home, you're asking the impossible._ She slams the laptop shut and heads for bed, hoping to dream of anything but Madeira, Logan Echolls, or a creepy serial killer with an unknown agenda.

Sat. 2/7/09: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

The next day, when Veronica enters the suite at the Neptune Grand, she is confronted by boxes everywhere she looks. Duncan sees the look on her face and comments, "Yeah, I have a lot of stuff. Thanks for coming over to help...and for keeping me company. I'm pretty freaked out about the hearing on Monday." He glances to make sure Jane is still in her room before he continues. "I'm really not sure this is the best thing. I know that Stewart Manning should pay for what he did to Meg, but I'm worried I won't get custody. I'm a criminal now in the eyes of the court."

Veronica notes the dark circles under his eyes and his stressed expression, and she begins to worry. "Duncan, if you run again, how will you explain to Jane that you didn't punish the man who abused her mother?"

"I'll tell her I ran to make sure she could be with me forever," he replies defensively.

"And if you're caught, and go to jail? If you don't accept the amnesty deal, and you get caught, you'll go to prison for kidnapping, Duncan. How will you explain that to Jane?" Veronica asks. "You have to do this, Duncan. I know you'll get custody." After a pause, she inquires, "Have you gotten the results back from Lizzie's DNA test to know for sure?"

"No, but...now that I've had time to think about it, I don't think there's any possible explanation for Meg's behavior other than..." Duncan's voice trails off.

"I know. I didn't want to accept it at first. I didn't want to believe that Meg would do that to you–"

"To us, Veronica. She did it to us. We would still be together if she hadn't hatched this plan."

Veronica looks at him quizzically and tries again. "I didn't want to believe Meg would deceive you like that. But Dad's right: in a situation like this, people are unpredictable and desperate."

"We'll know for sure on Monday. I paid a lot of money to make sure the test results would be available before my amnesty hearing. I ran into Lizzie at the testing lab. She looked terrible. She's still living at home you know; I don't know how she can stand to be in the same room with him," Duncan comments.

"That's awful."

Duncan starts to pace around the room. "Veronica, I really don't know about this. What if they don't decide to give me custody? I can't live without my daughter. It's not too late to just leave the country again. It wasn't that bad being on the run. After what happened with Aaron's trial..."

"Duncan, no! You can't run away...this is the right thing to do. And I'm sure you'll be awarded custody."

Duncan is not so sure, but he drops the point for now. He turns to Veronica and tries to affect a lighter tone. "So let's see what's in all these boxes. When my parents moved up to Napa, they boxed everything up. Well, actually, Astrid boxed everything up. My mother wouldn't break a fingernail packing anything."

"Things not too smooth with Celeste right now?" Veronica notes.

"She still can't get past being a grandmother," he responds.

"She's a poopiehead!" Jane pops up from the doorway. Veronica starts laughing.

"Jane, what did I tell you about listening to private conversations?" Duncan asks, walking over to the little girl. "And I don't want you to use that word, okay? Especially about your grandmother." To Veronica, he adds, "Astrid taught her that word. Celeste was probably being a B-I-T-C-H again."

"Hard to believe that St. Celeste was not being nice," Veronica comments sarcastically.

"Jane, do you want to do some coloring while Veronica and I work?" Duncan asks. The little girl nods her head, and Duncan finds a coloring book and a box of crayons.

Veronica watches them and says, "It couldn't have been easy for you overseas...a little kid with all her toys and diapers and everything, and you had to be able to pick up and run at the drop of a hat."

"I learned pretty quickly what was absolutely essential, and we had a 'go' bag packed at all times. Once we only had ten minutes to get our stuff together before we had to run. Jane doesn't have a lot of stuffed animals and toys, but what she does have is precious and memorable."

"Mr. Boogles! Veronica, do you want to see Mr. Boogles?" Jane runs into the other room and returns with a bedraggled pink stuffed elephant in her arms.

"Very nice, Jane," Veronica comments. _How's your mother instincts, Veronica? Check...still on hold, thank god. I don't envy Duncan._

Veronica motions to a stack of boxes and says, "Okay to start with these?"

"Uh-huh. There's a lot of stuff that should just be thrown out, I'm sure."

Veronica finds that the first box is full of clothes, and she takes the box into Duncan's bedroom and puts the clothes into drawers. She sorts out a few items that are probably too worn or dated for Duncan to consider donating to charity.

The next box is all sporting gear, and Duncan tells her to just leave it packed up; he's not sure when he'll have time to play games in the near future.

She thinks, _Duncan is so serious now; everything is for Jane. I've never seen him like this. I know they say everything changes when you become a parent, but he still surprises me._ She realizes something and thinks, _I remember we were all so worried because he didn't seem to care about anything. Hollow Duncan is gone._

Veronica opens another box and finds papers–lots of papers. It looks like Duncan's schoolwork from Neptune High School. "Uh, Duncan, do you want to keep this sex-ed quiz? You got a 98. Looks like you missed the question on bisexuality."

"I did not! Let me see that!" Duncan says, trying to grab the paper.

Veronica holds the quiz away from him and dances out of reach. "It's okay to be curious, Duncan. 75 percent of all teens have these feelings, you know," Veronica says smugly.

Duncan gets the paper out of her hands and looks at it. "I misspelled gonorrhea. Christ, Veronica, that was a long time ago. None of this stuff matters. I think you should just chuck the whole box."

"What if there's a note from Meg in there? Maybe it would help in your case. You might not have thought it was important at the time, but it might show her state of mind when she was planning this," Veronica says more seriously. "I'll go through the papers, okay?"

"Just..." Duncan's voice trails off.

"What?"

"If you find something from her, just don't read it okay? Let me see it first, all right?" Duncan asks.

"All right."

Celeste apparently saved everything her darling boy ever did. Every pop quiz, every essay, every mention in the school newspaper was carefully placed in the box. Veronica's eyes begin to cross as she sorts through the miscellanea. Duncan gives her permission to throw out all his schoolwork, and she quickly fills a garbage bag with the papers. Towards the bottom of the box, she finds a brightly-colored flyer and looks at it curiously.

'FULL MOON PARTY! SATURDAY JULY 31'

There are pictures of martini glasses and stars decorating the flyer, and, after the date, the symbols K, 9, and an hourglass are listed.

"What's this?" Veronica asks, showing Duncan.

Duncan thinks a moment, then says, "Sean Friedrich threw a party at Dog Beach. It was the summer after Lilly died. You and I were broken up. I don't know why I saved that." He turns the flyer over, and sees handwriting on the back. "Some girl's phone number, I think." At Veronica's expression, he shrugs, 'sorry'.

Veronica is calculating. "You're sure it was the summer after Lilly died? That's 2004, right?"

Duncan replies, "Positive. What does it matter? It was just a stupid party. I remember Logan was drunk off his ass, howling at the moon, and Dick was mooning all the girls."

"That's one of the dates of the serial killings. Saturday, July 31, 2004." Veronica goes over to her bag and gets out her laptop. "Duncan, is there Wi-Fi here in the hotel?"

"Probably...but you know me, I'm completely incompetent at tech stuff," Duncan replies.

"Right, son of internet innovator can barely turn on a computer, I remember," she says drily. She figures out how to get access to the hotel's Wi-Fi signal and surfs to a webpage on phases of the moon. She opens her file on the serial killings and compares the dates of the killings to the webpage as Duncan watches over her shoulder. She sits back in the chair, stunned. She turns to Duncan and says, "All the killings except for Hannah's were on dates with a full moon." Veronica has another thought and returns to look at the data on the webpage. "In fact, the serial killer has struck on every Saturday that was also a full moon since the killings began. It looks to me like the gaps in the killings weren't random and weren't due to the killer being in prison or otherwise unable to pursue his compulsions."

"What does that mean?" he asks.

"It's just one more thing about Hannah's killing that doesn't add up," she replies. She thinks, _ Was Hannah killed by a copycat killer? But why?? Why would someone want to kill Hannah if not a deranged serial killer? To cover up something that Hannah knows? Maybe Hannah knows something about Briar Hill. Maybe she threatened to expose the school. Now that she had turned eighteen...maybe she decided to go after the school for its abuses. What if she saw something at the school that someone wanted to cover up...someone ruthless enough to track her to Los Angeles and murder her?_

* * *

Slang Mexican-American dialogue by 'Babushcka'.

Pendejos - asshole  
Chingón - fuck  
Oiga Seño, estamos buscando a un cuate. - Hey mama. We're looking for a friend of ours.  
Se metió en una bronca y creemos que cambió su aspecto. - He was in some trouble, and we think he tried to change his appearance.  
Una chava se embarazó y le dijo a su jefe que nuestro amigo la violó; y no es cierto, él es buena onda. - A girl got pregnant and told her father that our friend raped her; it wasn't true; he's a good guy.  
Pero la chava luego se arrepintió y le confesó a su jefe que no es cierto, así que ya no hay bronca para nuestro cuate. - But the girl finally told her father the truth, and he's off the hook.  
Estamos tratando de encontrarlo para decirle que ya puede regresar. - We're trying to find him to tell him he can come home.  
Esta es su chava. - This is his girlfriend.  
Ella lo ama y quiere que regrese a casa. - She loves him and wants him to come home.  
Sí, estuvo aqui. Ay ay ay tan guapo, un taco de ojo. - Yes, he was here. Ah, so good-looking, very easy on the eyes.  
Se peleó con nosotros porque no queriamos arruinar lo guapo que es. - He argued with us; we didn't want to ruin how beautiful he was.  
Pero nos dio harta lana así que le enseñamos como hacerlo y como mantenerlo bien y le enseñamos a usar el tinte de pelo. - He gave us so much money though. And then he asked us how to do it, how to keep it looking good, and then we showed him how to use the hair dye.  
¿Cómo se ve ahora? - What does he look like now?  
Se peina diferente ahora, se hace la raya del lado y se lacio el pelo. No se ve bien. - He's parting his hair different than this now. It's parted on the side and smoothed down. It doesn't look good.  
Y no se ha rasurado en un par de dias; creo que se está dejando la barba. - And he hadn't shaved for a couple days. I think he's growing a beard.  
¿Están seguros que ya no hay pedo, ya no está en peligro? - You're sure that he is safe now?  
El nos dijo que estaba muy preocupado por su vida y nos dio lástima. - He told us he was very worried for his life, and we felt so bad for him.  
coño - fuck

See the Full Moon Party flyer here.

i259•photobucket•com/albums/hh302/VanessaGalore/FullMoonPartyGraphic6•jpg

(replace "•" with ".")


	12. Chapters 32 to 35

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy and Poniesforall. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

This section definitely not appropriate for those under 17.

* * *

**In the morning, the group leader assigns chores to each girl. Veronica spends several hours scrubbing the bathroom floor with a toothbrush. Her shoulders, still sore from her period in restraints, begin to ache after just a few minutes; Veronica is berated repeatedly for slacking, and she performs her task the best she is able. In the afternoon, they are taken on a long hike followed by another insubstantial meal consisting of a peanut-butter sandwich. Veronica is too tired to complain even in her head. She eats the sandwich slowly, putting it back on the plate between bites because she is too exhausted to hold the sandwich up.**

**That night, Veronica is woken up about an hour after lights out. She is told to put on her shoes and to keep her mouth shut. She is led to the exercise room and told to do 200 jumping jacks. She has to stop after 117 to rest, and the guard screams at her to keep going. Finally, she weakly manages to do the last one and is allowed to return to her bed.**

**Two hours later, she is woken again. This time she is led to the meager library adjacent to the classroom. The counselor pulls all the books off the shelves into a big pile in the center of the room. "You'll be allowed to go back to bed when the books are back on the shelves. And I'll be checking to make sure they're in order. If they're in the wrong order, we'll start over."**

**Veronica thinks, _WHY? WHY? I've been good. I didn't say a word today. Why is this happening?_ She starts to put the books on the shelves as the counselor observes her.**

**She finally is allowed to go back to bed and sleeps heavily for an hour before the girls are woken for breakfast. Veronica lethargically swallows the tasteless oatmeal and wishes desperately for a Joltin' Java from the Hut. After breakfast, the girls are led to the group room and listen to a long lecture about everything happening for a reason.**

**Veronica begins to hallucinate that she's somehow back in a classroom at Neptune High. The faces of the girls around her are replaced by those of her enemies, both old and new: Madison, Kendall, Shelly Pomroy, Ashley Banks, Carrie Bishop, Caitlin Ford, Fern Delgado; even Carrie Murray the reporter is skulking in the corner. Veronica imagines that they are secretly plotting against her and knows it has something to do with why she hasn't been allowed to sleep. Out of the corner of her eye, she thinks she sees Shelly passing a note to Madison, and Veronica whirls around. "Eyes front!" the counselor shouts at her. Veronica realizes that she's dreaming, and she shakes her head to try to clear it; she tries desperately to focus on the interminable lecture.**

**Finally, the lecture concludes and the girls are instructed to pull the chairs into a circle. The girls, working in an eerie silence, quickly assemble the chairs and sit down. The counselor points at Veronica. "It's time for you to get honest. Bring your chair into the center of the circle." Veronica looks around and sees that everyone is looking at her. She picks up her chair and brings it to the center of the circle. She sits down and waits for her next instruction. She tries to conceal her trembling, but the counselor notices and smiles disingenuously, saying, "Don't worry, Connie. You know we love you here. You just need to accept it."**

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Need for Human Contact  
**Mac and Rick's date; Duncan reveals his  
true feelings; Logan goes into a bar;  
Duncan has an adventure; a surprising  
phone call.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason  
Dohring. Mac: Tina Majorino. Duncan 2.0:  
Chris Carmack. Katerina: Katherine Heigl.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO: "THE NEED FOR HUMAN CONTACT"

Sat. 2/7/09: Neptune Stardust Diner, Neptune, CA

Mac sits in the booth at the diner and checks her watch. _6:15. Rick's never been late before._ She plays with the mini-jukebox at the table, hoping to find songs to play when he gets there.

The waitress stops by the table again and asks Mac, "Are you sure you don't want a menu?"

"Uh, how about a cup of coffee while I wait for my friend," she replies, stalling.

When the coffee arrives, she realizes that caffeine was not her best option; she was already incredibly nervous, and Rick's lateness is wearing on her. She pushes the cup away and checks her watch and cellphone again. _6:30. No messages._ She summons her courage and dials his number. The call goes to his voicemail.

"Hey Rick, it's Mac. I'm at the diner. It's 6:30, and I'm wondering if I screwed up on the day or something. Can you call me when you get this?"

She hangs up and begins to feel incredibly depressed. Mac thinks about coming out of the shower in the Neptune Grand that night and finding Beaver gone from the suite with all her clothes. She can still remember the feel of the shower curtain wrapped around her as she huddled in a corner of the room, embarrassed, unaccountably ashamed, and scared to death. At 6:45, she thinks, _Fuck it,_ and gets the hell out of there.

Sat. 2/7/09: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

After several hours of working and with many of the boxes sorted away, Duncan offers to get dinner from room service, and Veronica accepts. He offers her a menu, and she peruses it, thinking wryly that she has this particular menu memorized after all her meals there with Duncan and Logan. For old times sake, she selects the buffalo burger special, Logan's favorite when he lived here. Duncan glances at her, then orders the veal parmigiana for himself. Jane chooses chicken fingers after frowning at the choices pictured on the children's menu for a long time.

"So you haven't heard from Logan?" Duncan asks over their dinner.

With her mouth full of buffalo burger, she mumbles, "Uh...no." She wipes some ketchup off her mouth, then, more clearly, she says, "No, I haven't heard from him. But I did find out some more about his disappearance." She tells Duncan everything she learned in Los Angeles. "I guess if I don't think of anything else, I'll have to go to Phoenix to see if I can pick up his trail."

Duncan regards her for a moment, then says spitefully, "What the hell is his problem? If I could have contacted you, I would have picked up the phone in an instant. How can you let him do this to you?"

Veronica stares at him, shocked at his vehemence.

Duncan continues, "I would never treat you this way."

"Except you did. You erased me from your life after Lilly died, and you didn't even tell me why," she replies angrily.

"How could I tell you that...how could I tell you that we were brother and sister? I didn't know what you would do, what your _dad_ would do."

Veronica pushes her chair back and stands up. She walks out to the balcony and stares out at Neptune and the ocean far beyond.

Duncan comes out onto the balcony after her. "Veronica, I'm sorry; I just don't like to see Logan treating you this way. He's got so many problems, and you shouldn't have to deal with them." He stands behind her and tentatively rubs Veronica's shoulders. "I was...I was hoping you would wait for me. I didn't expect you to, but...Veronica, I've never stopped loving you." He circles her with his arms and kisses her neck.

She turns around quickly and pushes him away. "What are you doing?"

"Veronica, please. You deserve better than him. Don't you think...you, me and Jane could be a happy family?" he says desperately. "I can picture it. We can get a small house just outside Neptune, away from my family but close enough so you can finish at Hearst, and when you're ready, we could get married, maybe even have kids of our own." He approaches her again and moves to caress her cheek.

She flinches away from his hand, and he pulls back as if he was burned.

In a low voice she says, "I love him, Duncan. I think I always have. I can't be with you."

"Even though he put that video out there for the whole world to see, Logan Echolls 'cheating' on his girlfriend? Embarrassing you by acting like the bad boy that the paparazzi think he is?" Duncan says venomously. "I would never do that to you."

_No, you just let a girl make you think you got her pregnant and fucked up our lives by running with her baby,_ she thinks bitterly. Then she adds, _And now, my dad's life is fucked up too, trying to cover up my involvement. What the hell is Dad up to? Robbing graves and buying guns...damn you, Duncan, why didn't you listen to me and stay instead of running?_

Duncan continues, "I love you so much, Veronica. I dream about you every night."

Veronica replies, "I'm sorry, Duncan. I don't love you. I do care about you; I want everything to work out for you, but I can't be with you. I'll go with you to the hearing on Monday, as your friend. I'll see you then." She walks back into the suite, grabs her laptop and purse, kisses Jane good-bye, and leaves, thinking, _Clue in, Donut. I'm not that girl anymore._

Sat. 2/7/09: Somewhere in the United States

Logan parks the pickup truck and rubs his eyes, trying to clear his fatigue. It's been a long day: a four hour drive to another city, then a search for a cybercafé to email an assignment for school, then the drive back. Throughout the day, the stress of wondering whether this was a mistake has haunted him. _Will Veronica somehow be able to track me through this? I'm not ready; I'm not ready to face her._ But it feels good to do something as normal as submitting homework. It feels sane and positive to renew his commitment to an education through this tiny step. He's sure that UCLA will find a way to kick him out anyways, but for now he's opened a door back to a regular life.

He steps out of the truck into the street. Logan sees a gaudy bar a short distance away. When the front door is flung open, he hears a blast of raucous music, and he suddenly feels unbearably lonely. He walks towards the bar almost as if he's a puppet, being controlled by someone else. _I'm just sick of the motel room. I just need...I just need..._

When he gets to the bar, he hesitates. The next steps are so ingrained in him: walk in, take a seat at the bar, order "double-scotch and keep 'em coming". Even though he hasn't been in a bar in months, he feels like he's home: a sick twisted home that usually ends up in a blackout or maybe a vicious fight, but it still feels like home nonetheless.

He looks around and spies a bench at a nearby bus stop; he sits down to think about this for a minute. _All these days sober...all this progress could go right out the window with just one drink. Of course, it doesn't feel like progress._ Without the numbing effect of alcohol, most days he feels like one giant exposed and throbbing nerve.

He thinks about the neurologist from the hospital last fall.

_FLASHBACK: Dr. Crouch examines him in the hospital bed. Logan is still a little woozy from the pain meds and morose about the accident. The doctor pulls one of the monitors over to the bedside and asks Logan to take a look. "This is your CT scan. You have significant bleeding in the meninges portion of your brain. It's called a subdural hematoma; it was caused by a tear in a vein in the subdural space. It's a common result of a head injury such as the one you sustained in the car accident." Logan looks at the doctor, suddenly scared by the doctor's expression._

_Dr. Crouch continues, pointing at the scan, "This area is called the parietal lobe. This hematoma has expanded along the inside of the skull, indicated by this crescent shape on the scan. The bleeding causes an increase in pressure inside your cranium. But what concerns me, Mr. Echolls, is that I'm seeing some early signs of brain atrophy. Cerebral atrophy stretches the veins that bridge the two layers of the meninges and increases the likelihood of a tear and subsequent bleed. We see this type of atrophy in the elderly and in alcoholics. You are far too young to be exhibiting this type of damage. You need to stop drinking."_

_Logan starts to protest, but the doctor interrupts him. "Your blood alcohol was .15 when you were brought into the emergency room." Logan doesn't think he should mention that he wasn't as drunk as usual that night. "Mr. Echolls, you need to stop drinking." The doctor puts some AA brochures on the table and leaves._

_Logan looks at one of the brochures. He reads, 'Turn your will over to your Higher Power'. He thinks, 'My Higher Power just shits on me, the fucker,' and he drops the brochure back on the bedside table._

Logan makes a decision and enters the bar. After the loneliness of the motel room, the sights and sounds of the bar are overwhelming: people laughing, bartenders calling out orders, loud music playing, people moving about and jostling each other. He heads for the bar and takes a seat on a stool. The bartender notices him and comes down to serve him. "Scotch, double," Logan says in response to the bartender's query.

The bartender pours his drink and turns away. Logan just stares at the drink. Ten minutes later the bartender comes back and asks, pointing at the untouched drink, "Everything okay?"

"Yes," Logan replies. He throws a fifty on the bar and leaves.

Sat. 2/7/09: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

Duncan wheels the room service cart into the hallway outside the suite. Across the hall, the door opens to another suite, and a beautiful blonde woman puts a tray filled with dirty dishes outside her door. Duncan has noticed this woman several times in the hallway, and he smiles and says, "Hey."

"Hello," she replies. She nods at his dinner cart and says, "How was your dinner?"

"Okay," he responds, thinking, _unfortunately, it ended a little sooner than I hoped it would._

"Would you like a glass of wine? I have half a bottle left, and...I don't like to drink alone," she says.

"Um," he stalls, considering. He looks at his neighbor, admiring her voluptuous curves and attractive face. Her red dress clings to her, showing off every detail of her corporeal perfection, and Duncan only hesitates for a moment. "Would you mind coming over here? My daughter's asleep in the next room."

"That's right, I've seen you two in the hallway. She's quite beautiful."

"She takes after her mother," Duncan replies, not for the first time noting the irony of Lilly's strong resemblance to Meg. "Her mother is, uh, deceased. Jane's mother died several years ago."

"I'm sorry. Let me get the wine. I'll be right over." She steps back into her room and emerges with a bottle of merlot. "My name is Katerina. Most people call me Katya."

"I'm Daniel," Duncan replies, thinking, ..._for two more days. Then the shitstorm begins._ "Let me just check on Jane quickly." He pokes his head into Jane's room and makes sure that she's sleeping quietly, then returns to the living room.

Katerina has kicked off her high heels and taken a seat on the couch; she pours two glasses of merlot. Duncan sits next to her and takes a glass. "So, Katya, what brings you to Neptune?"

"Some old business, actually; I'm collecting an old debt," Katya says vaguely. She looks down in her wine glass and raises the glass to her lips to drink.

"So you've been to Neptune before?"

"A while ago. I haven't been back for a couple years," she replies. "How about you? Are you here in Neptune for business or pleasure?"

"I'm settling some old legal problems," Duncan explains tersely. He takes a large sip of wine.

"I'm sorry, did I say something wrong?"

"It's a difficult time, and I'm just not sure everything's going to work out," he explains. He finishes his wine and adds some more merlot to his glass. "This wine was a good choice; would you mind if I ordered another bottle?"

"That sounds perfect, Daniel," she says, smiling.

After several more glasses of merlot, Duncan is feeling quite drunk. He and Katya are enjoying each other's company, and Duncan is almost able to forget about Veronica's rejection of him. When Katya brushes her hand against his thigh, he realizes he is very aware of the proximity of this intensely sexy woman beside him. He meets her eyes, and she does not look away.

She places her wine glass on the table and says simply, "Daniel, I've been quite lonely on this trip. It's nice to talk to someone and share a glass or two of wine."

"I know. I've...I've actually been quite lonely for a long time now. Circumstances have been rather difficult, and...Well, I thought someone was waiting for me, and it turns out..." he shrugs. "I guess I'm starting over. Or at least, I'm not in a holding pattern any longer. Time to get on with my life at last."

Katya leans in to him and says, "Well, I'm glad I was here when it was time to move on." She kisses him and moves closer to him on the couch.

Duncan reaches for her, caressing her long blonde hair, and she presses her body against him. She murmurs, "I have an idea. Why don't I give you a massage? It sounds like you need to relax."

Duncan nods 'okay', and she stands up from the couch. Katya takes his hand and coaxes him into the bedroom. She leads him into the room and pushes him toward the bed. "Why don't you get undressed? I'll be right back." She disappears into the bathroom, and Duncan begins to take off his clothes. Dressed only in his shorts, he lays down on the bed. When Katerina returns, she is wearing a robe from the bathroom, and Duncan frowns. She notices and says, "What's the matter?"

"I don't know, I'm not sure. I'm just remembering something. It's nothing. Can you lock the door? I don't want Jane to come in and..."

"Of course," she says, turning the lock on the door. She drops the robe on the dresser, and Duncan swallows at the sight of her. Katya is clad in wisp-thin black lingerie that leaves little to the imagination. Her large breasts are almost spilling out of a demi-bra; Duncan can see just a hint of her dark-colored aureolas at the top edge of the bra under her trailing blonde locks, and he feels very aroused. She smiles prettily, well-aware of her effect on men, and approaches the bed. "Turn over. Just relax. Whoever she is, just forget about her tonight."

He complies; he lies face-down on the bed, adjusting his pelvis for comfort. She kneels on the bed and straddles him on his upper thighs. He feels the lacy material of her thong and the heat beneath brushing against him, and he moans quietly at the sensation.

Katya leans forward, pressing her breasts against him, and whispers into his ear, "Relax, we're going to feel good..." She leans back and puts some lotion onto her palms, rubbing her hands vigorously to warm them. She places her hands on his upper back and begins to knead Duncan's muscles.

"Oh, that feels great. Katya...where did you learn to do that?" he groans.

"Shhh, just relax."

When Duncan is completely relaxed from her ministrations, she pulls off his shorts and begins to rub his ass. Katya slips one finger between his cheeks and strokes him softly, urging him to spread his legs a little; she fondles his balls, and he moves restlessly under her. "I want to turn over, let me..." he murmurs, and she lifts up a little so he can turn underneath her straddling legs. He sits up, reaches around her, and unclasps her bra as she smiles at him. Duncan lays back down, pulling her bra down her arms, and throws it across the room. He sucks in his breath unconsciously when he sees that both her nipples are pierced with delicate gold rings.

She smiles, touching her breasts, and says, "The rings are new. Do you like them? It's okay to touch them. I love the way they make me feel." She runs her fingers through her hair, exhibiting the lushness of her breasts and the dark abundant aureolas surrounding her taut nipples. He gently places his palms on her breasts and brushes lightly against the tips of her nipples; she moans in response and writhes above him, and he cups her breasts strongly, teasing her nipples with his thumbs and forefingers, feeling the unfamiliar metal of the rings emerging from her erect nipples. He experimentally tugs gently on one of the rings, and she gasps in delight and leans toward him to kiss him. Her tongue explores his mouth, and he feels an answering thrill in his cock.

Duncan experiences a surge of erotic bravery that is completely foreign to him, and he sits up and flips Katya over onto the mattress. He kneels over her and grabs her lacy thong with his teeth as she laughs throatily; he pulls the insubstantial material down over her thighs as she lifts to help him in his task. After he clears her feet, he drops the thong on the floor and begins to kiss his way back up her legs.

"Mmm, I'm so glad I had a little wine left over tonight..." she murmurs, spreading her legs eagerly for his approaching tongue.

"I'm definitely glad you shared with me, Katya," he says, then bends to delicately trace his tongue over the perfection of her upper thighs. He peeks up at her face and sees that she is kneading her nipples and pulling at her piercings; he moans a little and kisses her nub, ostentatiously protruding from a complete brazilian waxing. Duncan caresses the startlingly smooth skin of her pussy; he licks her steadily, then begins to flick his tongue teasingly against her. He is completely titillated by the provocative faux-innocence of her hairlessness, and he wonders what other surprises she might have in store for him. Katya gasps at his attentions to her; she reaches for his head and begins to stroke his hair. She mutters incoherently and pushes her pelvis against his mouth.

A few minutes later, she surprises him by pulling his head up; she smiles and says emphatically, "Roll over." He looks up at her questioningly, and she repeats herself: "Come on...roll over, I want to suck you." Duncan rolls over onto his back. Katya sits up, turns, and kneels over him, putting her pussy over his face and positioning her mouth over his cock. She lowers her mouth to him and begins to tongue him, lavishing strokes over his length; he groans, and she pauses momentarily to grind her pussy against his mouth. He devours the taste of her and her exquisite wetness, thinking _my god, she's fucking my tongue...my god, my cock, what is she doing... _She takes him into her mouth, and he grabs wildly at her considerable breasts. When he begins to fondle her nipples, pinching and tormenting her, she shows her gratitude by taking his straining member even further into her mouth. Katya sucks at him, drawing him ever higher into an oblivion of intense feeling as he licks her throbbing, swollen clit.

She suddenly stops and crawls down his torso; winking over her shoulder at him, she mounts him in one quick stroke, easily engorging him within her slick velvety hollows. _Shit! _he thinks. He says, "Katya, stop, let me get a condom." Duncan thinks desperately about the package of condoms he bought hoping Veronica would reciprocate his feelings; then he remembers his infertility and the last three years of abstinence, and he wonders why he bothered.

"It's okay," she says; Duncan knows he should protest, but he lets it go. She looks at him again over her shoulder, her head thrown back in ecstacy and her face flushed with arousal, and he realizes that this woman is temptation personified. Duncan pushes himself into a sitting position under her, and she cries out as he thrusts into her deeply and reaches around her to massage her breasts. He lays back down and tries to really fuck her; she rides him with wild abandon, her arms thrown behind her head, as he attempts to control her undulating hips. She reaches down and puts intense pressure at the base of his cock, and he thinks he's going to explode under her expert hands. He pumps into her again and again, compulsively focusing on the dizzying sight of her luxuriant, curvaceous ass and the intermittent glimpses of her sumptuous tits as she writhes over him.

Abruptly, she stops and lifts herself off him; he groans in disappointment, "Where are you going?"

She knee-walks off the bed and then saunters seductively over to a chair by the bed. "Coming, lover?" she asks wantonly as she bends over the chair and sways her ass invitingly at him.

His heart pounding, Duncan follows her; he realizes that she has picked this chair because she can see her profile in the full-length mirror. When he approaches, she says huskily, "Spank me."

"What?" he replies, incredulously.

"I'm a very bad girl; I need to be spanked," she repeats lasciviously, moving her ass side-to-side in a very inviting manor.

Duncan hesitates.

"Please," she begs. "I'll do anything for you, just do this for me..."

"Katya, we have to be quiet," he protests. "Jane is next door sleeping."

"I can be quiet. Please, Daniel."

He lightly taps her buttocks with his palm, and she whispers, "Harder. Please, Daniel, I've been very bad."

_I can do this; this is sexy, _he thinks, and he brings his palm down quite a bit harder.

"Oh yes, again, please," she begs.

As he begins to spank her forcefully, he sees that she is stroking herself furiously and watching his castigations in the mirror. Duncan feels a little queasy, but his cock is trembling with excitement and desire, jerking each time he strikes her. At last, she exclaims in a hoarse whisper, "Fuck me, Daniel!"

He slips into her wet depths smoothly, grabbing her ass and bruising her with his fingers. He pulls out almost all the way, then slams into her, bottoming out on his stroke. Duncan sneaks a glance at the mirror, watching their frantic coupling. He pumps his pelvis fiercely, and she bucks back against him violently, shuddering and moaning as she quivers with an intense throbbing orgasm; he thrusts into her deeply one last time and climaxes hard, feeling his cum filling her as he pulsates uncontrollably within her spasms.

Sat. 2/7/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Veronica's cell phone rings. Half-asleep, she punches the talk button and says, "Hello?"

There is no response, and she pulls the phone from her ear to look at the caller id, which reads 'out of state'. Her heart begins to pound, and she grips the phone compulsively. "Logan? Is that you?"

On the other end, Logan cradles the phone tightly against his ear but says nothing.

"Logan? Are you alright? Please...talk to me. I want you to come home," she says desperately.

Logan remains silent, closing his eyes and picturing her.

"Please..." she says again as the connection goes dead. She frantically hits 'send' twice to call the number back, but she hears, "That number is not in service. Please try your call again."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Mad Sleuthing Skillz  
**Keith and Veronica meet with an attorney  
suing Briar Hill; Mac and Dick team up;  
Wallace searches for Shawn.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Epstein: Scott Grimes. Dick: Ryan Hansen.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
The Gabber: Jonathan Trent  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE: "MAD SLEUTHING SKILLZ"

Sun. 2/8/09: Downtown San Diego, CA

Keith and Veronica are in San Diego to speak to an attorney who is suing Briar Hill. Veronica is still exhausted after another sleepless night worrying about Logan. With Mac's help, she found the originating phone number of her call the night before: as she suspected, it was yet another disposable cell phone, and Veronica assumes it's probably been smashed into a million pieces by now. She tried the number several times and was told each time that the number was not in service. Veronica tries to focus; she knows this is going to be an important meeting, and she needs to pay attention.

As they enter the offices of James Epstein, Attorney-at-law, Veronica notes that the office is comparable to Cliff McCormick's shoddy digs and wonders how good this attorney could be. Epstein jumps up from behind his desk and rushes over to greet them. "Keith Mars? Hi, I'm Jim Epstein. Thanks for coming in."

"Yes, I'm Keith. This is my daughter, Veronica. We were surprised you wanted to meet on a Sunday. Aren't most of your colleagues at the country club today?" Keith comments.

"Well, I'm not like most of my colleagues. I take cases because they interest me, not because they'll make me a lot of money...hopeless personal injury cases, wrongful prosecutions, that type of case. I'm sort of the attorney of last resort for the victims of society, and that means I have to work long hours and most weekends," the attorney explains.

Veronica notices his ill-fitting cheap suit and stained tie and agrees that this particular attorney isn't in the shyster business for the money. There are stacks of manila folders, loose papers, law books, zip drives, cd-roms, and unwashed coffee cups littering the office. "No staff?" she asks, surveying the mess.

"Some students from the law school at UCSD volunteer a few hours a week, mostly to do research. But no secretary, unfortunately. I could use one..." he replies, looking around his untidy office. "So, uh, Keith...it's okay to call you Keith?" Keith nods. "Keith, I could really use your help. My clients were bankrupted by the exorbitant fees charged by Briar Hill Academy. They are now pursuing claims of wrongful imprisonment, violations of civil rights, false advertising, and psychiatric malpractice. Their daughter was at the school for three years with an undiagnosed and untreated schizophrenic disorder. The psychiatrist employed by the school never saw her, even when she was first admitted. As the girl's illness progressed, she began to have hallucinations. The school responded by restraining her, restricting her to solitary confinement, and day after day of stress positions and attack therapy." As Veronica listens, she realizes that this attorney is a lot smarter than he looks and very passionate about his work.

"Attack therapy?" Keith asks.

"The group therapy that is practiced in these schools features the counselors giving long lectures about personal responsibility. Then the counselors force each student to admit to a long laundry list of offenses that the students supposedly perpetrated in their life before they came to the school. If the students don't admit enough–if their crimes are not serious or detailed enough–they are confronted over and over again until the students make up horrific crimes to satisfy their persecutor. The students learn quickly that they must admit that they are liars, drug abusers, sex offenders, thieves, etc. in order to progress in the program. If they don't, they are told, and their parents are told, that they are resisting treatment and additional months are added onto their treatment plan."

Epstein continues, "The parents are warned ahead of time that the students will try to manipulate their parents and make up stories of abuse and neglect that are happening at the school. So if a student dares to tell their parents what is going on, the parents assume that their daughter is in denial and is doing exactly what the school warned them would happen. The parents willingly, even enthusiastically, sign their children up for longer periods, grateful that their child is at last receiving the help they so desperately need."

"And the school makes a fortune off each student," Veronica adds.

"Yes. There's no real educational expense at the school. The teachers are a joke; the rest of the staff are not highly educated and are usually very inexperienced, or are themselves products of the school or its affiliates, who have been convinced that the program is the only thing that works for troubled teens. There's no social activities, no field trips, no projects that would require expensive supplies; moreover, the teens are warehoused in bunk beds and are underfed, so there's little expense involved with the room and board of each student," Epstein explains.

"So how could this school continue to exist? Don't the authorities have a duty to investigate complaints about this type of abuse in a school setting?" Keith asks.

Epstein replies, "It's a private school. Parents are allowed to choose the education they wish for their children, as long as it meets certain state requirements, and the school does nominally provide those requirements; however, most students are considered to be 'held back' every year, so when the students don't graduate, it's not a red flag. The school is accredited by a private accrediting agency that is run by an association of this type of school–basically the fox in charge of the hen house, you might say–and as long as the school maintains its accreditation, the state tends to look the other way."

"How can this not be illegal?" Veronica interrupts. "I don't understand. If a teacher at Neptune High put handcuffs on a student, the sheriff would be there in one minute."

"In a public school, the students have the means to complain," Epstein responds. "There is no one to complain to at these schools. And Veronica, there really is nothing illegal about these schools." He rummages through the law books, finds one and opens it to a well-thumbed page. "In 1979, the Supreme Court validated parents' rights to commit their children indefinitely to institutions such as Briar Hill in _Parham v. J.R._ Teens can be committed without a court hearing if a neutral party, which can be an employee of the school or institution, agrees that the student needs restrictive care.(2)" He shows her the page, and Veronica reads enough to understand Epstein's point.

The Court ruled that an adversary hearing is not required for parents to commit a child to a mental-health facility (or in the case of wards of the court, by the state agency acting in loco parentis)...The Court found that professionals working in the separate units for minors within Georgia's psychiatric hospitals, including Central State Hospital, screened admissions adequately, and reviewed their progress regularly. Furthermore, the Court noted that parents generally act in the best interests of their children, and that juveniles are incapable of making their own decisions regarding relatively weighty or complex issues. Supporting this was the assertion that no adversary hearing is required when a minor needs surgery. It did, however, concur that there was some risk regarding parents' committing their children to psychiatric facilities, and suggested a "neutral factfinder" inquiry be undertaken at the time of admission, which would include an interview with the minor.(3)

Veronica and Keith stare at Epstein, stunned.

Sun. 2/8/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Mac comes out of the library onto the South Quad. It's an unusually warm day for February, and a significant number of comely female students are taking advantage of the sun and working on their bikini tan lines.

Dick is sitting on a stone wall appreciating the sights. When Mac spies him, she quickly tries to change direction, deciding she'd rather go the long way around back to her dorm. Dick notices and follows her. "Hey wait up!" he calls. He matches her pace and holds up his hand for an air 'high-five', saying, "Wi-five, Macarena, what's your rush?... C'mon, you can't say hi? I thought we were past this."

"I'm not in the mood today," she replies. "I'll see you around, okay?"

He sees the dark circles under her eyes and tries to make a joke. "I'm here to offer up my services as a boner donor for the Hearst edition of 'Girls Gone Wild'. You interested?"

"Please leave me alone," she answers, walking away quickly.

Dick follows. "Mac, I'm sorry. What's wrong?"

"You're not going to leave me alone, are you?" she says, stopping and staring at him.

"What happened? What's wrong?" he repeats.

"If I tell you, will you go away?"

"I promise."

She sighs and says, "I had a date last night and the guy didn't show. Didn't even call." She looks up at Dick and is surprised to see the look of concern on his usually carefree face. "You remember, I told you about–"

"I remember," he says. "I know Cassidy really hurt you. I'll never forgive him for that." He looks at her, but she avoids his gaze. Dick says, "I'm sure it was a mix-up. The guy will be calling you any second explaining what happened. And if he doesn't...then forget about him, he doesn't deserve you." He tentatively reaches out and rubs her arm comfortingly.

"I just...I really liked this guy. He seemed to be the right kind of guy for me; we have a lot in common. I thought he was really nice. And then...he just blows me off." _What's wrong with me? Why didn't he show?_ she thinks.

Dick doesn't know what to say. He thinks helplessly, _Mac and I had so much fun last fall plotting to get Logan and Veronica back together,_ and decides to try to change the subject. He asks, "Hey, has Veronica made any progress finding Logan?"

"We think he called last night." She explains about the late night phone call from the untraceable number.

"Well that's good, right? He's reaching out to her, at least. Maybe he's thinking about coming back," he comments. "I miss him too, you know. We have a special bromance...there's no love more pure than that between a man and his broha, if you know what I mean." He sneaks a look at her for her reaction; she smiles faintly. "What if we teamed up to help Veronica? I know the dude better than anybody, and with your mad computer skills, we'll find him in no time." He thinks, _Last time we did this, I got her into bed with me._ "C'mon, what do you say? We'll spitball this. I bet we find him in twenty-four hours. Then Veronica can bring him home, and things can get back to normal. Logan needs his friends even if he doesn't realize it."

She hesitates, then agrees. "All right. Maybe you're right." _I'm glad for the distraction,_ she thinks. She leads the way to a nearby bench under a shade tree, and pulls out her laptop. She checks her Wi-Fi connection and says, "Okay. What are we looking for? Tell me about Logan. What makes him happy? What does he need that he won't be able to live without?" She opens a document to take notes.

Dick thinks. "Well, of course, mostly it's Veronica that makes him happy. And then, you know, the typical guy stuff, porn, videogames, tunes..."

"Okay, we know he's not with Veronica. And I don't think he'll have any problem getting porn, videogames or music wherever he is. All he would need is an internet connection, and he'd be all set. Tell me about his typical day before he left."

"Before he got hurt, he would go surfing almost every day. He loves the ocean; you remember his beach house. When he found that place, that was all he could talk for weeks, being able to wake up and see the ocean, and seeing the sunset over the water every night."

She types "ocean" into a note. "Okay, what else?"

"Well, he's taking a pretty heavy load of classes at UCLA. He had to take some intro classes last year to make up for screwing off in high school, so now he's trying to get more of the requirements for his major completed," Dick says.

Mac frowns. "School's pretty important to him?"

Dick nods. "Yeah, you wouldn't think it, but once he found the screenwriting thing, he was totally into it. And then he was trying really hard to catch up after being in the hospital last fall. He had a few extensions on his coursework; the profs were pretty cool with him because of his dad being such a big star and all."

"So he's kinda throwing that all away now? All that hard work? Let's look at the UCLA site for the screenwriting major." She pulls up the URL and looks at the page. "Student login. Probably first initial and last name. What do you think his password is?"

"No clue. I do remember Veronica giving him a hard time for picking too easy a password. He was moaning about not being able to remember it, and she fussed at him, telling him to use a combination of a word and a number that meant something to him, so he could remember it, but would be hard for a stranger to guess."

"Okay. Tell me about any stories you remember from Logan's childhood. Pets, camp, vacations, first kiss, first uh...blowjob, etc." She glances at Dick, and he smiles back. "Favorite song, favorite book, favorite videogames. And then we're going to figure out numbers. Phone numbers, street numbers, zip codes, birthdays, anniversaries."

"What are you thinking?" Dick asks.

"I don't know; just a hunch," she replies.

Sun. 2/8/09: Downtown San Diego, CA

Veronica and Keith stare at Epstein, stunned to realize that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that parents are allowed to commit their children to these schools.

Epstein nods at them. "It's not going to be easy to successfully sue Briar Hill. The false advertising charge is probably going to be the easiest to prove in my particular case, but the penalties are not very high. But for everything else that was done to my clients' daughter?" He shrugs. "My clients signed paperwork authorizing the school to use whatever means necessary to help their daughter."

"Whatever means necessary?" Veronica echoes.

"The school's liability waiver specifically states that the school has permission to use mace, taser devices, restraints, and corporal punishment should the situation require it. The parents were told that the school rarely uses these methods, and they were coerced into signing the waiver," Epstein continues.

"Because the school refused to accept the student without the signed waiver and stressed that commitment is the parents' only option to save their chiild," Keith notes.

"Right. As far as the brutal counseling methods that were used on my clients' daughter, there's only two possible sources of testimony. The daughter herself can testify, but, due to her paranoid delusions, it will be impossible to determine exactly what happened to her. We can try to get other students to testify; however, graduates or current students are reluctant to testify since they are afraid their parents might send them back or commit them to a longer period. Even worse, most students parrot the standard line that the school's methods, while harsh, were just what they needed. In addition, all the parents and students are forced to sign a confidentiality agreement, and by testifying they open themselves to prosecution."

"They won't testify because they've been brainwashed. To survive the experience, the students make the best of it and decide that the school is a positive thing," Veronica adds. At Keith's puzzled expression, she explains, "I asked Logan's psychiatrist some questions about why a student would accept this kind of abuse."

_Logan's psychiatrist?_ Keith wonders. _Veronica's not just sitting by and waiting for him to come home after all._ He sneaks another look at his daughter; she catches his knowing eye and looks away quickly. He says, "What else besides the false advertising are you looking at?"

"There is an agreement between states, the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children, or ICPC, that voluntarily regulates program placements when the child is moved from one state to another. As a compact rather than a law, it's not enforceable, but certain paperwork is supposed to be filed, and that was not completed in this case.(4) The girl was taken forcibly from her parents' home in the middle of the night and transported across the country in handcuffs. She was not made aware that she would be changing schools; she was not allowed to pack her belongings or say goodbye to her friends."

"The parents must have felt awful when they found out the truth about the school and their daughter's true diagnosis," Veronica remarks.

"I think they're using their righteous anger to get through this. Their daughter is doing better now, and this has become a crusade for them," Epstein responds.

"As it is for my client as well," Keith comments. "I told you on the phone, it's a double tragedy for Ms. Denenberg, since she recently lost her daughter to a serial killer. She's completely devastated."

Veronica thinks, _What about Hannah's father? Why isn't he up in arms about this? Even with the divorce, you'd think he would join forces with his wife to prosecute these bastards._ She realizes Hannah's father must be the typical Briar Hill parent, who remains convinced that he had no choice except to send his daughter to the school.

"There are some options to pursue, but I don't have a strong case without a solid witness. There could be violations of mandated child abuse reporting and inadequate caloric intake. It's presumed that this student was never actually seen by a psychologist when they were admitted, but the school insists that the staff therapist did see her, and the psychologist's name appears on a report dated that day that delineates symptoms and a plan of treatment. Again, we need a credible witness," Epstein says regretfully. "I'm not sure we're going to be able to get a judgment. I really feel for these parents. This girl was put through hell, and there's not much I can do with the current laws on the books without eyewitness testimony."

Veronica looks at her dad, and, knowing her, he says, "No, Veronica. Don't even think about it."

Epstein looks from Keith to Veronica and asks, "What?"

"I can go undercover at the school. I've been a licensed private investigator for almost two years, and I have two years' experience at an internship for the FBI," Veronica explains to Jim. "I can certainly look like a high school student, and I know I can get the evidence you need to win your case."

Sun. 2/8/09: Liberty Cigars and Pipes, Neptune, CA

Wallace walks into the tobacco store. The smell of Cuban cigars fills the air, but Veronica told Wallace it's what's under the counter that really turns a profit for the store. She said to ask for Dan, also known as the Gabber, who not only has a supply of bongs in the back room, but can also make a decent fake id for the right price. Wallace approaches the counter and says, "Hey, is the Gabber here?"

"Who's asking?" the man answers.

"Andrew Jackson," Wallace replies, putting a twenty on the counter.

The man puts his hand on the cash and points with his thumb over his shoulder. "In the back. Black t-shirt."

Wallace walks to the back to the store and sees a thin man, mid-twenties, wearing a black 'Ghost Rider' t-shirt and jeans. "Yo, are you the Gabber?"

The man looks at him, but says nothing.

"I hear you can perform identity miracles. You know, wave your magic wand, and presto, you're a twenty-one-year-old dude from Sacramento." Wallace gets his wallet and pulls out a fifty, holding it up for the Gabber to see.

"Yeah, miracles, that's right. Hundred for a driver's license. Fifty for a Hearst ID," the Gabber replies.

"How much to remember someone else's miracle?" Wallace asks.

The Gabber looks at him, suddenly nervous. "Don't know what you're talking about man, this is just a head shop. We sell rolling papers and tobacco. Nothing illegal here."

"Relax, bro, I'm not the 5-0. I'm trying to help my girlfriend. I'm wondering if you made an ID for her brother. He's been missing for a while. His name's Shawn Blake; you might know him as the X-Man."

"Oh, yeah, the X-Man. Yeah, I made him an ID. But I can't remember much about it." The Gabber puts out his hand palm up. "It's shocking how a little weed can affect your memory."

Wallace sighs. He puts the fifty in the Gabber's hand; the Gabber shakes his head 'no', and Wallace adds another fifty.

The Gabber pockets the cash and says, "Yeah, I think it's coming back to me now. I made him an ID in the name of Chris Claremont, 1407 Graymalkin Lane, North Salem, NY."

"Wait, you remember all that? From a year ago? You remember the address on the ID," Wallace says dubiously.

"Chris Claremont is one of the writers of the X-Men comics, and that's the address of the Xavier Institute from the comic books." The Gabber grins and points to his T-shirt. "I'm a comic fan. Shawn didn't know the reference, but he didn't give a shit what I put it on the ID as long as it looked okay. I like to have a little fun with the names; it's my trademark."

"Do you remember when you made the ID for him? Nobody's seen Shawn since Dec. 15 last year," Wallace asks.

"That sounds about right. December, yeah," the Gabber replies.

Sun. 2/8/09: Downtown San Diego, CA

Veronica repeats, "I can go undercover at the school. I can get the evidence to shut the school down."

Epstein looks excited. "This is an incredible idea. We might even be able to go after some of the affiliated schools. You know, this is not the only place where this is happening. We could do some real good here. The kids in these tough love programs are getting hurt everyday, and no one's been able to prove what's really going on."

Keith says firmly, "I won't allow it."

"Dad, that's ridiculous. You know it's the only way." _And I want to get into that school for my own reasons...I want to see if Hannah was killed by someone connected with the school._

Epstein has jumped up from his desk and is pacing around the office. "It's perfect. You can wear a wire, and we can document exactly what the situation is at the school."

"It's too dangerous," Keith replies. "These people are completely willing to use physical force to get what they want. I understand you've been frustrated in your lawsuit, but this is my daughter we're talking about; she could get hurt."

"But I'll be wearing a wire. You'll be monitoring me at all times. What if there was another person undercover with me? You said the staff was uneducated and inexperienced; I bet there's a lot of turnover."

Keith adds without thinking, "Half of them are ex-convicts. They don't even do the simplest background check on their employees, or if they do, they don't care what they find."

"That's perfect. You can be monitoring me, and we can have a guard on the staff, who can also testify as to what's going on," Veronica says.

Epstein says, "There have been allegations that the guards are not trained in proper restraint techniques, which have resulted in injuries to the students; a guard's testimony would certainly add to the case."

Keith remains silent, considering the idea. _I'm totally horrified by everything I've discovered about these schools. I know that Veronica might be the perfect undercover operative to investigate this case, maybe the best person in the whole country. But, my god, she's my daughter; how can I think of letting her do this?_

"Dad, it sounds like these schools are operating completely beyond the reach of traditional law enforcement. Mr. Epstein, you said these schools are extremely profitable. Does that mean that there are more institutions like this opening all the time?"

"Most definitely. There are new schools every year, and some are beginning to operate offshore, in places like Jamaica and Mexico, where there is even less legal supervision and consequences. A big legal case with documented evidence might even inspire Congress to change the law: to make an independent, state-supervised psychological evaluation a prerequisite before a minor is committed to a restrictive institution, and to require documentation before a minor is transported to such a school over state or national boundaries."

Veronica gives her dad a triumphant look: '_see, you know I'm right'_.

Keith sighs. Part of him knows there's a chance his reckless daughter might investigate the school on her own, and he is concerned that he won't be able to prevent her from doing that. "I'm going to conditionally agree. We will have someone else undercover with you, someone with a lot of experience undercover and good self-defense skills. If, however, anything about this plan worries me, I reserve the right to take back my permission for you to do this. And I know, I can't make you do anything anymore. You're twenty-one; you're an adult. But, Veronica, I think you wouldn't go against me on this, would you?"

She shakes her head no.

"I'll speak to Ms. Denenberg. I think she would be very agreeable to financing this kind of operation."

Epstein adds, "I can probably find some other parents to join in a class-action suit who might be willing to contribute funds if I can convince them that this is likely to produce a large settlement against the school."

Keith says, "I'd like to meet with you again in a few days. I'll be doing my own research and selecting someone to go undercover as a guard. I'm thinking they should be employed at the school for some time before Veronica gets there to alleviate any suspicions. And Veronica, you're not missing school for this. We can try to plan this to happen during your spring recess–that's about a month from now. That gives us plenty of time to plan and make sure that you'll be completely safe."

--  
(2) Szalavitz, Maia. Help At Any Cost. New York: Riverhead Books, 2006. p. 63.  
(3) law./pages/13280/Parham-v-J-R.html.  
(4) Help At Any Cost. pp. 264-265.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Innocent Suffer, The Guilty Go Free  
(Part One)**  
Veronica and Mac have a morning full  
of surprises; Keith coaches Vinnie on the  
next step; Duncan prepares for his  
amnesty hearing.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Vinnie Van Lowe:  
Ken Marino. Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Max: Adam Rose.  
Sacks: Brandon Hillock.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR: "THE INNOCENT SUFFER, THE GUILTY GO FREE" (PART ONE)

Mon. 2/9/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

"Hey, sleepyhead." Veronica drops a newspaper and their mail on her desk and sets a styrofoam container and a coffee on Mac's nightstand. "You slept through the alarm. I got you some breakfast. What time did you get in last night anyways?"

Mac stretches and looks gratefully at the coffee. "Thanks. I got in about four a.m. Dick and I were–"

"Dick?" Veronica gasps. "I thought–"

Mac shakes her head impatiently. "Not like that. We were trying to crack Logan's university password."

Veronica sits down heavily on Mac's bed; Mac pushes herself into a seated position and picks up the coffee cup, taking a large sip. Veronica asks, "So? Were you successful?"

"Well, since you were so nice to bring me breakfast..." Mac grins. "We figured it out, and you're not going to believe this. Logan submitted some school work over the last few days by email. Dick said that he's pretty passionate about the screenwriting program."

"Passionate? That doesn't sound like a word Dick would use."

"That wasn't his exact word; I think Dick's stupefied at the idea that anyone would want to do school work. Anyways, Logan used two different cybercafés in two different cities: Austin and San Antonio."

"So he's in Texas?" Veronica muses.

"Well, he was. He was in Austin on Saturday and San Antonio yesterday. I suppose he could be somewhere else entirely by now. Veronica, you're not going to believe what his password is...Sugarpuss71006."

Veronica hugs Mac. "You're incredible. Now explain to me why you were working with Dick."

"He saw me coming out of the library yesterday and was trying to cheer me up."

"Looks like he succeeded."

Mac starts to get dressed and notices the newspaper on Veronica's dresser. "What's this?"

"You're not going to believe it. They dropped the racketeering charges against the Fitzpatricks and Vinnie Van Lowe; something to do with a warrant not being filed properly. Apparently, all the evidence against them was a result of an unlawful search, and the charges have been dismissed."

Mac picks up the newspaper and glances at the story about Liam. "I can't believe this. You said that Liam Fitzpatrick forced Vinnie to pursue you for Wiedman's murder in order to distract your dad from his illegal activities."

"Yeah, Vinnie acted under Liam's instructions. Now, Liam's out again, and he's going to be pissed at my dad," Veronica observes. "I'm sure Liam suspects that my dad is the anonymous source who alerted the feds to the racketeering scam."

Mac folds the newspaper over and looks at the second story below the fold. Her hands shake, and she cries, "No!"

"What is it?" Veronica asks, looking over her shoulder at the paper. She reads the headline, 'Youth killed in apparent burglary'.

"That's Mordroc. His real name is Rick Picket," Mac stammers. "He was killed...that's why...that's why he wasn't there on Saturday."

"Wait, Mordroc...the computer hacker you told me about? This is the guy?"

"Yes, he was trying to track the flirt-bot program. He thought it was Russian mafia."

"You didn't tell me that," Veronica says, distressed. _'Russian mafia'. Holy fuck. Gory._ "Mac, what if Gory's behind this? We need to go to the sheriff's department and tell them what you know."

Mac looks stunned, then nods at Veronica. She starts to get dressed quickly. Mac suddenly notices a small package on Veronica's desk addressed to Cynthia McKenzie and stops dead. "Veronica, what's this?"

"It was in with our mail," Veronica replies, glancing at the package.

"I'm not expecting any packages," Mac says. Something in her voice makes Veronica look back at the package. The box is covered in brown wrapping paper and well-sealed with clear tape. Mac notes, "They spelled my name wrong." Veronica and Mac exchange a worried glance.

Veronica grabs Mac's arm and says, "Let's get out of here." They leave the room quickly, shutting the door cautiously. Veronica pulls the nearest fire alarm, and they hurriedly exit the building. Outside, as the dorm residents begin to emerge, Veronica calls 911 and alerts the authorities that there might be a bomb in her dorm room. She's thankful that new emergency protocols for responding to bomb threats were instituted after the debacle two years ago during the serial rapes.

Mac has a sudden thought and asks to borrow Veronica's phone. She calls Max.

Max answers, "Yo."

"Max, did you get a package today?" Mac asks nervously. "Or an unusual letter?"

"Yeah, I got a package. I was just going to open it. Did you send me something?"

Mac says quickly, "Max, get out of your apartment. Is there a fire alarm?"

"No, what are you talking about? Come on, is this another one of your jokes?" he says laughing.

"MAX, GET OUT OF THERE NOW! WE THINK IT'S A BOMB! GO!" Mac yells.

"Okay, okay. I'm leaving–"

Mac hears a loud sound and then the phone goes dead.

"What?" Veronica asks.

Mac looks horror-stricken. "I think a bomb went off." She hits the end button, then dials 911 again. Seeing Mac's hands shaking compulsively, Veronica takes the phone from her and reports their suspicions to the operator. When she hangs up the phone, she hugs Mac and says, "They're on their way. I'm sure he'll be okay."

"He said he was leaving," Mac whispers.

Mon. 2/9/09: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Keith approaches Vinnie's jail cell. "Vinnie, we have to talk. Have you heard..."

"Yeah, I heard. They're dropping all the charges against the Fitzpatricks and me. Something about 'fruits of the poisonous tree'; they can't use any of the evidence collected against us since the original warrant was written incorrectly. I never understood any of that legal mumbo-jumbo," Vinnie replies.

"Something's fishy about this. I don't understand why this is happening at this late date."

"The fix is in. I told you, Liam has connections," Vinnie says despondently. "And he's not afraid to use them."

"You're going to need to get out of town immediately. Without any supporting evidence, I doubt the feds are going to keep their agreement with you to put you in witness protection. It's your word against Liam's at this point. I had most of your new identity set up already. I have a few more things to take care of; here's what's going to happen. I got you a car, a gray 2002 Camry sedan; I'm going to park it on Radford Street, halfway down the block. The key will be hidden under the driver's side rear wheelwell. I'll have a new identity for you and some cash in the glove compartment. I suggest when you're released, you get across the border into Mexico and make yourself scarce as quickly as possible. Don't contact me; don't contact your mother or your ex-wives."

Vinnie nods nervously. "Keith, thanks for doing this–"

Keith interrupts, "And Vinnie, if you ever cause a problem for me, my daughter, or Duncan Kane ever again, I just want you to know that I have the bullet, the gun, and the license plates from Dannon's car stashed in a safe location. If I have to, I'll take you down. I'll suffer the consequences if necessary to protect my daughter. Stay the hell away from Neptune if you know what's good for you."

Before Vinnie can say a word, Keith hustles out of the sheriff's department as an alarm begins to sound. Keith recognizes the alarm as an alert for the bomb squad; he wonders what the hell's going on in Neptune today. As he leaves, he sees the tactical squad mobilizing; Leo barks orders at the deputies, and the officers don bulletproof vests and helmets. For just a moment, Keith has an intense longing for the relative clarity of his old job as sheriff–when he seemed to have such a clear vision of right and wrong that he was willing to stake his life on it on a daily basis. As the officers leave the building, he reminds himself that he can't afford this sentimentality anymore, and he drives away, hoping to put the Vinnie Van Lowe matter to bed permanently.

Mon. 2/9/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Deputy Sacks walks over to Veronica and Mac. "The bomb squad got the bomb out of your room, and we've cleared the area."

"What about Max? Have you heard anything?" Mac asks anxiously.

"I talked to the paramedics; they said it's just cuts and bruises, and he'll be fine. It's a good thing you thought to call him and warn him. Sheriff Leo wants you guys to come in and give a statement.

"I have to finish getting dressed and get my bag," Mac replies.

"Okay. I'll wait for you here," Sacks says.

Veronica and Mac go back up to their room. All the girls in their dorm are milling around, gossipping excitedly. Several point at Mac and Veronica and whisper. Veronica says to Mac, "Welcome to my world."

Mac smiles wanly.

In their room, while Mac gets dressed, Veronica looks through her mail. One letter has a return address from the Federal Bureau of Investigations in Quantico. She quickly rips the envelope open.

_'Dear Ms. Mars,_

_The Federal Bureau of Investigation's internship program is a very selective program. Every year, we are forced to turn away very qualified candidates due to the number of applications. After careful consideration, we regret to inform you that we are unable to offer you a position in our internship program._

_Each of our applicants was reviewed carefully and on an individual basis, and many factors were taken into account. We are aware that this decision may be disappointing to you, but we encourage you to pursue other internship opportunities and wish you every success.'_

_You bastards, _Veronica thinks. _A form letter after two years in the program. This is because of the Harmony shooting. Can this day get any better?_

"What's the matter?" Mac asks, noticing Veronica's expression.

Veronica shakes herself and says, "It's not important. I'll tell you later. We have to focus on the bomb right now."

Mon. 2/9/09: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

Duncan dresses carefully for his hearing. He selects his best Armani suit that was specially pressed for the occasion and what he thinks of as his lucky tie. Jane watches as he struggles to tie a Windsor knot with his shaking hands. Finally, he manages to knot the tie, and he turns to his daughter. He forces a smile and keeps his voice calm, "What do think, Jane?"

"You look nice, Daddy," she says. Jane is wearing her favorite outfit, a purple corduroy jumper with a flowered shirt, and her hair is pulled back into a ponytail.

"Thanks, Jane. We have a few minutes before we have to go. What would you like to do? We could color together, or play with Mr. Boogles." _What I really want to do is scoop you up in my arms, run for the border, and never look back,_ he thinks.

"Tell me the story again." Jane walks over to Duncan and says, "Uppy, daddy."

Duncan obliges, picking Jane up and holding her in his arms. He reminds himself to keep his voice reassuring and not to let Jane hear the panic he's feeling. "Once upon a time, there was a princess and her daddy. There was a mean man trying to scare the princess, and the princess and her daddy had to run away. They wandered all over the world. The princess and her daddy had to be very careful not to tell anyone who they really were, so the mean man couldn't find them." Duncan bounces Jane up and down as he walks around the room. "Finally, the princess's subjects asked her to come back and be their princess again. The subjects said they would make sure the mean man would never hurt the princess. It was very scary, because all the lackeys were asking the princess questions that she didn't understand, and they wouldn't let the princess see her daddy. But the princess was very, very brave and answered all the questions; finally she got to see her daddy again, and everybody lived happily ever after. All the princess' loyal subjects loved her and called her by her real name."

"Daddy, when do I get to know my real name?" Jane asks eagerly. "Please tell me. Please, Daddy!"

_Well, it depends. If I win custody, you're Lilly. If the Mannings somehow...No! It's not possible. Please...please don't let them take my daughter away from me._ Duncan whispers in her ear, "Jane, your real name is...Lilly. You're named after your Aunt Lilly. Even if they call you another name, I want you to always remember that name. You are Lilly–my princess Lilly. I love you, princess." He kisses her cheek and strokes her hair lightly.

Lilly hugs him and whispers back, "I love you, Daddy."

Mon. 2/9/09: Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

"So Rick was trying to trace the source of this malicious computer program?" Leo says.

"Yes, it's called a flirt-bot program. I helped him trace some of the servers that were used to anonymize its origins. He said some of his fellow Cult of the Dead Cow hackers were also working on the problem. They might be in danger too. They were going to try to gather evidence and take it to the FBI," Mac explains.

"Do you know any of the other names in this Dead Cow group?" Leo asks, taking notes.

"No, they all use aliases, since most of their hacking activities are not strictly legal. If you have Rick's computer, I can try to look at his recent contacts for you."

"His computer and all his peripheral devices were stolen in the burglary. We'll have to try to trace his contacts through his internet service provider. And he suspected that this was Russian mafia? What evidence did he have? Did he share any of that information with you?" Leo queries.

"No. I really don't know much about it. I was concentrating on preventing the program from installing itself on my website and helping my friends keep it off their computers."

Leo thinks for a minute, then says, "I think you should stay right here until the FBI can speak with you, Ms. MacKenzie. That bomb was a very professional device, and apparently they were very serious about wanting to hurt you."

Mac looks very scared.

Veronica's phone begins to buzz. She answers the call, hoping it's her father returning her calls.

Duncan says nervously, "Veronica, where the hell are you? You said you'd meet me at the courthouse for the hearing. Please, my parents are driving me crazy. I need somebody sane to help me get through this."

_Shit! I can't believe I almost forgot about Duncan._ "Duncan, I'm sorry. There was...an accident. Mac was almost killed. She's all right, but we're at the sheriff's department." She checks her watch; it's 1:30, a half-hour after she said she'd meet up with Duncan before the 2:00 hearing. "I'm not far away. I'll meet you at the courthouse in ten minutes." She hangs up and turns to Mac. "I have to go. It's, you know...the hearing."

Mac nods. She draws Veronica aside and whispers, "What about Gory? Should we tell about Gory? You could be prosecuted for stealing that hard drive. And your dad...for covering it up."

"Let me work on that. Just...tell them everything else. Maybe you can say that we heard a rumor that Gory was connected. That's certainly true," Veronica says.

Mac nods again. "Veronica, be careful. If it was Gory..."

"I know." _I'm going to have to tell my dad the whole story about Jake Kane's hard drive,_ she thinks. As Veronica leaves, she dials her father's cell again, but gets no response.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Innocent Suffer, The Guilty Go Free  
(Part Two)**  
Wallace locates Shawn; Duncan makes a  
statement to the press; Leo works the  
arson case; Logan reacts to Duncan's  
press conference.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield.Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Celeste Kane: Lisa  
Thornhill. Jake Kane: Kyle Secor. Katerina:  
Katherine Heigl.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE: "THE INNOCENT SUFFER, THE GUILTY GO FREE" (PART TWO)

Mon. 2/9/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Wallace cradles the phone and holds his head in his hands. He's been prepared for the probability that Candice's brother was dead, but still the phone conversation with the police department in Glacier, Washington has upset him. They had a John Doe from last year, with an obviously forged ID in the name of Chris Claremont. The cause of death was a gunshot to the head, and the body was found in the nearby national forest by several hikers.

The fax machine rings, and Wallace waits for the promised photo from the Glacier Police Department. The face on the fax is distorted by death and violence, but Wallace notes grimly that it's a match for the photo Candice provided him. He picks up the phone to call her, but he realizes that he needs to deliver this bad news in person and hangs up. He shuts down the computer and packs up to leave the office, thinking all the while how to tell her and wishing there was a way to make this easier for her.

Mon. 2/9/09: Balboa County Courthouse, Neptune, CA

After a lengthy hearing, Duncan emerges from the courthouse onto the steps where multitudes of reporters have gathered. He holds onto Veronica's hand as if it's a lifeline. His parents follow closely along with Duncan's legal team. The reporters begin to shout questions; Duncan holds up his hand and says, "I'm going to read a prepared statement."

The reporters quiet down. The only sounds are the clicks and whirrs of recording devices and cameras.

Duncan begins to speak nervously. "My name is Duncan Kane. Three years ago, I left Neptune with my daughter. My daughter's mother asked me to do this to ensure the safety of our daughter. Today, I signed an agreement that gives me amnesty in the matter of this kidnapping, and I surrendered custody of my daughter to Child Protective Services. Although I believed that my daughter was my biological daughter at the time I left Neptune, it has been proven that she is not my daughter. DNA tests show a strong probability that my daughter was in fact fathered by her mother's father, Stewart Manning. We believe that DNA tests will confirm that abuse was going on in the Manning household. I intend to try for permanent custody of my daughter, and I will devote my life to getting her back and adopting her. I ask that you respect my family's privacy in this difficult time."

Duncan's attorney takes his place and says firmly, "There will be no questions at this time."

Duncan turns to Veronica and hugs her, his shoulders shaking, obviously weeping. The videocameras focus on the two hugging. The reporters call out questions despite the attorney's pronouncement. "Why did Meg lie to you?" "Tell us about your plastic surgeries!" "How are you going to get custody of your daughter?" "Did you know about the incest?"

Duncan holds onto Veronica as they press through the crowd, followed closely by Jake and Celeste and Duncan's attorneys. When they reach the waiting limo, Duncan, Veronica, Jake, and Celeste get in; the attorneys tell Duncan to try not to worry–everything will be all right–and they send the limo on its way.

In the limo, there is a deathly silence. Celeste stares grimly out the window at the throngs of reporters; Jake grasps his son's hand firmly and gives it a shake. Veronica knows the Kanes well enough that she decides not to say a word. The limo drops Jake and Celeste at their Pemberton estate mansion and turns back toward downtown and the Neptune Grand Hotel. After Jake and Celeste get out of the limo, Duncan smiles weakly at Veronica; she takes his hand and says, "Try not to worry." He doesn't reply and turns to look out the window.

At the Neptune Grand, hotel security holds off the hordes of reporters while Duncan and Veronica exit the limo. They hurry to the elevators and make it up to Duncan's room without any confrontations with reporters. As Duncan slips his keycard into the lock on his room, the door across the hallway opens. "Daniel?" a blonde woman asks.

Veronica remembers seeing this woman before in the hotel lobby, and she asks, "Have we met? You seem familiar."

"I don't believe so. I'm Katerina Beversdorf; I've made Daniel's acquaintance recently." Katya strides over to Duncan and kisses him on the cheek. "Are you all right? I saw you on the news. I wish you had told me more about your legal problems. I guess...I guess I should call you Duncan now."

Veronica frowns at this interloper.

Duncan says, "Thanks for being there today, Veronica."

He looks at Katerina, and Veronica realizes this woman has been comforting Duncan._ How do you feel about this, Veronica? Duncan has someone else to cling to now. That was fast._ Finally, Veronica breaks the uncomfortable silence, saying, "Well, I guess I'll be in touch, Duncan. Call me if you need anything." She turns around quickly and leaves. As she waits for the elevator, she sneaks a peek behind her and sees Duncan and Katerina disappearing into his suite. Veronica pulls out her phone and tries to reach her dad one more time, but the call goes to voicemail again. _What the hell are you up to, Dad?_

Mon. 2/9/09: Somewhere in the United States

After finishing his shift at the soup kitchen, Logan decides he's willing to risk a meal in a restaurant. He hasn't gotten a second look since he's been in this town, and the prospect of another tuna sandwich in the room is just too depressing tonight. He enters a greasy spoon that appears to be a favorite of the local residents. Despite his altered appearance, he still feels prominently conspicuous as he waits to be seated.

Logan scans the menu and decides to go with the diner's strengths: a deluxe cheeseburger and fries. He notices a television screen running the latest news headlines from CNN, and, despite himself, he begins to watch the news of the world. Logan has polished off his cheeseburger and most of his fries when he sees a lurid graphic on the television screen: 'Kane Heir in Custody Battle'. Logan forgets to eat as he watches Duncan, holding Veronica's hand, giving a statement to the press. _Incest? Oh my god. Poor Meg._ Then he sees Duncan hugging Veronica; he feels as if his world has cracked in two, and he knows he has only himself to blame.

"Sir?"

Logan realizes the waitress has been trying to get his attention.

"Sir, can I get you anything else? Some dessert?"

His lips seem to be unable to form words. He croaks out, "No thanks." He throws a twenty on the table, saying, "Keep the change," and he gets the hell out of the diner. The waitress stares at him as he hurries out; she looks down at her large tip and shrugs.

Mon. 2/9/09: Neptune Sheriff's Department

Leo sits down wearily behind his desk. _Will this day never end?_ The day began with the revelations of the Fitzpatricks' charges being dismissed and then progressed to the attempted bombings. After taking Cindy MacKenzie's statement, he called the FBI, which took her into protective custody. The agent-in-charge mentioned that their Computer Fraud Division was interested in seeing what she could remember of Picket's hacks to trace the flirt-bot and were hoping to learn what tricks the Cult members were using to try to disable the program. Then the Family Court judge contacted him and asked him to arrest Stewart Manning on charges of child abuse. When Leo picked him up, Manning was verbally abusive and adamant that he was innocent and would sue everyone involved for false arrest and slander. At one point, Leo told Manning to shut his foul mouth or Leo would arrange a transfer to the general population at the county jail, where a suspected child abuser might not survive his incarceration.

Now that he finally has a respite from the excitement, Leo shuffles through the deep pile of papers on his desk. A few pages down, he finds that SpyGear has complied with the court order to provide the names of purchasers of the Bug Detector. There are a few purchases in Orange County by the security department of a defense contractor, but the only purchase in Balboa County was made by Mars Investigations a year and a half ago. Leo puts the paper back down on his desk, thinking about his previous observation that the arson seemed to be a professional job.

Leo picks up the phone and dials the registrar at Hearst College. "Yes, this is Sheriff D'Amato. I'm checking on the whereabouts of two students. Can you check your attendance records for me?...I see, most professors do not submit attendance records. Can you check the class schedules then, and I'll speak to the professors directly? The names are Veronica Mars and Wallace Fennel, and the date in question is Tuesday, January 27...Yes, I'll hold." After a short pause, Leo says, "You have their schedules?...The professors' names and phone numbers, please...Thank you, you've been very helpful." Leo calls several professors, who all confirm that Veronica and Wallace were in class that day.

Leo sighs heavily. He had been quite certain that neither Veronica nor Wallace Fennel were involved in this arson. Neither seems to have the experience to carry out such an operation, although Leo ruefully reflects that nothing Veronica does would surprise him anymore. He picks up the phone and dials Keith Mars. "Keith, it's Leo. Something's come up, and I need to speak to you about it. Can you come in to the department?...Yes, as soon as possible. I'd like to clear this up immediately." Leo hangs up the phone, hoping that Keith Mars has an ironclad alibi for January 27.

Late Mon. 2/9/09: Somewhere in the United States

Logan tosses and turns for hours, picturing Duncan and Veronica working together to get custody of little Lilly and falling into each other's arms in need and loneliness. He remembers their intricate plotting to get Duncan and his daughter out of the country safely, and Logan imagines that now they are obsessing together over every possible strategy to win the custody battle. The bitter memories from senior year assail him: Veronica and Duncan in the suite, cuddling and laughing together; seeing Veronica seemingly around every corner at school, wishing he could get away from her, yet still hopelessly wanting her to pay attention to him; desperately asking Veronica for help when he found out about Griffith testifying against him; and Veronica's self-righteous disapproval of his actions with Hannah. Logan finally falls asleep in exhaustion and begins to dream.

_He carries Hannah from the couch into his bedroom at the Neptune Grand. She looks at him adoringly, trustingly, and he kisses her forehead and places her gently on the bed. He removes her tight jeans, already half off from their session on the couch, keeping his eyes on her face. Logan joins Hannah on the bed, and she whispers, "I can't believe I'm here with you, Logan. I've never done this...I don't know what to do."_

_Logan reassures her quietly, "You don't need to know anything; just relax, tell me what feels good." He kisses her shoulder, her neck, then pulls back and removes her camisole and stares at her._

_Hannah looks a little nervous and says, "What's the matter?"_

_"Just looking at you; you're beautiful." He bends to her and kisses her lightly between her breasts, gently moving toward her right nipple; his lips brush against her nipple, and she jumps a little with the shock. "Shhh," he soothes, licking smoothly around her pink tip, letting her get used to the new intensity before he cautiously takes her into his mouth, sucking delicately as she arches slightly against him._

_A small gasp escapes from her lips, and he returns his lips to her neck, nuzzling and murmuring nonsense syllables to reassure her. She trembles a little, and he strokes her hair, calming her. Logan shifts a little and kisses her mouth, insinuating his tongue as he palms her breast lightly, then more firmly. She sighs and presses against him, and he kisses down her neck to her breast again, beginning to tease her nipple with his tongue. Hannah reaches for his head and begins to stroke his hair._

_"Oh my god, this is going to take forever," a voice says, jolting Logan upright. "I forgot how tedious it is to seduce a virgin."_

_Logan looks around in shock to see Veronica sitting, her legs crossed and her arms folded across her chest, in a chair on the other side of the room. She taps her watch, saying, "I don't have all night, you know; I have cheating husbands to photograph over at the Camelot." She points over her shoulder with her thumb toward the window._

_"Veronica, what the hell?" he says, still dazed at her sudden appearance._

_"I know you need my approval, but this is ridiculous," Veronica sighs. She stands up and walks toward the bed. "Move over. Maybe a demonstration will help."_

_Logan thinks that Veronica is going to kiss him, but she sheds her clothes and lays down between him and Hannah. Veronica turns to Hannah and begins kissing her intensely. Veronica mutters, "This is how he kisses me, you silly girl." Hannah looks frightened and is too stunned to push Veronica away. Veronica looks over her shoulder and says, "While I'm helping you out here, do you think you could make yourself useful and stroke my pussy?" She grabs Logan's hand, pulls it around her, and puts it between her legs. Veronica whispers to Hannah, "You'll like it when he does it to you," and begins to kiss her again, teasing Hannah's breast with her fingers. Hannah begins to relax; she kisses Veronica back, stroking her hair and sighing little exhalations of pleasure._

_Logan helplessly begins to caress Veronica, watching, becoming unbearably excited by the scene playing out in front of him. Veronica moves against his hand, murmuring, "That's it." Veronica trails her hand down Hannah's torso and begins to play with her curls, saying, "Just relax, baby, I'll help you so Logan can take care of you." Veronica slips two fingers between Hannah's legs and strokes back and forth, kissing Hannah again. Veronica whispers, "Your pussy feels so good; you're so wet, Hannah." She turns her head toward Logan and winks at him, mouthing, "She's ready for you."_

_Logan groans, "No, Veronica, I want you to stop this. Get out of here."_

_"I hear your mouth saying no, but your cock is saying yes," Veronica retorts, rubbing her ass against him._

_His traitorous cock aches with the need to fuck someone in this bed; he thrusts back against her, and she laughs, meanly. "You'll never be over me, Logan."_

_"Why, Veronica? Do you hate me that much?" he cries helplessly._

_"Oh, Logan, don't be such a girl. You know I'm with Duncan now; you need to move on, too." She kisses Hannah one last time and struggles out from between the two of them. "I guess I'll have to take care of myself while you guys get this over with. Come on, Logan," she snaps her fingers at him, "I don't have all night." When he just looks at her, she walks over to his side of the bed and physically maneuvers him so that he ends up between Hannah's legs._

_"Veronica, I don't know how to do this..." Hannah whispers._

_"Oh for chrissake," Veronica says, exasperated. "Grab his cock, guide it into you." Hannah complies, looking shyly into Logan's eyes._

_Logan tries to pull away from Hannah, crying, "No! Stop this!"_

_Veronica holds him firmly in place, then slaps him on the ass, urging him, "Fuck her, Logan! Come on, let's see if you can fuck me out of your system. How many girls do you have to fuck before you can forget about me?" She plays with her breast and begins to touch herself, watching Logan as he helplessly begins to thrust into Hannah. "There's nothing quite like corrupting a young girl, is there, Logan? It's quite a talent you have; you might even say it's the Echolls family specialty. But Logan?...you've really plumbed new depths this time."_

Logan shakes awake, panting, his stiff erection poking through his shorts. For a moment he can't decide which is worse, Veronica's cruel manipulations in the dream or his arousal from the image of her kissing and fondling Hannah. He breathes in and out as if he has just finished a long sprint, rage and sex and grief all mixed together incoherently. He turns on the light, gets out of bed, and looks at his reflection in the mirror. The memory of Veronica holding Duncan's hand at the televised press conference keeps playing over and over in his mind: it was his worst fear realized, and he knows his own actions probably made it inevitable. _Is she really with Duncan now? Of course she is; she knows how repulsive, how guilty I am._ The self-disgust that confronts him overwhelms him, and he turns away, pulling at his hair, massaging, tearing, pummeling his scalp, willing the nightmare images to disappear. The room seems devoid of air to breathe, and he blindly puts on a pair of sweat pants and flip-flops, grabs his cane, and stumbles out of his room toward the nearby beach.

His knee is aching, but he pushes himself to walk faster than he should, to get to the water's edge as quickly as possible. He gets to the beach and stops short, his chest heaving with exertion and agitation. "Fuck it!" he screams. "Fuck it all to hell, I can't do it." He throws the cane away and begins to wade into the water; his sweats become waterlogged, and he thinks, _Good, that'll speed things up._ The surf is rough tonight, and the wind is bitter, unusually so, and Logan sardonically reflects that hypothermia will probably kill him before he drowns. As he reaches deeper water, a wave knocks him off his feet, and he goes underwater unexpectedly. He bobs up above the surface, spluttering, and wonders when this will become peaceful: _I prefer a quiet demise, thank you very much._ He tries to will himself to stay under, to let a rip current find him and take him away. Logan stays under the water until his lungs feel like they are going to explode, then his body betrays his commitment, fighting for the surface and the necessity of oxygen. "Damn it to hell!" he swears aloud. He decides to just think of Veronica, try to be calm and let the wind and the waves do their job. _I'm sorry,_ he thinks._ I should have left you alone; you deserved better than me, sugarpuss._

"You are such a jackass," her voice rings in his ears. He shakes his head to clear the voice. _No, Veronica. Go away._ "All I know is that I love you, and I've never doubted that you loved me too."_ Veronica, you're wrong. You shouldn't love me. Go away and let me do this._ "You're the best thing in my life. I'm not with Duncan. Come back to me. I love you, Logan."_ Why? Why would you love me? Please go away, Veronica._ "No, I won't allow you to do this! Logan, I love you, I need you, get out of the water NOW!"

He claws his way to the surface and begins to struggle back to shallow water. When he brushes against an underwater rock, he tries to stand but his leg collapses underneath him, and he falls hard against the rock. Grimacing with this new pain, he pushes himself up a little more cautiously and staggers onto the beach. He lays on the sand, shivering, until he realizes that if he's not going to do this, he needs to get warm. He sits up and looks around for his cane; finally spying it a short distance away, he scuttles over to it and pushes himself up to a standing position, and drags himself back to his motel room.


	13. Chapters 36 to 38

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy and Poniesforall. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

This section definitely not appropriate for those under 17.

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Texas Two-Step**  
Veronica tracks down Logan.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX: "THE TEXAS TWO-STEP"

**Two weeks later...  
**  
VERONICA

I'm scared. I'm scared Logan won't come back with me. I'm scared whatever it is that he has to work out for himself means that he's leaving me forever. And...I really need him. My BFF Wallace is helping his new girlfriend with the murder of her brother. Mac is in witness protection, apparently the target of a ruthless Mafia vendetta. And my dad...well, he's been charged with arson. He won't say a word about it to anybody, not to me, not to the sheriff, not even to Cliff. The preliminary hearing is on Friday, and I think he plans to plead guilty. One thing I know is Dad won't last long in general population where he'll be the target for retribution by all the criminals he's put away. Dammit, Logan, I need you! I can't do this alone. And...I need you for my plan to get the charges dismissed. You have to come back with me!!

Tues. 2/24/09 evening: South Padre Island, Texas

When Veronica enters the bar, she sees him right away. He is seated at the bar with his back to her. The bail bondsman she hired to track Logan here in South Padre Island told her that Logan had lost weight, but she is appalled when she sees him. His clothes hang off his body, and his newly dark-brown hair is long and uneven. After rushing to get here, Veronica has a moment of panic and hesitation, and she takes a seat at a table near the door where she can observe Logan. He sits by himself and talks to no one. A girl sidles up to him and starts a conversation, but he waves her off, and the girl walks away disappointed.

"Friend of yours?" A voice startles Veronica out of her reverie. She looks up at a female bartender who adds, "Can I get you a drink?"

"Coke, please. Do you know the man seated at the end of the bar?" Veronica nods toward Logan.

"Can't say I know him...he doesn't talk to anybody. He kind of looks familiar, but I can't place the face. He comes in here every night around this time, for a couple weeks now. Always orders a double scotch, and then he just stares at it for an hour. I've never seen him drink it."

Veronica looks at the bartender in shock. She has been preparing herself to be understanding, supportive, whatever, about Logan's relapsed alcoholism. "He just stares at it?"

"I've seen him raise it to his nose, just breathe in the smell of it, and sigh. Pretty weird. The guy doesn't talk. And no action with the ladies. What a waste. I'd go home with him in a second." The bartender shrugs and leaves to get Veronica's soda.

Tues. 2/24/09 evening: South Padre Island, Texas

Logan knows she's in the bar the moment she walks in the door. He doesn't need to turn around to know that Veronica is there. He's not sure how he knows: perhaps he hears the distinctive rhythm of her breathing that he's memorized in their nights together, or maybe he recognizes the unique scent of her. But the moment that he's been dreading and expecting is finally here; the only question is how will she play it.

He lifts the scotch glass to his nose and inhales deeply. Just the scent of the alcohol sends a rush to every nerve ending. Every cell in his body is tingling, expecting the sweet tendrils of alcohol to come bearing their delicious pain and oblivion. Logan sits here every night to assess his courage and resolve; he stares down his demons and grimly celebrates each victory, adding to the running count of one hundred and eighteen days sober. The man behind the bar is an experienced bartender who knows enough to leave him alone. The few patrons who try to engage Logan in conversation take one look at his expression and move away quickly.

The bartender taps Logan's arm and says quietly, "She's here, Logan." He nods toward Veronica's table.

Logan looks up in surprise. "You know my..."

"For a while now. It's nobody's business but yours. But the woman they show on the TV with you is here in the bar."

"I know. I had a feeling the moment she came in the bar."

"She looks scared. Uh-oh. She's coming over."

Logan closes his eyes, then opens them and says, "Thanks for everything. Thanks for not saying anything."

"Never had a customer who tipped a fifty for a shot before," he replies wryly. "Good luck with her." The bartender steps away and moves to the other end of the bar.

Veronica sits down on the stool next to Logan.

He continues to stare straight ahead and says, "So how mad are you?"

"I just want you to come home. But I'm not going to drag you back. I've known you were here for two weeks."

He turns to her in surprise.

Veronica reaches for his hand on the bar. She brings his hand to her mouth and kisses it gently. "I figured out where you were, and I had someone tail you to see if you were okay. He said you kept to yourself but seemed to be fine. He said you walked on the beach for hours and volunteered every night at a local soup kitchen, then hung out here for a while in the evenings." She presses the back of his hand against her face, hoping, remembering.

He tugs his hand away and, motioning to the full glass in front of him, replies, "I'm not drinking you know."

"I know." She fingers his unfamiliarly dark and long hair and gently teases, "A mullet, Logan? Really, this is taking the concept of disguise a little too far."

He smiles despite himself. "Not a mullet. Way to cut a guy, Veronica." Logan scratches his cheek and looks at her. "What about the beard?"

"Looks very dangerous. Tall, dark and handsome."

"Why are you here now, Veronica? Are you okay? Are the reporters leaving you alone now?" he asks.

"For a while now, yes...Logan, please come back to California. You don't have to be with me if you don't want to."

He stares at her in shock. "Veronica, I saw Duncan's press conference. Aren't you with him again?"

Now it's Veronica turn to look shocked. "Of course not. I love _you_, Logan. But..." she stumbles on the words, "if you don't want to be with me anymore, it's...okay."

"Veronica, it's not that I don't want to be with you–"

She continues intensely, "But I need your help. We need your help. Dad's been arrested. And Logan...I'm quite convinced Hannah wasn't murdered by the Saturday Night Slasher."

Tues. 2/24/09 evening: South Padre Island, Texas

"Let's get out of here. I want you to know what's going on with your dad and what you found out about Hannah." Logan suggests.

When Logan stands up, he grabs his cane, but Veronica is surprised to note that he barely uses it for support. Seeing her stare, he says simply, "I've had a lot of time to work on my physical therapy. It's been good for me; it feels like something positive I can do to make my life better." _Something I can actually control._

They leave the bar, and Logan leads Veronica to the beach. They walk down the sand just above the waterline. Veronica walks on the opposite side of Logan's cane, hoping he'll take her hand, but he doesn't; he stares straight ahead and sets a medium pace.

"What's going on with your dad?" Logan asks after they have walked past another couple strolling on the beach.

"He's been arrested on a charge of arson." Logan turns to her in surprise, and she continues, "He's been very secretive the last month or so. I think he was helping Vinnie Van Lowe with his defense. You remember, I told you I thought Vinnie was forcing Dad to help him by threatening to reveal my involvement in the Manning kidnapping."

Logan nods that he understands.

She continues, "Wallace and I have compared notes. It's something to do with a man named Matt Dannon, who disappeared twenty-five years ago after robbing a liquor store where he was working. I don't know the real story about Dannon, but I know Dad bought a gun and dug up a grave in St. Mary's cemetery. And Mac said she wrote a program for him to hack into a Bluetooth-connected keyboard."

"How does that fit in with the arson?" Logan asks.

"It's something to do with the Fitzpatricks. The building Dad is supposed to have burned down is on a property that is owned by shell corporations controlled by Liam Fitzpatrick. He set fire to a shed that was storing a car. Everything in the shed was incinerated in the fire."

"How do they know your dad did it?"

"He dropped something; it's a device to detect bugs and other electronic surveillance devices. Mars Investigations is the only purchaser of the device in the county. It's the only evidence against him. It was crushed by a vehicle during the investigation, so there's no usable fingerprints on it, but it's an unusual device that would only be used by security guards or police."

"Or private detectives," Logan adds. "I don't understand why you think I can help with this. Do you need money for an attorney or bail? If that's what you need, you know I'd be happy to help."

"No, actually...I was thinking about the story you wrote about the accused murderer paying the deputy to conceal evidence," she replies.

Logan stops short. "You mean–"

"Yes. I want to blackmail Leo into destroying the evidence against Dad. You and I know that the only reason to steal all the copies of the Lilly Kane videotapes was to prevent them from being used in your father's murder trial."

Logan nods, thinking. "And I'm the only person that knows for sure that I got the tapes from Leo. Your dad kept that purposely vague; he said that Leo was only negligent about the safety of the evidence room."

"Dad always liked Leo. Hell, I always liked Leo. I don't want to do this, but I don't see any other way to get the charges dismissed."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Emotional Rescue**  
Veronica and Logan, two emotional  
cripples, deserve each other. Discuss  
among yourselves.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN: "EMOTIONAL RESCUE"

Tues. 2/24/09 evening: South Padre Island, Texas

Logan and Veronica continue to walk along the beach, each lost in their thoughts, worrying about the charges filed against Keith. After a while, Logan asks, "Veronica, what about Hannah's murder? You said you think she wasn't killed by the serial killer."

"I know she wasn't. I got copies of the case files from Mike Fields." She steals a glance at Logan, who frowns at the mention of her ex. She continues, "There are too many discrepancies. Hannah wasn't a habitual drug user, and she didn't have a rap sheet. I don't believe she was really a prostitute. But that's not all. Every other murder besides Hannah's was committed on a night of a full moon. In fact, there's been a murder on every Saturday that was also a full moon."

"You mean the dates of the murders aren't random?"

"Definitely not. But Logan, whoever killed her knew all the details of the serial killers M.O. There were certain things that were held back from the press, and Hannah's killer knew about them."

"So that means..."

"It means someone in law enforcement, or someone who can hack into the FBI's databanks. Mac told me the FBI security protocols are antiquated."

"What's Mac doing looking at FBI computers?" Logan asks.

Veronica sighs. "I forgot, you don't know. The Pi Sigs hired Mac to fix their computers, and she discovered that they had been infected with malware designed to perpetrate identity theft. She was working with another computer hacker, a guy named Rick Picket, on the problem, and they were tracing the incursion back to its origins. And Rick must have discovered something. He was working on the theory that it was Russian mafia, and he was killed. Whoever was behind Rick's murder tried to kill Mac with a package bomb. The FBI put her in protective custody, and she's helping their cybercrime division retrace Rick's investigation. I've had a couple emails from her."

"So I assume the FBI's going to pursue the full moon angle for the serial killer?"

Veronica remains silent.

"Veronica? You did tell the FBI what you figured out?"

Veronica shakes her head 'no'. "If it's someone in the FBI who killed Hannah, this information would alert them."

Logan turns and says, practically shouting, "You can't do this! You've got to stop taking chances like this. Veronica, why are you looking into Hannah's murder anyways?"

She turns away from his angry glare and replies, "I thought you might come home if I solved her murder. Besides, Dad..." She stops herself.

"Dad what? Your dad's mixed up in Hannah's murder investigation too?"

She sighs, knowing she'll have to tell him eventually. "Hannah's mother hired us to investigate the school where Hannah was sent. It's a tough-love school; they use harsh discipline and attack therapy to brainwash the students into becoming complacent little robots. Ms. Denenberg blames them for Hannah's death, because Hannah ran away, and she wants to shut the school down for its excessive practices."

"You mean, she doesn't blame me?" Logan says incredulously.

"No, she doesn't. If anything, she blames herself for letting herself get talked into sending Hannah to the school," Veronica answers.

"...So if Hannah wasn't a prostitute, what was she doing between the time she left Briar Hill Academy and her murder in Los Angeles?" Logan asks.

"That's what I want to find out. Logan, I'm going to go undercover at the school. While I'm collecting evidence about the abuses at the school, I'm going to try to find out everything I can about Hannah's time there. I think someone murdered Hannah to cover up what was going on at the school."

Logan stops walking and faces Veronica, grabbing her arm and forcing her to stop. "Wait, you said Briar Hill was a tough-love school? That's like those wilderness programs where the kids were killed."

"It's pretty bad at the school from everything we found out. We're working with an attorney who will pursue the lawsuit."

"Dammit, Veronica! Once again, you go putting yourself in danger without any thought to the consequences," Logan says angrily.

"I'm going to be wearing a wire so Dad can monitor me at all times, and we'll have another person undercover as one of the security guards. You remember Ryan Kavner right? He's already at the school, laying the groundwork," Veronica explains.

Logan bites off, "I won't allow it, Veronica."

She stares at him furiously and speaks without thinking. "You won't _allow_ it? This from my loving boyfriend who humiliated me by running away and having an impostor pretend to drink and carouse for the benefit of the paparazzi."

"I was trying to protect you!"

"Right, you were protecting me from yourself by abandoning me and embarrassing me! Go to hell, Logan." She spins around and begins to walk away.

"Veronica, wait!" Logan calls. Veronica stops but doesn't turn around. He continues, "I want to help your dad. Keith's been more of a father to me than Aaron ever was."

"It's alright. I'll think of something else to help Dad," she replies, then begins to stride away.

"Veronica, stop!! I said I would help." He hurries after her, limping just a little, and grabs her arm. She finally stops and turns to him. He says, "I'm sorry."

She stares at him.

Logan tries again, "It's hard for me, when you do things that are dangerous. I know, it's who you are, and I know you won't change."

Finally, she replies, "I'm being careful. _We're_ being careful. Dad's being very protective of me."

Logan nods and looks downward, avoiding her gaze. He repeats, "It's hard for me. I just...I want you to be safe."

She says, "I know. I promise, I'm being careful."

They walk in silence for a few minutes, each of them unwilling to express what's on their mind. Finally, Logan asks hesitantly, "Are you...did you get a hotel room?"

"Not yet...I didn't know how you would react to me," she admits.

"You can stay with me, Veronica," he says.

_Not–please stay with me,_ she notes. "All right, I just have a small bag in my rental car."

After they retrieve Veronica's bag, they walk the short distance to Logan's motel. When they enter the room, Veronica wants to tease him about 'slumming it', but she hesitates, feeling the distance that seems to exist between them. She uses the bathroom, and when she returns to the bedroom she's relieved to see that Logan has already undressed and gotten into bed and has turned the light out. She quickly strips to a t-shirt and panties, then pauses, not knowing if she should get into bed with Logan or use the other double bed.

"What's the matter?" he says.

"Did you want...Logan, I don't know what to do. I want to throw my arms around you, but you've barely talked to me since I got here," she says nervously.

He folds the covers back on the bed, and she takes the hint and gets into bed with him. Veronica lies down and stares at the ceiling, maintaining a physical distance from Logan.

He turns on his side and regards her. "I've missed you so much, Veronica."

_You don't act like it,_ she thinks.

Logan continues, "But I'm just not sure...it still seems like the women around me always get hurt, and I don't ever want..." His voice trails off, and he rolls over onto his back.

"Do I get a say in this?" she asks quietly. "You could look at it that all the people around me always seem to get hurt. Maybe I'm the catalyst."

"Veronica, it's not just that. I didn't realize...I never said..." he starts hesitantly. Finally he says it, quickly, like ripping off a band-aid, "I've realized that I'm still angry with you. For leaving me for Duncan senior year–"

"I didn't!" she protests.

"For deserting me when I needed you so MUCH, I was so alone and then...you rubbed my face in it with Duncan and...what the hell is it that you love about him so much anyways?"

"You're still pissed about Duncan? More than three years ago?" she asks angrily.

"Are you telling me he hasn't tried to get back together with you? I saw the way Duncan looked at you in L.A. And he just assumes that you'll put your whole life in jeopardy to save him again. I saw you at the press conference. I saw you holding hands and hugging."

Veronica reflects that now is not the time to mention Duncan's recent fumbling attempts to seduce her. "You scared me back then, three years ago. You still scare me sometimes. It's always so intense with you."

"I can't help the way I feel about you," he says bitterly, raising his voice. "It is intense. We've been through so much."

Veronica's brain is screaming, _Ineedyou Ineedyou stop pushing me away._

He continues, "You're not really understanding. I forgave you for dumping me like that; I tried again with you, and you treated me like crap. You were suspicious and distant, and you pushed me away. You looked for a reason to hate me until you found one."

She hesitates, trying to hold back, then cries helplessly, "Dammit, Logan, I thought we were past all this!"

"You were past all of it. You know what's crazy? I'm still totally in love with you; I'm angry as hell but I still love you. And I'm scared to death that you're ashamed of me, of what I did to Hannah; I'm terrified you're never going to forgive me for that."

She stays silent, looking up at the ceiling with her heart pounding in her ears and her eyes welling up.

"I'm sorry, Veronica. I've just been...thinking about that whole year way too much. That year was about anger and retribution and...shit, damnation. Christ, I tried to corrupt a girl! I'm just...I've been regretting so much, and I know I shouldn't be so angry now, but it's all I've been thinking about." He pauses. "Dr. Friedman said that I never processed these emotions before because I always drank so much to push them away."

"So what are you supposed to do with all these emotions? What does 'processing' them mean?" she asks. "Are you ever going to be able to get past this?"

"I'm trying. I'm...I'm actually doing better, I feel like...I feel like maybe I'm making progress." He's desperate to keep his recent suicide attempt from her, and in truth, since that night, he has felt a little more hopeful. Somehow the clarity of her voice when he was so close to letting go of life has sparked a feeble optimism that has begun to slowly take root for him.

Veronica assesses him for a moment, scared to think that he was feeling worse than what she's seeing now. She asks, "Did Dr. Friedman suggest you leave town?"

"No. I just panicked. I had to get away, and I needed to know you were safe. I knew if you were with me, you'd be a target. Dr. Friedman wants me to come back and deal with this, deal with you." He looks at her. "I'm sure you figured out that I've been communicating with her by disposable cell phone."

She admits, "Yes." She keeps silent until finally she adds tentatively, "Logan, do you think you could stand to hold me in your arms? I've missed sleeping with you, so much. I...I need you to hold me."

Logan's heart breaks to hear her beg for his embrace; he remembers accusing her of never needing him, and he knows how hard it is for her to admit her vulnerabilities. He's helpless to deny her this small request, and he reaches for her and folds her into his arms.

Veronica suppresses a sigh of pleasure, worrying that she is pressuring him too much and will lose this small bit of progress.

When Logan feels her relax against him, he is surprised to feel his body suffuse with warmth and calmness, feelings unfamiliar in their long absence. He pulls her tightly against him and allows himself a small measure of hope.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Headmistress and the Cunning Linguist**  
Makeup sex, like whoa.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT: "THE HEADMISTRESS AND THE CUNNING LINGUIST"

Wed. 2/25/09 morning: South Padre Island, Texas

The next morning, Logan begins to dream.

_He is in the pool at the old Echolls house, lying on an air mattress, soaking up the late afternoon sun. He has a momentary thought that this isn't right, there's no pool anymore, but he shrugs and smiles, enjoying the sun's warmth, not caring about anything today. The water laps at him, lulling him, buffeting him gently. A shadow crosses him, blocking out the sun; he opens his eyes to see his mom. "Logan, be careful you don't get too much sun. Steaks for dinner, okay?" Logan remembers, asshole Aaron is out of town, and Trina is...oh who cares where Trina is. He recloses his eyes and stretches out his arms into the soothing water._

Veronica gradually wakens from a deep sleep. Logan's arms still encircle her, and she realizes that he has a morning erection pressing firmly against her thigh. Stealthily she reaches down to caress him without waking him. He stirs, but does not waken, as she begins to gently stroke him.

_The sun beats down on Logan in the pool. The warm water bathes him, massages him. He hears his mom talking on the phone, something trivial, but for some reason, it pleases him, just to hear her voice murmuring about the details of some party or charity event that she's planning today. He wishes his father would do location work more often. He feels a splash of water on his face and the air mattress rocks gently, and he realizes that someone has joined him in the pool._

Veronica moves down in the bed, ever so slowly, trying not to wake him. She watches his breathing and slides down, continuing her soft strokes as she positions herself at his crotch. As she moves her hand on him, she gently takes him in her mouth, not sucking, just caressing him with her lips.

_Logan feels the air mattress shift as someone props their head on their arms on the side of it. He opens one eye and squints against the bright sun. 'Veronica? What are you doing here?' She just smiles and reaches to caress his abdomen, slipping her hand into his swim trunks. She begins to touch him gently. She says impishly, 'I want to kiss you...there,' and he jerks against her hand, splashing her as the air mattress rocks in the water. She laughs and pulls him off the mattress into the pool. He reaches for her and pulls her underwater with him and kisses her...kisses her...kisses her..._ He feels her mouth on him, _not a dream, not a dream, god, I'm in her mouth..._he opens his eyes and watches her, watches himself disappearing and reappearing as the sensations build. He jerks involuntarily as her tongue hits a particularly sensitive spot, and he groans, saying "God, Veronica..."

She looks up at him, and he brushes her hair back so he can see her face. She rests a minute, looking up at him, then pushes him onto his back and kneels between his legs. Again she bends her mouth to him to suck him with more intensity, and she circles her fingers around him to gently pump him. He grabs the sheets and pushes against the bed with his feet, trying to control himself, trying to extend this feeling. He groans, "I'm going to come, Veronica, I'm coming..." and he reaches for her, to pull her up to his face, but she ignores him, taking him as deeply as she can, loving him, all of him. His cock brushes against the back of her mouth again and again, swelling against the tightness of her lips and fist clasped around him, and Logan loses control, spasming, shuddering; still she holds onto him, swallowing his cum, still sucking gently. He shivers with the exquisitely intense sensation and huffs a quiet moan of pleasure, his whole body a tightly wound spring of ecstacy finding its inevitable release.

Finally she relinquishes his cock from her mouth; Logan exhales a small gasp and grabs her, dragging her up his body. He traps her against him with his arms and looks at her face, searching for answers.

"Logan, please, we're in this together. I want to work on us, together," she finally says. "Please don't push me away anymore. I can't live without you. Let me love you."

He grabs the back of her head with his hand and pulls her to his lips, tasting her and himself, kissing her as intensely as he ever has.

She pulls away and says fiercely, "Don't you _ever_ leave me again. Promise me."

"Oh, this is blackmail," he replies lightly, tangling his fingers in her hair.

"_Promise me!_" she repeats vehemently. "I don't care how angry you are with me. I don't care if you think you're protecting me. I don't want you to run away from me ever again. We protect each other."

He meets her glare and finally acquiesces, "We protect each other."

Wed. 2/25/09 morning: South Padre Island, Texas

A short time later, Veronica has rolled off Logan and is snuggled into his side. He strokes her arm, luxuriating in the softness of her skin. Logan asks, "So...how did you find me?"

"Weevil and I found the beauty parlor where you had your hair dyed. They were still talking about what a crime it was to destroy your natural good looks."

"Oops," he says wryly.

"Then we showed a picture around and found the guy who made your ID and the used car lot where you got the car."

"But it shouldn't have mattered. I abandoned the car and got a new ID."

"I found the car. It was used by some kids who went joy riding." At Logan's expression of horror, she continues hastily, "They weren't hurt. And the authorities didn't seem to know who the car was actually registered to. Don't worry. So that put you in Phoenix at some point. Which is also where you got the cell phones."

"And how did you get that information, Miss Snoop?" Logan says, trying to hide his admiration for her ingenuity.

"When I talked to Friedman about you, she inadvertently looked at her desk drawer, and I knew there was something there about you. Then I broke into her office, found the phone, and got the serial number off it so I could trace where you bought it."

"Ah, so she's the weakest link."

"She seems pretty great actually," Veronica muses. "She likes you, for some reason."

Logan tickles her, and she flinches while continuing, "Mac and Dick checked your academic record online. Dick told her that you were enjoying your classes, and Mac managed to crack your password at UCLA: Sugarpuss71006, the date of the first time we made love, on Catalina Island."

He looks at her remembering the sweetness and hope of their first time; he brushes the back of his fingers across her cheek in a gentle caress.

She continues, "So we realized you had some submitted some coursework."

"Again, Friedman's fault. She arranged for extensions with my professors and convinced me to try to do some schoolwork from here."

"Well, I'm glad she did. Mac was able to get copies of your emails off the university server, and the internet headers told us you sent the assignments from internet cafés in Texas. Austin and San Antonio, to be exact. Now it was actually sort of dumb to use two different cities; if you had used one, I would have concentrated on that city." Logan pinches her lightly, frowning. "Ow! Since you used two different cybercafés in two cities, I decided you weren't in either city. I drew a circle around the two cities, then I went to see Dick and Enbom. I was pretty sure you were somewhere by the water, and Dick agreed you wouldn't be inland. Actually, what he said was, 'The dude's cactus-juiced, but he'll totally be jonesin' for a pounder.' Then Enbom said he told you about going to South Padre Island for Spring Break one year; he said it was lame compared to Cancún or Montego Bay. But I thought South Padre Island in the off-season sounded perfect for a man trying to lie low and avoid the media. So I hired someone to check here, and they found you."

Logan rolls them over so that he is lying on top of Veronica. "I can't escape you, can I?" he says intensely.

"No...and I wish you hadn't tried. You scared me, Logan," _and pissed me off, but we won't go there,_ she thinks. Aloud, she continues, "Why did you really run away from me?"

He closes his eyes, refusing to look at her.

"Logan, please. Tell me; we won't be okay if we don't talk about it," she begs him, caressing his face.

Finally he opens his eyes and says, "I've never been able to live up to your expectations. I told myself I was running away to protect you...but I think I left because I was sure you were going to tell me I blew it again. I...I couldn't stand to wait around while you decided whether I was...the bastard who caused Hannah's death. The media was telling you that, day and night."

"You didn't cause her death. Logan, I told you about the school. Her father is the one who caused her death by sending her there. And I told you, I don't think the Slasher killed her. Something else is going on here." She looks up at him and strokes his face. "Please believe me. I love you, Logan. It's my fault that I always pushed you until you failed me. I know...I know you're not perfect but neither am I," she says, kissing him. "Do you believe me, that I love you and want to be with you?"

He finally nods, and she kisses him again. "I've missed you so," she whispers. She parts his lips with her tongue, tasting him, reacquainting herself; she presses herself against him, feeling the growing stiffness of his cock against her belly.

He's fraught with uncertainty; his body is responding to her proximity, but he is frightened and nervous. Veronica senses his fear, and she touches his face, fussing at the unfamiliar beard and mustache and saying quietly, "Let me love you; just let me be with you." He is aching with the need for her; her early-morning attentions to him have only stirred desires that he's been trying to ignore for too long. Logan kisses her tentatively, then more passionately as she helplessly arches into him. She reaches down to stroke his cock, and he shudders under her touch.

"Such a brazen hussy," he murmurs, trying to stave off his trepidation. His heart pounding, he bends to her, kissing her neck where he knows it drives her crazy. "I always knew you were warm for my form, Veronica Mars." He sucks on her neck; she moans aloud, and he feels it in the core of his being.

"Shut up and make love to me..." she pants. She pulls off her t-shirt and panties and reaches for Logan.

"So bossy..." he replies. He grabs her hands, intertwining his fingers in hers, and kisses down her throat, dragging his tongue between her breasts. Logan watches her face as he moves to her left breast; he flicks her nipple just once with his tongue, and she gasps. "Mmm," he comments, beginning to torment her with his tongue; she writhes underneath him, and he latches on, sucking at her intensely.

"God, what are you doing to me..." she cries.

_It's what you do to me,_ he thinks. "I'm making up for lost time," he says aloud, sucking again, forcing her to once again arch up against him. He lets go of her hand so he can bring his hand down to her pussy. She presses against his fingers eagerly, and suddenly he laughs, a genuine laugh that he thought would never escape his lips again.

Veronica hits him lightly on his back and moans, "Don't laugh at me!"

_You don't understand,_ he thinks, _you don't know..._ He whispers intensely, "I'm not laughing at you; I love you. I love the way you look right now." Logan strokes her nub back and forth, watching and feeling her arousal, thinking,_ this is heaven; I almost threw this away_. He gently nips her nipple as he fucks her with his fingers; she presses her body against him again, and he withdraws, causing her to moan in disappointment. He kisses her lips gently, saying, "I'm not done with you yet", and begins to kiss his way down to her pussy. He's never seen her so excited, yet so relaxed, under him, and he wants to savor it: suck her, lick her, fuck her until they merge together as one. When he reaches her crotch, he urges her legs apart and parts her beautiful folds, admiring and adoring her. Logan bends to her and licks her gently. He exposes her nub and begins to lap at her with a steady soft rhythm, allowing her to anticipate and appreciate his tongue's strokes; she begins to move against him, trying to increase the pressure and speed, but he keeps his pace constant and thrilling, taking his time, letting her build slowly and inexorably.

He holds her firmly in place; she cries out, "Please...Logan, please..." Logan continues his relentless assault on her as she begins to throb and thrash underneath him; when she begins to quiver strongly, he moves down to fuck her with his tongue, soaking up her cum, burying his face in her as she quakes helplessly against him.

When her thrashing begins to slow down, he moves between her legs and positions himself; he thrusts his greedy cock in her, and she gasps at the renewed intensity. He reaches for her breasts, thinking, _god I want it to be so good for her;_ he palms her, rolling her nipples between his fingers trying to make it unbearably, impossibly wonderful for her, trying to bring her to the brink again. He fucks her slowly, over and over, concentrating on making it last, creating a heaven on earth for her too. When he feels himself starting to come, he stops and withdraws, whispering, "Trust me." He reaches down and drags his thumb hard across her clit, consciously slowing his breathing as she watches his face, wondering at the interruption; she caresses his chest, asking breathlessly, "Logan?" "Trust me," he repeats, letting himself calm a little more while he strokes her. Then he suddenly pushes his cock in again, making her exhale loudly.

This time he fucks her fast and hard; she is almost crying as she comes around him, and he lets himself come with her, plunging his full length in as far as possible, feeling her clenching around him. He is shaking along with her, and he kisses her mouth as she convulses and wraps her legs around him, drawing him in, trying to take all of him inside. He holds onto her and vows never to leave her again.

A tear streaks down his cheek, and Veronica feels the wetness against her own cheek. She kisses the tear from his cheek and looks at him. "Logan..." she tries. "What..."

He shakes his head in response and presses his face against her, hugging her to him. She strokes his hair as the tears begin to run down his cheek unchecked; at last he whispers in her ear, "I'm glad you found me."

* * *

cactus-juiced: surfer slang for experiencing an injury that leaves one unable to surf  
jonesing: slang for having an unfulfilled desire; comes from drug lingo  
pounder: surfer slang for a hard-breaking wave  
Sugarpuss71006: See my story, "Friction Is Our Friend", for Logan and Veronica's first time, on Catalina Island. Yeah, I'm a self-promoting whore. www•fanfiction•net/s/4079519/1/FrictionIsOurFriend


	14. Chapters 39 to 41

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution.

**A/N: Have I told you lately about my beta readers, Kazy and Poniesforall? They are awesome friends! I'm not sure they knew what they were getting into when they agreed to this; they've put tons of time into this fic. Not only do they catch most of my mistakes, they hold my hand when I'm feeling like the fic is an epic suckfest, and they insist that I keep working to do my very best. Any errors at this point are my responsibility.**

This section definitely not appropriate for those under 17.

* * *

Previously on Veronica Mars: The Year of Living Dangerously Part Two

vanessagalore•livejournal•com/37908•html

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•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Mile High Club**  
Veronica and Logan fly home.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE: "THE MILE HIGH CLUB"

Wed. 2/25/09: Brownsville, TX to San Diego, CA

When they arrive at the Brownsville airport, Veronica is surprised when Logan asks for two coach seats for their flight back to San Diego. She looks at him quizzically as they leave the counter, and he says, "I've been living among the common folk for a while now, and there's nothing wrong with coach. And it's less likely we'll be recognized." She nods in agreement, and they head for the security checkpoint. They are just in time for boarding to begin, and they join the line to enter the jetway. Veronica feels Logan's eyes upon her, and she asks nervously, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I've just...I've really missed you. I've missed seeing you all the time; you don't know how much I thought about you," he replies. She puts her arm around his waist, and he puts his arm over her shoulders.

The first leg of their trip is a short flight to Houston; the flight is crowded but uneventful, although Veronica notices that Logan becomes nervous when another passenger appears to be staring at him. He calms visibly when he realizes that the woman is merely trying to get the attention of a fellow traveling companion.

In Houston, they have to hurry to make their connection. Once on board, they take a breath and look at their boarding passes. Their seats are in the last row in the cabin. Thankfully, the flight is not sold out, and there are plenty of empty seats; they are the only two in their row. After a short wait for clearance from the tower, the plane takes off. The head flight attendant gets on the microphone and explains the emergency procedures, then says apologetically, "Ladies and gentlemen, we're sorry to inform you that we're experiencing some minor problems with our climate control thermostat. I'm afraid it might become uncomfortably cold in the cabin during our flight to San Diego. We'll be passing out blankets to any passenger who wants one."

Logan takes two blankets and solicitously spreads one over Veronica and then another over himself. He keeps looking at her, thinking about all his vicious and angry fantasies while they were apart; he just wants to erase them, to make new memories to fill up the dark recesses of his mind. He closes his eyes momentarily, vowing to make love to her every moment that she will let him. Logan remembers what Dr. Friedman told him. _'Decide to be happy...even if you have to pretend to be happy. Let the joy come into your life.'_

He feels Veronica shiver beside him, and Logan opens his eyes and looks over at her. "Are you okay?" he inquires.

"Yeah, I'm just a little cold." Pulling the blanket more tightly around herself, Veronica thinks that Logan still seems very off to her; she is starting to realize just how bad it was for him while they were apart. _I wish I knew how to help him...I wish it was as easy as shutting down Briar Hill Academy and finding Hannah's murderer, but I'm afraid...I'm afraid it won't be enough._ She keeps remembering him weeping that morning when they were lying together. "I still can't get used to the way you look," she comments.

"I know...it scares me a little when I look in the mirror," he replies.

She smiles back at him, and for a second all he can think about is waking up to see that beautiful mouth on him that morning, brushing her hair back so he could see her cheeks hollowed out with her efforts and her eyes closed in concentration–concentrating on making him feel good. _God, I just wanna...I just wanna..._ He breathes in deeply and adjusts himself slightly in the seat.

When the seat belt sign goes off a few moments later, he pushes up the armrest between them and, leaning over, whispers into her ear, "I know how I can warm you up." He slides his arm under the blanket and unlocks her seat belt. He begins caressing her stomach, insinuating his fingers under the waistband of her jeans.

Veronica slaps his hand and says, "Stop that! What is wrong with you?" But she is rejoicing: this is more like the Logan she knows and loves, and she grins at him.

He whispers again, "I can still smell your pussy on my mustache. I'm so horny for you right now..."

She looks at him startled, and he kisses her intensely, tonguing her so that she feels it throughout her body. She does faintly smell the scent of herself on his facial hair, and she blushes. When he releases her from the kiss, looking deeply into her eyes, she comments, "You're shaving the moment we get back."

"Unh-unh," he replies, "I'm keeping the cum-catcher. I would have grown a 'stache a long time ago if I had known...God you look hot right now," and he presses his mouth to hers again before she can breathe in to protest. Under the blanket, he forces his hand between her legs and begins to stroke her through her jeans._ I want to forget...I want to forget about being angry at her. I want to make new memories..._

The stewardess comes by and asks if they need anything. Logan smiles at her and says, "We're doing just fine," continuing to caress Veronica's crotch. When the stewardess leaves, he whispers into Veronica's ear, "It's a good thing I have this blanket over me. I have an incredible boner right now."

"Logan!" she whispers back. "We're in public, stop this!" Still, she wriggles a little in the seat, giving him better access.

He puts his mouth right on her ear and says, "You know you love it. I bet your panties are soaked through right now." His mustache tickles her ear, and she can't help but think of him smelling her on his facial hair. "Hmmm, let's see what we have here," he comments, and he pops the button on her jeans and quietly draws her zipper down.

She gasps a little when he puts his fingers under the waistband of her panties, and he whispers, "Shhh, you don't want the whole plane to know I'm making you come. You know you're just as hot for me as I am for you." She struggles to keep quiet as he fondles her curls, dipping lower and lower, teasing her with his finger. He presses down further and swipes his finger across her damp slit. "I was right, sopping wet," he comments, and pulls his finger out from between her legs and out from under the blanket. She turns to look at him, and he puts his finger in his mouth and sucks her juices off, staring into her eyes.

Veronica thinks she's going to scream if he doesn't put his hand back on her pussy. "Logan?" she asks.

"Yes, m'dear?" he replies.

She says, "Please, put your hand back."

"Oh really, Veronica? What is it exactly that you want me to do?" She blushes again, and he chuckles. "C'mon, Veronica, what do you want?"

She twists her head and whispers into his ear, "Touch my pussy please." He bends his head and begins to kiss her neck as he puts his hand back under the blanket. He rests his hand on her pussy, but doesn't move it. She looks at him furiously, and he shrugs, saying, "You're going to have to be more specific, sugarpuss."

He tilts his head, giving her easier access to whisper in his ear, and finally she comes up with, "Rub your fingers on my...on me."

"On what? I'm confused," he says teasingly, as he pats her pussy gently under the blanket.

"You asshat," she says intensely into his ear. "Stroke my clit, goddammit."

"I thought you'd never ask," he says smugly, and begins to flick his finger over her nub as he bites her neck. She closes her eyes, trying desperately to keep quiet, while he caresses her firmly underneath the blankets. He whispers, "I'm pretending my mouth is on you. You're sitting on my face, and I'm licking you, getting your cum all over my face. Tasting you, god, you taste so good. You're riding me like a cowgirl, screaming and carrying on while you gush all over me. Mmmm, I'm tonguing you so hard right now." He presses his fingers into her more firmly, and she jolts against his hand, then with an effort keeps her body still under his hand's ministrations. "That's my girl, you're going to come for me, you want to scream my name, mmmm, I'm licking you, baby, licking you, fucking you with my tongue," He begins to lap at her earlobe; she moans just a little, so that only he hears her, and presses her pelvis into his hand. He looks around to see if they have attracted any attention, but everyone seems to be oblivious. Logan reaches his other arm around her and, underneath the blanket, pushes her jeans and panties down to give himself better access.

"God," she whispers, "You are a fucking pervert."

"Damn straight," he whispers back, then plunges his fingers into her and begins to fuck her pussy, keeping the pressure of his thumb on her clit.

She closes her eyes again with the effort of remaining quiet and begins to tremble and quake, insanely thrilled that someone might notice what they're doing in the rear of the plane. "Kiss me so I don't scream," she gasps, and he obliges, swallowing the sounds of her release for her.

She begins to calm down a little, and Logan looks around again, and notices the restrooms adjacent to their row. "Inocupado, baby, let's go," he whispers, motioning with his head.

"What?"

"You know, the Mile High Club, let's do it. Come on..."

She hesitates, then nods, saying, "All right. You go first."

He stands up, edging out from the aisle, keeping his erection obscured by facing the back of the plane, and enters the restroom. A minute later, Veronica, her face still flushed, pulls up her panties and jeans, throws off the blanket, and follows him.

He throws her against the doorway, bruising her mouth with a savage kiss as he throws the lock to the "Occupied" position. Logan grinds his body against her, and she gasps at the feel of his erection. His tongue fills her mouth as he unbuttons and unzips her jeans again. She kicks off her sandals, then he grabs her ass and pulls her over to the sink, lifting her up onto the counter and removing her jeans and panties in one smooth motion. Logan spreads her legs wide as the jeans hit the floor with a soft thump, and he positions himself between her legs, kissing her throat and pushing her shirt and bra up. She reaches for his belt, hurrying to undo it. She fumbles, and he chuckles at her distress, helping her to get it undone with one hand while keeping the other firmly ensconced on her breast. Panting in her excitement, she pushes his jeans down.

"Going commando?" she comments when she realizes he's not wearing his usual boxers.

"The better to fuck you, little girl," he replies. "Besides, I didn't know you were going to track me down today; I needed to do laundry."

She laughs and grabs his cock in her hand, pulling his ass toward her with her other hand. "So Mr. Big Talker, let's see what you got. C'mon, fuck me already, if you can handle it," she snarks, stroking his cock roughly.

"Oh you are definitely gonna get it," he replies, pushing forward to enter her. Just then, the plane hits a pocket of turbulence and dips to the left. Veronica giggles as his cock totally misses her entrance when Logan loses his balance. Logan grabs her tightly and, repositioning himself, thrusts in to his full extent, and Veronica throws her head back, panting and moaning.

She wraps her legs around him, trying to pull him in, and he begins to fuck her intensely, pounding and clutching her to him. They hear a "ding" over the loudspeaker, and Veronica says, "Shit! Hurry!" He speeds up, and she buries her face in his chest, muffling her cries of passion with his body. They hear over the loudspeaker, "The captain has turned on the seat belt sign. Please return to your seat and fasten your seat belts." Logan thrusts as she hitches herself desperately against him. "God, Logan," she pants; she frantically begins to touch her clit, trying to keep her hand in place while Logan pumps violently in her, swaying as the plane dips twice.

There's a knocking on the door, and the stewardess says, "Excuse me, you need to return to your seat. Right now. Are you all right in there?"

"Just...just one second, I'll be...right out," Veronica gasps out, as she begins to tremble. Logan smirks and thrusts several times more, ejaculating as she grabs onto him, desperately shaking and panting.

The flight attendant knocks again, "You have to return to your seat."

"Okay! I'm coming now!" Veronica replies tremulously, as she bucks one last time against Logan.

Logan pulls out, planting a quick kiss on her; she hops down from the sink, bends down to the floor, and pulls on her underwear and jeans. He stands behind the door as she leaves. Veronica says to the flight attendant, "Sorry about that, something I ate I guess." The attendant says, "Yeah, right; your friend too, please," and Veronica blushes a deep red as Logan emerges from the restroom. A couple passengers turn to stare as the two retake their seats in the last row.

When they are seated, the flight attendant checks that they have secured their seat belts and finally leaves, giving them a sour glance. "Stay in your seats, please," she instructs them.

Logan laughs and tickles Veronica; with a flaming red face, she hisses at him, "I'm going to kill you."

He kisses her cheek and whispers back happily, "Love you too, Veronica Mars." _New memory...mission accomplished. I'm never going to forget this._

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**A Desperate Plan**  
Veronica, Logan and Keith discuss  
Veronica's plan.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason  
Dohring. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FORTY: "A DESPERATE PLAN"

Wed. 2/25/09 evening: San Diego to Neptune, CA

After their escapades in the rear of the plane, both Logan and Veronica fall asleep, exhausted from the emotionality of their reunion. Veronica starts awake when the flight attendant touches her to tell her to put up her seat back for landing. Logan stirs next to her, then looks over to her with a sheepish grin.

They make their way to Veronica's Saturn, and Veronica drives them back to Neptune. "You're going to stay at the apartment, right?" she asks, glancing at Logan.

"For now," he answers. "Since I'm back, I might as well start going to classes again. I want to see if I can salvage the semester."

"But you'll stay through the weekend?" Veronica insists.

"Yes, sugarpuss."

"Good. Logan, I..."

"What?"

"I didn't realize until you left...It wasn't until you left that I realized how much I need you," Veronica says.

Logan thinks, _That's the second time in two days that she admitted she needs me._ He reaches across to caress her arm, and she steals a glance at him, smiling wanly.

"What are the charges against your dad?" he asks.

"Second-degree arson, since the building was unoccupied, but with an enhancement for the use of an accelerant. First-degree criminal mischief. They set a bail of 250,000 dollars. Cliff said we were lucky they gave him bail at all, since he would be more skilled at creating a new identity and fleeing the country than most defendants. The judge was an old friend of Dad's," she concludes.

"So what are you planning to do?"

"I want to talk with Dad about the investigation into the disappearance of Lilly Kane sex tapes. And then, I want the two of us to talk with Leo and threaten to take what we know about the tapes to the press. I don't think he would survive a recall election."

"So would Deputy Sacks be in charge if Leo was recalled?" Logan jokes.

"Ooh, scary thought." She looks over at Logan again. "Dad's not going to like this plan. He's never spoken a word to me about the arson; he won't discuss it, just says, 'No, Veronica, leave it alone.' Cliff said he refused to make a statement when he was arrested."

"Let me see if I understand this. Vinnie has the goods on you–you helping Duncan flee the country three years ago. So Vinnie blackmails your dad into doing something; we're not sure what. Then we blackmail Leo into dropping the charges against your dad, because we know he took a payoff from my dad to steal the videotapes. It's a fucking circle-jerk."

Veronica smiles wryly, "It's the Neptune specialty."

Privately, Logan muses, _Circle-jerk doesn't even cover it. It's goddamn Dante's Inferno. Maybe Neptune should adopt a new slogan, 'Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.' _He scoffs aloud at his satirical whimsy, and Veronica glances at him. He says, "I hope this works."

"I know. I've been trying not to think about the retribution Dad would face in prison from all the crooks he's put away." Her voice trembles a little, and Logan realizes just how scared she is.

Wed. 2/25/09 evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

When Veronica and Logan enter the apartment, Keith stands up and strides over to Logan. He starts to shake Logan's hand but changes his mind, enveloping Logan in a bear hug. Keith says, "Logan, it's good to have you home."

Logan is visibly shaken by Keith's greeting. "Keith, I..." _Home. This is home._

"But don't do it again, okay? You really upset Veronica." Keith claps Logan on the back and asks, "Hey, did they feed you guys on the plane?"

Veronica says, "I could eat."

Logan stifles a laugh. Veronica glares at him.

Keith pulls a tray of lasagna from the oven. "From Mama Leone's, Veronica's favorite restaurant."

The three of them stuff themselves. Logan finds the situation to be slightly surreal after his time away. Veronica puts a second helping of lasagna on his plate when he finishes and gives him a stern look. He sighs a little and digs in. She smiles, grabbing his knee under the table.

Veronica and Keith keep up the small talk throughout dinner. Logan feels more like an audience than a participant, never volunteering unless he is addressed directly. _A stranger in a strange land,_ he thinks. _No one's talking about Keith's preliminary hearing on Friday,_ he realizes. _No one wants to think about it._

When there is a lull in the conversation, Logan finally asks another question that's been on his mind. "What's going on with Duncan?"

Veronica glances at him and says, "He's going through the custody process. First, they had a dependency hearing that made Lilly a dependent of the court and placed her in a temporary foster home. Then there will be a hearing where the interested parties will present their case plans for Lilly. They let Duncan see Lilly for an hour every day, a supervised visitation. Now that bastard Stewart Manning is trying to assert his rights as the biological parent. He's out on bail waiting for his trial on incest charges, and the creep is petitioning the court for visitation rights. Cliff says he doesn't have a chance in hell; there's case law that prohibits a child born as a result of sexual assault from being reunited with the perpetrator of the assault. Mrs. Manning has also filed for custody as the grandparent, but at least she's divorcing Stewart," Veronica concludes bitterly.

"So it's for sure then? Meg's baby was fathered by Stewart Manning?"

Keith nods. "It's a tragedy."

"But...why did Meg say that Duncan was the father?" asks Logan, bewildered.

Veronica says, "We think she was trying to protect her mother. The state may still file charges against Mrs. Manning or try to take the other girls away from her."

"I wish Meg had trusted you. If she had, maybe the whole mess could have been avoided," Logan comments.

"Meg was desperate, and I ruined her plan. I understand now why she was so bitter toward me when I got back together with Duncan," Veronica explains. She notes that Logan almost winces when she talks about her relationship with Duncan, and she rubs his knee under the table, trying to reassure him. She decides to change the subject.

"Dad, I wanted to ask you about something."

"Sure honey, what's up?" Keith notes Veronica's grim expression and adds, "Veronica, I told you, I don't want you to get involved–"

Veronica interrupts him. "Dad, could you tell me again, what happened when you interviewed Leo about the missing Aaron Echolls videotapes?"

"What?" Keith frowns. _I wasn't expecting this. I was expecting a lecture about fighting to the end and trying every tactic to get off. I'm glad she got Logan to come back; at least she won't be alone after I plead guilty._

"Just tell me exactly what happened when you investigated the theft of the Aaron Echolls sex tapes...from the very beginning," Veronica repeats.

Keith looks at her quizzically but complies.

_FLASHBACK: In Woody Goodman's office, Woody says, "Keith. I got a call from Sheriff Lamb right before lunch. The Aaron Echolls/Lilly Kane sex tapes have been stolen from the evidence room."_

_Surprised, Keith asks, "All of them?"_

_Woody nods, and Keith presses him, "Original and copies?"_

_Woody replies, "From separate safes, no less."_

_"Is there a sign of a break-in or...?"_

_Woody says, "No. This pretty much has to be an inside deal. Only an employee would have that kind of access."_

_Keith comments, "This is gonna put a huge dent in the prosecution's case."_

Veronica interrupts Keith's story. "So at first, you assumed that the tapes had been stolen to damage the prosecution's case against Aaron?"

Keith says, "Of course. Maybe it comes from being sheriff, but I immediately assumed that the tapes were stolen to try to keep them out of evidence."

"So what changed your mind?" Veronica asks.

_FLASHBACK: Keith is interviewing Leo about the theft of the videotapes. Leo says, "I'm not gonna insult your intelligence, Keith. Don is a fine politician but as a lawman and administrator? Security around here's a joke."_

_Keith comments, "That's odd. He told me security here was quite impressive."_

_Leo says wryly, "He thinks so. He locks himself out pretty often." They chuckle together, and Leo continues, "Listen. Someone must have figured what those tapes would be worth on the open market and..."_

_Keith looks heavenward before grunting._

_Leo asks, "What?"_

_Keith explains, "No, it's nothing, I'm an idiot. I've been so hung up on Aaron Echolls and all this evidence tampering, I never stopped to think what those tapes are worth."_

_"Good celebrity porn is scarce these days," Leo says._

Veronica says, "Wait. First, Leo blamed the theft on poor security in the department, then–"

Logan interrupts, "He plants the idea that the tabloids were behind the theft."

Keith looks from Veronica to Logan and back. "What are you talking about?"

"We think Leo was paid by my dad to steal the tapes," Logan explains.

Keith gapes as Veronica continues, "He figured it would be no big deal to get away with it with Lamb in charge, but when Woody brought you in, Leo realized you were too smart and he'd have to come up with a new plan. He made sure you thought it was someone who intended to sell the tapes to a tabloid. When he got the email from Logan, he figured it was a way to milk a little more Echolls money and obscure the investigation. Logan made it clear in his email that he was going to destroy the tapes, so Leo would still get his payoff from Aaron. Leo's story about his sister was a convenient excuse that he knew would make you go easy on him."

"I don't understand what you're talking about. Why are you so sure that Leo stole the evidence for Aaron?" Keith glances at Logan, knowing that the mere mention of Aaron hurts him.

Logan states, "There would be no reason to steal both tapes if they wanted to sell them to a tabloid. Why not just steal one copy? Why go to all the trouble of breaking into two safes and taking twice as many chances to obtain the tapes? The tabloids could duplicate the tapes if they needed multiple copies."

Keith is stunned. He wipes his brow and says, "I can't believe it. You're right, it's the only theory that makes sense. Leo put one over on me." He looks from Logan to Veronica and adds, "What are you planning?"

Veronica and Logan stay silent.

Keith says angrily, "What are you planning? I don't want you to get involved in this."

"Just like you won't tell me why you set fire to that building!" Veronica replies heatedly.

"Veronica, I want you to stay out of it!" Keith says sternly.

"No," Logan says firmly. "We're helping you. It's why I came back. If necessary, I'll reveal that Leo sold me the tapes, and we'll present our theory. It would destroy Leo's career. If you think they hounded you out of office after Lilly's murder, it's nothing compared to what they'll do if the press finds out Leo made sure that Aaron Echolls would go free."

Resigned, Keith says, "I can't change your mind, can I?"

"No, Dad. We know the arson had something to do with Vinnie. You did it to save me because I was foolish enough to help Duncan flee the country with Lilly. There's no way in hell that we're going to let you go to prison for it," Veronica states, in a tone that says she'll brook no further discussion.

Keith sighs and goes to hug his daughter.

"I love you, Dad," she murmurs. "I know this will work."

Wed. 2/27/09 very late: Sunset Cliffs Apartments, Neptune, CA

Veronica wakes up with a start when she hears a quiet noise from the living room. Logan is still sleeping heavily beside her. She gets out of bed and soundlessly opens the bedroom door; she sees Keith in the kitchen and sighs with relief.

"Sorry, honey," he says softly, "Did I wake you? I couldn't sleep."

Veronica walks over to him and puts her arm around his waist. "Hot chocolate?" she asks, noticing the saucepan filled with milk.

He nods. "Want one?"

"Yes." He adds some milk to the pan and takes another mug from the rack.

"I don't know why I'm so jumpy," she comments.

The milk begins to bubble gently, and Keith removes the pan from the stove and pours the milk into two mugs. In silence, they stir hot chocolate mix into their mugs and walk over to the kitchen island to sit down.

"I'm glad you're up, Veronica," he says, avoiding her eyes, "There's something I needed to talk to you about. I really wish you weren't doing this with Leo, trying to–"

She interrupts, "Dad, I'm not going to let you go to prison. It's all my fault anyways; I know that Vinnie's been blackmailing you into doing something for him. If I hadn't helped Duncan–"

"Shh," he quiets her. "That was so long ago. You were just a kid, and you made a mistake."

Both fall silent, remembering their confrontation from three years ago.

_FLASHBACK: Veronica runs into her room, stopping short when she sees Keith at her desk. He can't bear to look at her; with his voice shaking, he says, "If they take you away...if you're sent to prison..."_

_She replies emotionally, "You read the letters, though, right? From Meg to Child Protection Services? They're about her parents."_

_Keith angrily says, "It's not just YOUR life you're gambling with, Veronica. I would not survive without you. You understand what you've done?"_

_Veronica approaches him, but he refuses to look at her. She says, "We had to do it."_

_"I know you think you did."_

_"We DID!"_

_He finally turns to her and says bitterly, "YOU PLAYED ME, VERONICA!" She freezes under his angry stare, realizing that she has lost something, that her relationship with her father has changed forever. He turns his head again, unable to look at her._

_She says defensively, with a tremor in her voice, "We had to."_

_Quietly, with an unfamiliar coldness, he responds, "I love you. I'll always love you. But I don't know how I'll ever trust you again."_

Veronica looks at her father across the counter and says brokenly, "Daddy, I'm so sorry. I wish...I wish..."

He takes her hand and rubs it, replying, "Ssh, it's going to be okay."

"No, it's not. Whatever Vinnie made you do...it's changed you. I've never seen you drink as much as you've been drinking lately. I know you think you're protecting me, but...If this doesn't work tomorrow with Leo, I want you to tell the truth, whatever it is, and I'll deal with it...Cliff will help us, I know he will–"

Keith interrupts her babbling. "Veronica. You can't go to prison. I'll be all right. It would just be a few years. I want you to listen to me."

"Dad, no–" The tears begin to stream down her face, and she tries to blot them without success.

"Veronica, listen to me." He waits a moment to make sure she's paying attention. "If I go to prison, I want you to give up this apartment and move in with Logan. I know he'll take care of you. You can transfer to UCLA. There's enough money for you to finish school if you transfer there–it's not as expensive as Hearst. And I don't want you to spend your college money on an appeal for me. We're going to do this my way."

"Dad, why won't you tell me the truth about Vinnie, what he's making you do?"

"No! This ends here. I'll survive, if you survive. Will you promise me?" He stares at her; when she drops her head to avoid his gaze, he touches her chin and lifts her head so that she has to look at him. "Promise me, Veronica."

Reluctantly, she says, "I promise." _This has to work tomorrow. I'm going to make it work._

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Shades of Noir**  
Duncan is suspicious of Katya; Wallace  
and Candice at her brother's funeral;  
Logan and Veronica confront Leo.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason  
Dohring. Leo: Max Greenfield. Wallace:  
Percy Daggs III. Duncan 2.0: Chris  
Carmack. Candice Pauling: Toy  
Connor. Katya: Katherine Heigl.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE: "SHADES OF NOIR"

Thurs. 2/26/09 morning: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

When Duncan wakes up, the bed is empty beside him. He walks sleepily out to the living room to find Katya drinking coffee and reading the paper. He sits down next to her and kisses her on the cheek. "You're up early," he comments.

"I woke up, and I couldn't get back to sleep," she explains.

Duncan looks at the paper and sees that Katya is reading a news item about Keith Mars' preliminary hearing on arson charges. He asks, "Do you know Keith Mars? That was his daughter with me after my press conference. I'm...I was very close to her in the past," he finishes lamely.

"I don't know him personally," Katya says smoothly. "Of course I remember the news coverage of your sister's murder and the trial of Aaron Echolls. Neptune has had more than its share of scandals...You must have loved Lilly very much; you named your daughter after her."

Duncan closes his eyes for a moment. "Lilly was...so full of life. She was an intense person; to call her a free spirit doesn't even do her justice. When I found out that I was going to be a father," he glances at Katya, "When I thought I was the father of Meg's baby, I wanted to do something so that my sister could live on."

Katya replies, "She's still your daughter, Duncan. Biology is only part of it; you've raised her."

Duncan nods and changes the topic. "Any more of that coffee?"

Katya says, "There's still half a pot. I'm going to jump in the shower." She caresses Duncan's cheek and goes in the bathroom.

Duncan watches her leave the room. When he hears the shower start, he goes to Katya's purse and begins to dig through it. _The lawyers said that I needed to run a background check on Katerina; I can't take the chance that she's got something in her past that Mrs. Manning could bring up to oppose my custody petition. The senior partner said that all of my associates would need to be vetted to prevent any surprises later on._ He finds Katerina's driver's license and passport and copies down all the information, intending to ask Veronica to run a background check. Duncan picks up the paper, looks at the story on Keith Mars' preliminary hearing the next day, and sighs. _It doesn't look good for Keith. I hope he has something up his sleeve to exonerate himself. Poor Veronica, she must be worried sick._

Thurs. 2/26/09 morning: First Baptist Church, Atlanta, GA

Wallace tries to listen as the friends and family of Shawn Blake eulogize him at his memorial service, but his mind keeps wandering. He thinks about the trip he and Candice made to the small town east of Seattle where Shawn's body was discovered. After Candice officially identified the body from a photo, they arranged for the remains to be shipped back to Atlanta. Wallace queried the detective in charge of the case as to the progress of the investigation. The detective told Wallace that in recent years the national forest just outside of Glacier had become a popular route for methamphetamine smuggling from Canada, and he thought it was possible that Shawn was involved in moving drugs. Wallace asked if any drugs were found on Shawn; the detective shook his head 'no'. Candice was given a bag containing Shawn's effects: a wallet emptied of cash and credit cards; a watch; and a Blackberry device. The detective said they were unable to unlock the Blackberry without a password. Wallace had the distinct impression that the detective was happy to dispose of the case and would not spend any more time on it.

Candice stands up to speak; Wallace squeezes her hand in support, and she looks at him gratefully before walking to the front of the church. Candice tells several stories about Shawn's childhood. Her voice is for the most part strong and steady; however, at times she pauses and gathers herself to continue. Over the past two weeks, as Wallace has helped her with her difficult tasks, she has broken down into tears more than once.

Candice sits back down next to Wallace, and the pastor begins to speak from the lectern. Wallace wishes desperately that he could do more for her; the password-protected Blackberry is the best lead he has to try identify Shawn's murderers. He's already done some research online and found out that three wrong guesses for the password will automatically trigger a complete deletion of the information on the device; Wallace assumes the detective has tried at least once. _Two tries left. I wish Mac was around; she'd know how to hack into the Blackberry._ Wallace decides to ask his faculty advisor, Professor Winkler, if he knew how to get in touch with his old grad student, Leon, the cryptography expert that Veronica busted in the Magneta-corp student ID scam. Wallace had heard that all the kids involved had gotten off easy, with substantial fines going a long way towards keeping their permanent records clean.

Not for the first time, Wallace wishes Keith could help him with the investigation into Shawn's murder. Since Keith's arrest, Wallace has been reluctant to bother him with anything else. He went with Veronica to bail Keith out; Keith refused to talk with them about the charges and told them not to interfere. Wallace discussed Keith's secretive activities with Veronica, but they were unable to determine exactly why Keith would have burned a car and a shed in Ranchita, and Keith sternly insisted that they needed to leave it alone. _Tomorrow's the preliminary hearing; Veronica said she had a plan, but I don't know...it doesn't look good. I don't know what Veronica will do if Keith is convicted._ He makes a mental note to call her tonight to wish them good luck at the hearing.

The entire congregation stands, and Wallace joins them, trying to sing along with the hymn. Candice looks at him, and he puts his arm around her waist, whispering in her ear, "We're going to get through this." She leans against him, and he hugs her tightly.

Thurs. 2/26/09: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Sheriff Leo D'Amato escorts Logan and Veronica into his office and sits behind his desk.

Without preamble, Logan says, "We know you were hired by my dad to steal the Lilly Kane videotapes."

"What? What are you talking about? I thought you were here to talk about Keith Mars' bail arrangements," Leo says strongly, although a quiver in his voice betrays him. He leans back a little in his chair, affecting a calm demeanor.

"We _know_ you were hired by my dad to steal the Lilly Kane videotapes."

Leo purses his lips and says, "Now, look here, Echolls, you might be able to prove that I sold you the tapes, but you're completely off-base, saying that I stole them for your father. The guy's a murderer; why would I want to help get him off?"

"Money. It's always money," Logan answers. "And you knew Lamb would be too stupid to figure out who took them. But then...when Woody Goodman hired Keith, you panicked. You knew Keith would be able to trace the money, and he would be relentless, after what Aaron did to him and Veronica."

Veronica adds, "So you suggested to my dad that the tapes were stolen to be sold to a tabloid, and he fell for it, hook, line, and sinker. He thought you were a good detective, and he let that blind him to the truth."

Leo laughs hollowly. "Veronica, you know I always liked you, but this theory's ridiculous. I stole the tapes in order to sell them to 'The Instigator'. Your bad boy here is talking nonsense."

Logan explains, "There's no reason to steal both copies of the tapes if you just wanted to sell them to a tabloid. One tape would have been worth the same as two. In fact, why even steal them? Just make a copy, return the tape to the evidence room; no one would know they were ever gone. Nope, the only reason to steal all the copies was to destroy the evidence against Aaron.

Trying to deflect, Leo says, "I'm betting this arson had something to do with Vinnie Van Lowe and the Fitzpatricks. Since when is your dad mixed up with the micks, Veronica?"

Veronica says heatedly, "Dad's not mixed up with anybody, and we're talking about you, what you did, and I'm betting the residents of Neptune would be interested to hear our theory."

Leo says, "You don't really know what your dad is capable of, do you, Veronica? In fact, you don't really have any idea what anybody's capable of."

Veronica replies curtly, "I'm pretty sure I'm not capable of setting a murderer free."

"So what are we talking about here?" Leo asks, resigned.

Veronica says, "Most of the evidence against my dad is circumstantial. The only solid evidence is the bug detector that you found at the scene. Maybe Harmony Chase stole the signal detector in the break-in last fall, and you didn't notice it on the police report until just now. Or maybe it gets lost in the evidence room, since we all know that's already happened a couple times when you've been in charge." Leo glares at Veronica as she continues, "Or you'll just discover that other people in Balboa County also own signal detectors. If the device isn't part of the evidence against my dad, it would be mighty hard to prove that he committed arson. And what's the motive? What possible reason could Keith Mars have to burn a car on a property all the way across the county? I think the district attorney could be persuaded to drop the charges. You made a mistake, Leo. And you're going to tell the DA that you're certain that Keith Mars is innocent."

Leo says sarcastically, "Let me tell you something, Veronica. I really dig your work here. Playing one side against the other, in bed with everybody, just fabulous stuff. What else do I have to do for you and Mr. Risky Business?"

"Nobody forced you to take Aaron Echolls' money to steal the tapes, Leo. And you have my word that it ends here," Veronica replies.

After a pause, Leo says, "I'll change the reports from the break-in last fall." He makes airquotes with his fingers and continues, "I can't believe I didn't notice before now that the bug detector was listed as stolen on the evidence report. I'm sure the district attorney will be relieved to hear that the venerable Keith Mars couldn't possibly be the owner of the evidence we found at the scene, and the charges will be dropped immediately."

Logan states flatly, "Make sure that they are. I'm pretty sure a pretty boy-law enforcement type such as yourself wouldn't thrive in prison if you were convicted of evidence tampering. I bet you'd make a beautiful bride for a white supremacist; you just need to let those curly locks grow a bit."

Leo flushes and retorts, "You'd know, Echolls. You're not exactly lily-pure, are you? You've got some things to answer for. Lilly Kane, Hannah Griffith, not to mention the bum-fights and the riots over swimming pool fires. Oh yeah, don't forget about bashing a cop car with a baseball bat."

At the word 'lily', Logan jumps up, glaring at Leo. Veronica grabs his arm, saying, "No, Logan! We got what we came for. Let's go."

As they leave the sheriff's office, Logan angrily shakes Veronica's hand off his arm. She says, "Logan, we knew. We knew he pulled the wool over everyone's eyes." _Especially mine. Dammit, how could I have been so blind?  
_  
"Christ, does everyone have to be corrupt in this town? What is it, something in the water?" Logan replies bitterly.


	15. Chapters 42 to 44

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy and Poniesforall. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

* * *

Previously on Veronica Mars: The Year of Living Dangerously Part Two

vanessagalore•livejournal•com/39048•html

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Playing Catch-up  
**Dick reaches out to Mac; Logan gets up to  
speed on the Briar Hill mission; Duncan  
asks Mars Investigations for help.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason  
Dohring. Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Cliff:  
Daran Norris. Dick: Ryan Hansen. Mac:  
Tina Majorino. Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FORTY-TWO: "PLAYING CATCH-UP"

Fri. 2/27/09: San Diego RCFL, San Diego, CA

Email to Cynthia MacKenzie from Richard Casablancas, Jr.; rec'd 2/27/08.

"Yo Mac, Ronnie said you were in protective custody with the FBI, and she said it's all because of the Pi Sigs' computers. She was pretty pissed at me for putting you in danger. I would never hurt you, you know that right? I'm really sorry. What's a little identity theft compared to a bomb?

I'm hoping the FBI dudes will send this on to you. Ronnie said you can't contact anybody, but hey, maybe you'd like to hear from some of your friends. We're friends, right? That was fun, figuring out Logan's password. Almost as much as fun as our trips to Vegas.

You're not going to believe it. Ronnie found Logan, and SHE DIDN'T GO AND GRAB HIM BY THE NUTS AND DRAG HIM HOME. She told me he was all right, and she'd let him come back when he was ready. I know you won't believe it, but the Dickster was struck dumb when he found out. Friggin' redonculous! Whoops, my bad, if the censors are reading this, I didn't mean anything by 'friggin'. Shit, I did it again!

Other than that, it's pretty much the same old, same old, around here. You know, porn, pizza, and parties, the three basic "P" groups. Hey, you'd be proud, I went to all my classes this week. I did fall asleep in my Women's Studies class though. Who knew that class was going to be so tough? I thought we were going to study women. Turns out that it's about a bunch of women activists. You ask me, I think some of them are dykes. Oh, yeah, I forgot. 'Lesbians'. Or 'Transgender Individuals'. Man, I could use your help in that class, just to understand all the words.

I miss you, Mac. Hope you're okay and not too lonely. Write back if they let you.

Dick"

Fri. 2/27/09 morning: Sunset Cliffs Apartments, Neptune, CA

Logan frowns at the laptop screen, disturbed by what he is reading. Keith and Veronica have gone to the Neptune courthouse for Keith's preliminary hearing; Logan wanted to attend, but upon discussion, the three of them agreed that it would be better for Logan to stay home. So far, no one has recognized Logan due to his changed appearance, and Logan hopes that it will stay that way. He realizes with a sinking heart that eventually the paparazzi will recognize him, and the media circus will start again; but for the time being, Logan wants to enjoy his anonymity. Veronica ruefully said that she wished he'd cut his hair, go back to his natural color, and shave his beard, but she agreed that she too was enjoying the temporary peace. When she left, she kissed Logan goodbye and caressed his moustache; he chuckled and smiled wryly as she pretended to sniff the air. "I'm going to enjoy it as long as I can," he whispered, winking at her.

Logan knows that the preliminary hearing will be merely a formality; the prosecuting attorney had called Keith at home the evening before and said that he had received word from the sheriff's department that there had been an error with the evidence. The attorney apologized profusely and said that he would be withdrawing the case against Keith. Keith said, "That's good to hear," but Logan knew the truth: Keith was heart-broken that Veronica had stooped to blackmailing Leo.

The evening before had been punctuated by long silences, as the three of them kept thinking about the dirty deal that was made at the sheriff's department. Neither Veronica nor Logan slept well that night; each of them was keenly aware that the other was remembering that day's confrontation with Leo D'Amato. Veronica kept thinking about Aaron trying to burn her alive in the freezer and his being acquitted of the attack and Lilly's murder due to Leo's perfidy. Logan helplessly relived the trauma of watching the tapes and destroying the evidence of his father's affair with his girlfriend, thereby playing his own role in enabling his father's acquittal. Both Logan and Veronica pictured Aaron, smug and manipulative behind bars, secure in the knowledge that he had ensured his freedom with a cash payment to a susceptible pawn.

Finally, just before dawn, Veronica rolled onto her side and looked at him. Logan was lying on his back, staring at the ceiling with his right arm bent and propping up his head; he turned to her questioningly, and she whispered, "Make love to me; I don't want to think anymore."

He rolled onto his side to face her and replied quietly, "Veronica...it's going to be okay; your dad's going to be fine." He reached for her face and gently stroked her cheek.

She closed her eyes and sighed, "I don't want you to go back to L.A. I need you here."

He thought, _All this time...I didn't think how it was for her. How could I have... _"Veronica, I'm sorry I–"

"Just kiss me..." She reached for his hand still on her cheek and leaned into him, finding his mouth and brushing it with a soft kiss.

He caught his breath: the softness of her kiss was more arousing than the bold and persistent kiss of a temptress. He kissed her back gently, feeling his body respond to her. He pressed into her more strongly, feeling the curves of her body, her well-remembered reactions stirring his own sense-memory. He groaned quietly as she ran her fingers down his back, and Veronica's answering shiver told him she was remembering too. Logan cupped her ass, pulling her leg over him, and she murmured nonsense words, "Logan, oh...", sighing her pleasure that he was there for her. He was almost hard when she reached down and touched him, stroking him, claiming him, and he began to breathe heavily, taking her mouth with his and showing her just how he was feeling with his tongue.

She startled him by shifting her body and taking him inside; he was awed by Veronica's readiness and her smooth welcoming wetness that engorged him. He reached for her breast, and she arched into him, rocking him with her need and longing. She set a slow and steady pace, and he hurried to catch up and be with her, thrust with her. He pulled back to see her face, and he saw concentration and determination and trust; it made him ache to see how she still trusted him, after he...after he... He pushed the thought out of his head and focused on her, on her beauty and sensuality, and on the closeness, the interconnectedness of them, and he rocked with her as she took what she needed from him.

After, they finally slept, holding onto each other for comfort. When the alarm sounded, they woke to find their hands still intertwined, each unwilling to release the other even in sleep. As Veronica and her father got ready for Keith's hearing, Logan watched her, thinking and wondering.

Logan asked Veronica before she left with Keith if he could look at her notes on the Briar Hill investigation; Veronica pursed her lips, knowing he would be upset. Logan persisted, saying that he might have useful information from the time he spent with Hannah. Finally she agreed and opened her notes files on her laptop for him. "Try not to freak out," she said, with a forced cheerfulness. "Dad and I have been working on this a while, and we're still working out the kinks in the plan. I promise: we're going to make absolutely sure that I'm safe."

Logan reads Veronica's notes on the interview with the educational consultant and the meeting with the Gittlesens. He gasps when he reads about the transport service, thinking about delicate Hannah forcibly handcuffed on a long cross-country ride to the school in Vermont. _She was so thin and fragile._ But then he remembers her defying her parents in order to keep seeing him: _she was stronger than she looked. That must be how she found the strength to run away._ Veronica had noted the catch-phrases spouted by Andrea Gittlesen, and Logan imagines the school trying to force Hannah to parrot these responses.

_I don't care if Hannah's mother doesn't blame me; I know I am at least partly responsible for Hannah going to this school,_ he reflects morosely. He knows that Veronica and Keith had decided that if Keith had to go to prison, they would have called off the Briar Hill operation and turned the evidence they had collected over to the attorney suing the school; for a fleeting moment, he regrets helping Veronica blackmail Leo, since she will now be able to follow through on the undercover operation.

Logan keeps reading; he sees some notes from Veronica's conversation with Dr. Friedman, and he realizes that she used the investigation as a ruse to talk with his shrink. He wishes he could have seen the two women battling it out; he's sure that Veronica was trying to manipulate the doctor into revealing information, and he's just as sure that Dr. Friedman was completely in control of the conversation. Not for the first time, he thinks that the inner strength of his therapist reminds him of Veronica's determination and drive.

He reads the notes from the Mars' interview with Attorney Epstein. _Parents bankrupted by exorbitant fees; girl never saw a psychiatrist; solitary confinement; stress positions; attack therapy._ As he continues to read, he becomes more and more agitated. _Students forced to admit to imaginary offenses in order to progress in the program; make up stories of drug use, sex, and crimes to satisfy the counselors' demand for 'honesty'; resisting treatment causes school to add months to the program's duration; parents warned ahead of time that students will make up stories of abuse; students warehoused in bunk beds and underfed; parents signed liability waiver that specifically allowed use of mace, tasers, restraints, and corporal punishment. Goals of undercover operation: document interview not conducted by psychiatrist; document corporal punishment, violations of mandated child abuse reporting, and inadequate caloric intake; demonstrate lack of training for the security guards in proper restraint techniques; document excesses of attack therapy; document use of older students to discipline newer students, thereby shielding staff from complaints of abuse._

The words flash like neon signs in Logan's brain: he pictures Hannah, already too thin, losing more weight and becoming weaker; he imagines Hannah being forced to tell of their tryst at the Neptune Grand and admitting that she initiated contact; he sees Hannah restrained by a burly guard, crying and swearing that she'll behave herself, and nevertheless being sentenced to time in solitary confinement or some sort of stress position. Logan's mind conjures horrific images of Hannah handcuffed or holding a pose like the pictures from the Abu Graib prison scandal.

Then his heart stops, as he remembers that Veronica's going to go into this situation willingly. He begins to pace around the room, trying to calm himself. His rational mind knows that Veronica is tough and trained in self-defense, but his emotions overwhelm his logic, and he is afraid for her. He is terrified; he knows that she is committed to this operation, and nothing he does will prevent her from going undercover.

Veronica's words on the beach in South Padre echo in his head: _"I thought you might come home if I solved her murder." _Logan realizes that by running away he set into motion the very thing he was trying to prevent.

Suddenly, the apartment seems claustrophobic, and Logan looks around for a baseball cap to wear, intending to go for a walk on the beach as he was doing daily in South Padre. Backup watches him alertly, hoping for an outing. Logan collects Backup's leash and is headed out the door with the dog when he is seized by a panic attack. In Neptune, the face of Logan Echolls is well-known, and he knows a baseball cap, a beard, and darker hair won't prevent people from recognizing him. Overwhelmed by self-loathing and regret, he shuts the door and paces restlessly around the room, as Backup sits watching with a confused expression.

Fri. 2/27/09 morning: Balboa County Courthouse, Neptune, CA

"Case dismissed. You're free to go, Mr. Mars," the judge intones.

Keith nods at the judge, an old friend. He turns around to Veronica, seated behind the defense table. She stands up and hugs him, whispering, "Let's get out of here."

As they walk out, arm-in-arm accompanied by Cliff McCormack, Veronica sees Duncan seated in the last row. He has gone back to his natural hair color and his old short hair cut, and he is sporting new glasses that make him look professorial. He stands up and says, "Thank god the case was dismissed. Congratulations, Mr. Mars."

"New look?" Veronica asks, noting Duncan's preppy outfit.

He shrugs, running his fingers through his short hair. "I'm sick of dyeing my hair. I don't know how women do it." Duncan looks at Veronica seriously. "I wanted to be here for you and your dad, Veronica; you've been so supportive of me. And I was hoping to talk to you about something. I bribed one of the bellhops at the Grand; he sneaked me out in a laundry hamper and brought me here. I'm pretty sure the paparazzi are still staked out at the entrance of the hotel. Can we find someplace a little more private to talk? Someplace where the reporters won't see us?"

Cliff says, "We can use an attorney's conference room. Technically, you're still my client. I'm assuming you don't mind if I'm present?"

"No," Duncan responds. "I was hoping you'd be here. I need your opinion too."

The four of them closet themselves in the private room. Duncan pulls out a piece of paper and gives it to Veronica. He clears his throat and begins to speak. "I've been...seeing this woman for a couple weeks. My attorneys are working on the custody case, and they've told me I need to careful about my relationships with women. There can't be even the appearance of impropriety at this point, because Meg's mother might use it against me to try to win custody. I don't really know anything about this woman. Katya seems to care about me, but...I don't know. She really doesn't ever talk about herself; she did say at one point that she's in town to collect on an old debt."

Veronica looks at the paper and sees the name 'Katerina Ingeborg Beversdorf', an address in Argentina, and an Argentinian passport number and driver's license information.

Keith asks sharply, "What are you thinking, Duncan?"

"I'm worried that she's married. It would look bad for me at the hearing if I was involved with a married woman," Duncan explains.

"You're right, Duncan, the judge is going to be looking for a stable family situation in your case," Cliff comments. "It's moralistic and unfair, but the appearance of impropriety would really undermine your case, especially since you're basing your claim on Mrs. Manning's being an unfit parent."

Duncan nods and continues, "It's not just that. Katerina could be after my money; it's been trumpeted in the press that I have millions in a trust fund. She could even be a spy for the Mannings. I can't imagine how they could have known it was me in the Neptune Grand before the amnesty hearing, but the Mannings were tracking me for a long time overseas. Their detectives almost caught me and Jane in Sydney; we were lucky–we got on a train just as the doors were closing, and we were able to lose them. I was pretty sure that they had lost my trail before I had my plastic surgery, but maybe they somehow were able to follow me and were aware of my new appearance."

"Why not just break off the relationship with Katerina?" Veronica says logically.

Duncan avoids looking at her directly as he replies tensely, "Veronica, you don't understand. I've been very lonely for a long time. And now, I don't even have my daughter. I...I need this woman; I'm not dealing with this very well, and it helps to have..." his voice trails off.

For a moment, Veronica regrets her harsh words to Duncan two weeks earlier. But she shakes herself, thinking, _I wouldn't have done him any favors by stringing him along. It's better that he knows how I feel._ Aloud, she says, "I know it's been hard, Duncan. Your parents aren't exactly supportive."

Duncan ruefully nods his agreement.

She continues, "Duncan, I could swear I met her somewhere before. Did she say that she knew me?"

"No, she asked me who you were," he replies. "But...she did say, she's been in Neptune before. And she knows about my sister's murder and the Aaron Echolls trial. I know the case had national coverage, but still, it sounds like she has a history here in Neptune."

Cliff clears his throat and asks, "Who er...initiated contact?"

"We had seen each other in the hallway at the hotel. A couple days before my hearing, she asked if I wanted to share a bottle of wine. And then..." Duncan glances at Veronica before continuing lamely, "One thing led to another."

Veronica quickly calculates the dates in her head and realizes two days before the hearing was the same night that she had rejected him. She stares at Duncan; he meets her eyes briefly then looks away. _Duncan was pretty vulnerable that night; he was worried about his daughter, then I kicked him to the curb._ Recalling her own experience with the Piz sex video, she voices a new thought. "Duncan, do you think it's possible she planted recording devices in your room? If she's working for the Mannings..."

Duncan looks extremely worried when Veronica mentions recording devices. He stutters a little when he says, "She's a little c-crazy, I mean, it's...exciting with her. She's definitely...experienced." He closes his eyes and rubs his forehead.

Veronica thinks, _What the hell were they doing? My memory of sex with the Donut is missionary, rinse, repeat; comfortable and predictable._

Keith says, "Veronica, I think you should sweep Duncan's room for bugs and videocameras. In the meantime, I'll do a background check. If there's something in her background that would reflect badly on you, or if we find a connection to the Mannings, we'll let you know right away. Don't worry, Duncan; we'll take care of it for you." He grabs Duncan's arm in a gesture of support and comfort.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**High-Tech Crimes and Misdemeanors**  
Mac at the FBI; a lead in Shawn's murder  
investigation; a break-in at Mars Investigations.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Candice Pauling:  
Toy Connor. Alan Sheffield: Ned Vaughn.  
Leon: Jerry Shea.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FORTY-THREE: "HIGH-TECH CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS"

Fri. 2/27/09: San Diego RCFL, San Diego, CA

Mac sighs. Some days she imagines she can see as far as Neptune out the window of the nondescript highrise building housing the FBI's San Diego Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory. It's not that the work she's doing is that bad, but no one here has a personality. She's become used to the stares at the red streak in her hair and at her jeans and T-shirts as she walks down the hallways filled with agents dressed in matching dark suits and white shirts. Mac balked when her FBI handler suggested she might be more comfortable in chinos and a button-down shirt. She privately wonders how the robotlike agents can keep their emotions so guarded; Mac secretly thinks it's a good thing that Veronica won't be doing the FBI program anymore, although she would never tell her that.

Today, Mac's agenda starts with a meeting with CART, the Computer Analysis and Response Team. Her handler, Special Agent-in-Charge Alan Sheffield, walks into the office and takes a seat. "So, Ms. MacKenzie, you remember that some of the top computer forensic investigators in the country will be at today's meeting. There will be representatives from the DCFL, the Department of Defense Computer Forensic Laboratory, and from C.A.T.C.H., the High Tech Crimes Task Force. They're quite anxious to see what you've come up with in trying to recreate Rick Picket's investigation into the Russian Mafia."

Mac responds, "And I'll be representing ROFLMAO."

Alan looks at her in puzzlement. "I'm not familiar with that agency."

"Never mind. It was a joke," Mac explains. She sighs again. _These people sure know how to take the fun out of computer hacking. At least they bought me the computer of my dreams. _Every component of her computer is state-of-the-art; some of the components are even unreleased prototypes that Mac had only dreamed of. She is enjoying the work, but Mac is lonely. She misses Veronica and Wallace; she even misses Dick harassing her. She says to Sheffield, "Thanks for passing on that email from my friend; it really made my day today."

Alan replies, "You know you can't write back to him."

"C'mon, you can censor it and send it through the Los Angeles FBI Office. It's perfectly safe," she wheedles. "I miss my friends. You gotta give me something."

"I let you write to your friend Veronica. She still has a security clearance from when she was in the program," Alan explains. "Other than her, I think it's a bad idea."

"You know, a little contact with my friends might help me to work faster. I'm going crazy, just sitting in a hotel room at night with a guard outside the door. Room service got old fast. I've already watched every pay-per-view movie twice."

"Witness protection is probably saving your life, you know," Alan retorts. "And you're getting extra privileges: most witnesses don't get pay-per-view."

"Yeah, well, even convicts get conjugal visits. This sucks," Mac complains.

Alan sighs resignedly. "Write the email. I'll look it over, and then I'll pass it on to the ADIC from the Los Angeles office to send it from there. Remember, you want your friends to think you're at Quantico. It might save your life."

"I promise!" Mac swears, thinking,_ 'ay-dick': the name for the assistant director-in-charge is the best acronym in the FBI_. "Thanks, Alan, you're my BFF."

Alan looks confused.

Mac quickly says, "You know, 'Bureau Friends First'."

Alan nods, saying, "Yeah, I like it. 'Bureau Friends First'."_  
_  
Mac turns away to roll her eyes and laugh under her breath as Alan leaves the office. _Yep, that's my SAC. What a tool._

Fri. 2/27/09: Home of the Paulings, Atlanta, GA

Wallace logs onto the computer in Candice's old bedroom and checks his email, finding two new messages. The first is a short text sent from Veronica's phone saying that the charges were dismissed against Keith. _All RIGHT!! I don't know how she did it, but Veronica slam-dunked it._ He opens the second message, which is an email from Professor Winkler.

"Wallace:

I asked around and found out that my old student Leon has accepted a position at Magneta-Corp Technologies in Marietta, Georgia. He's working in their encryption division, designing new protocols for security id's and credit cards. I have an email address of luck.

Don't worry about that paper for my class; I've extended the deadline for you until Mar. 30, when you come back from Spring Break. I've spoken to your other teachers as well. They've all agreed to postpone your deadlines.

Prof. Winkler"

Wallace opens up Mapquest and discovers that Marietta is only twenty miles away. "Candice? Can we borrow your dad's car and take a trip to Marietta?"

Candice frowns. "What's in Marietta?"

"Someone who can help us with your brother's Blackberry, I think," he explains.

Fri. 2/27/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

After a somewhat subdued celebratory lunch, Keith drops Veronica at the apartment and drives to Mars Investigations. When he approaches the pebbled glass door, he notices that it's ajar and immediately thinks, _oh no, not again._ He cautiously opens the door, taking note of the broken lock, and enters. The office has been thoroughly searched. Every file cabinet has been emptied, and there are messy piles of folders throughout the office. The desk drawers have been taken out of the desk, their contents strewn on the floor. Pictures are askew, and Keith assumes the intruders checked behind for secret storage locations. Keith checks and, once again, the phone lines were cut, disabling the alarm system. However, last fall when Harmony Chase broke into the office, Keith took additional security precautions. A hidden battery-operated videocamera is set to activate if its power source, supplied by a low-voltage telephone line, is interrupted. Keith removes the videocamera from its concealed hiding place and reviews the footage.

He watches as an attractive blonde woman cautiously enters the office and begins a methodical search. The time stamp on the recording is 9:43 a.m., approximately the time of Keith's preliminary hearing. He muses, _A lot of people knew exactly where I'd be at 10:00 this morning._ He notes that the woman knew enough to wear latex gloves during the search, although that's certainly common knowledge nowadays. Fast-forwarding through the video, Keith observes the woman using a portable hard drive to clone the two office computers' hard drives. _What the hell is she looking for?_

The woman stares determinedly at the office safe, and Keith slows the video speed to normal to watch more closely. She tries a few combinations without success, then begins to look around the office, apparently to see if Keith has written the numbers anywhere. After twenty minutes of diligent searching, she checks the time and apparently decides that she can't risk staying any longer. The time code reads 11:57 a.m. when the blonde woman exits the office. Keith freezes the frame and looks at the woman. He's sure he's never seen her before, but her features are striking, especially her voluptuous profile and lush blonde hair.

Keith ponders for a few minutes whether he should call the sheriff's department; then he makes up his mind and calls Veronica on his cell phone. "Honey, can you come to the office? It's important. Someone broke in again, and I have video...A woman; someone I've never seen before. I'd like to see if you know this person." He thinks a second, reflecting on the paparazzi who only recently stopped staking out Mars Investigations. He adds, "Bring Logan, too. Let's see if he knows her. Maybe she's a reporter. She's quite good-looking; she's definitely pretty enough to be on TV."

While Keith waits for Veronica, he calls his contact in the Organized Crime Section at FBI headquarters and asks him to email some photos of known female associates of the Sukarenkos and the Sorokins. Keith has not stopped worrying about the Russian mafia since catching Gorya Sorokin staring at him up in Lompoc. The package bombs sent to Mac and Max have only increased his anxiety. The FBI contact offers to run her face through the facial recognition computer program used in airport security. Keith selects the best shot of the woman from the video, transfers it to his computer, and emails the jpeg file to the OCS.

He contacts Cliff, asking if he knows any beautiful blonde women associated with the Fitzpatricks. Cliff says no, but offers to ask around at the courthouse and the parole office. Keith emails Cliff the jpeg. Then he calls the telephone company, alerting them to the fault in the line; he terminates the call and waits impatiently for Veronica, thinking about this new development. He looks around the office at the mess and begins to tidy the chaos while he waits.

Fri. 2/27/09: Magneta-Corp Headquarters, Marietta, GA

Wallace and Candice walk into the lobby of Magneta-Corp headquarters. The receptionist smiles at them and asks them to sign in. "And your business today?" she queries.

"Oh, I went to school at Hearst College with Leon Harris, and I was nearby. I thought I'd say hello," Wallace replies.

"I'll page him."

Wallace leans over the desk. "I'd love to surprise him. Can you just say there's a package here for him?"

"Oh, certainly." The receptionist smiles conspiratorially.

When Leon walks into the reception area, Wallace intercepts him before he can speak. "Hey, Leon, long time no see. We haven't talked since Veronica Mars and the Aspen picture." He grabs Leon's hand and shakes it before Leon can react.

Leon frowns and glances at the receptionist. He drops Wallace's hand and looks at him with confused expression.

"You remember, that one Halloween, you were Fibonacci and I was Niels Bohr. Good times, right?" Wallace raises his eyebrows at Leon. "I love reliving college memories."

"Yeah...yeah, you're right, good times." Leon stares at Wallace.

"This is my girlfriend, Candice. I told her a lot about you, and she insisted we drive up here immediately to meet you," Wallace continues.

Candice steps over closer to Leon and shakes his hand. "Nice to meet you, Leon. I've heard a lot about you. Wallace says that you guys used to get into all sorts of trouble in college."

Wallace thinks, _Nice improv._

Leon says nervously, "Why don't I show you my office?" He waves at the receptionist and escorts Candice and Wallace down the hallway to a small office with several computers. Leon shuts the door and says nastily, "What the hell do you want? I thought that bitch Veronica Mars was out of my life forever."

"Ooh, temper, temper," Wallace replies, smiling. "Look, Leon, I just need a little help with something, and I bet it's right up your alley. And if you help me, I won't tell the company president about the Hearst student ID scandal."

"We made complete restitution, you know," Leon says heatedly.

"Still, I think Magneta-Corp would be interested to know about your college hijinks. Obviously, you used your friend's connections to land this job. I bet Human Resources didn't even bother to check your references."

Candice chimes in, "Leon. Please. We're just looking for a little help." She smiles at Leon, and Wallace thinks, _Good cop, bad cop; I love this woman._

Leon grudgingly nods his agreement.

Wallace pulls out the Blackberry. "We're trying to get the data off this. It's password protected, and we obviously don't know the password." He hands the Blackberry to Leon. "This belonged to Candice's brother, who was found murdered. We're looking into the circumstances of his death."

Leon looks at the device. "You put in new batteries? And I assume you knew enough not to activate the autodelete by entering three wrong passwords?"

Wallace nods.

Leon continues, "Hold on, I think I know how to do it, I just need to check something on a phone hacks site." He types on his computer keyboard, reads a while, then turns back to Wallace and Candice. "It looks like you can email a computer worm program that will trigger the device to email all its information back to the sender. You just have to know the email address of the account holder."

Wallace turns to Candice, "Is your brother's email account still active?"

"Yes," she replies. "It's a Yahoo account, and I've been sending emails to it every week or so in hopes that Shawn would check it and respond. . I don't have his Yahoo password though."

"Doesn't matter," Leon comments. He types on the computer for five minutes, occasionally pausing to think and revise his efforts, then leans back in his chair. He taps his fingers on the desk impatiently. A soft bell 'dings' on Leon's computer, and he leans back to the computer and types a few keystrokes. The printer behind him begins to spew pages filled with data. Leon collects the paper and hands it to Wallace. "That's everything on the device."

Wallace quickly looks through the sheaf of papers. "Excellent! I'll be sure to tell Veronica how helpful you were." He collects the Blackberry from Leon's desk and stands up to leave.

Candice waves 'bye'; Leon glowers as they leave the office.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Hidden Agendas**  
Logan confronts Veronica about the  
Briar Hill Investigation; Mac replies  
to Dick; Veronica recognizes the  
burglar.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason  
Dohring. Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Mac:  
Tina Majorino. Alan: Ned Vaughn.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR: "HIDDEN AGENDAS"

Fri. 2/27/09: Neptune, CA

On their way to Mars Investigations to review the video footage from the break-in, Veronica glances at Logan slumped next to her in the passenger seat. After expressing his relief that the charges against Keith were truly dismissed, he's barely said two words. "Logan..." she tries and falters.

"What?"

"You read all the files on Briar Hill, didn't you?" she finally says.

"Yes."

"Logan, it's not your fault that she was sent there," Veronica hazards.

"Yes, but it's my fault you're putting yourself in danger investigating the school. You told me in Texas you had hoped solving Hannah's murder would bring me home," Logan says.

"Logan, you're being ridiculous! You can't be responsible for everything," she replies, exasperated. "It's my choice to be involved in the investigation. Maybe I would have been involved even if you never knew Hannah."

"Bullshit."

"It's _not_ bullshit. Someone needs to go undercover. These kind of programs have been operating for forty years without any kind of federal regulation. And since I was kicked out–" She stops short.

"What? Kicked out of what? Tell me what's going on," he demands.

"I got kicked out of the FBI intern program. Either because I used Mike Fields' FBI account to get information or because I shot Harmony, or maybe it was the stuff that was revealed in the Dateline exposé," she replies quietly.

"So now you've got to prove to the FBI that they were wrong to kick you out? Veronica, I have to say I'm glad you got kicked out. You said once you're an agent, they could choose to post you anywhere, and you have no say in your posting," Logan says.

Veronica glances at him. "What's wrong with that?"

He looks at her intensely. "What about us? Do you want us to be together? If you're in the FBI, do I pick up and follow you around the country every time some jagoff in D.C. decides they need you in Peoria?"

She stares at him in disbelief, then tears her eyes away to look back at the road.

Logan continues more quietly, "I know; I'm not being rational. I just ran away from you and hid from you for four weeks, but here I am worrying about our future. I'm fucked up, all right?"

Veronica pulls the Saturn to the side of the road and stops the car. They sit in silence for several minutes.

Finally she says, "You're not fucked up. It's true what you say. The FBI caused problems for me and Piz too. He couldn't take it that the FBI was more important to me than he was."

Logan closes his eyes, then quietly asks the question without opening his eyes. "Am _I_ more important to you than the FBI?"

"Are you asking me not to try to get back in the program?"

"Dammit, Veronica, that's not what I asked." He drops his head, afraid to look at her.

Her voice shakes a little as she replies, "...Of course you're more important. But that doesn't mean that I can't try to be reinstated. And I also think that I was right, that you won't get over Hannah's death until her murder is solved. You're still eaten up by guilt. I see the way you look when you don't realize I'm watching. You're completely consumed by shame and remorse. And it's not right. You made mistakes that year. But, Logan, my god, you were all alone with no one to help you. Even I had deserted you, and I'll always regret that." Logan looks up suddenly at these words. She continues, "You were desperate, and you did an awful thing, going after Hannah. But even while you were trying to use her, you couldn't help but care for her. You would not feel so guilty if you hadn't cared for her. You wouldn't be the man I love if you didn't feel bad about her." After a minute of silence, she asks, "Logan?"

"Are you thinking that the FBI would take you back if you are successful in building a case against the school and catch Hannah's killer? Because, Veronica, that's not a good reason to do this. And neither is trying to help me get over her death," he answers. "I'm worried for your safety. Even with a wire. Even with another person undercover with you."

They stare at each other, at an impasse; both are struggling to resist falling into the old familiar fight over her investigations. "What if you helped with the planning? If you had a say in how we do this operation? Would that help?" she finally asks.

"Maybe," he admits. "If I saw that you were being completely open with your father, and he's satisfied with the security arrangements, maybe I would worry a little less."

"Okay, done," she says firmly. "You now have veto power. If you're not convinced, I'll pull the plug...Logan, it really is awful what's going on in these schools, and you read that it's all completely legal. This is a chance to do something in Hannah's memory, to make sure that what happened to her doesn't happen to anyone else."

He nods his reluctant agreement. Veronica starts up the car, and they drive the rest of the way to Mars Investigations in silence.

Fri. 2/27/09: San Diego RCFL, San Diego, CA

Alan looks over the email draft that Mac has given him. Mac tries to look innocent as he reads.

"Dear Dick,

It's great to hear from you. I'm going crazy trying to research these identity thieves. It seems like I'm not making any progress at all trying to trace their activities.

I'm glad to hear you're going to class. The women's studies class might even be good for you. I'll quiz you on the history of the Equal Rights Amendment when I get back. And I can't believe the story about Veronica and Logan! Maybe there's hope for those two after all.

This is going to sound stupid, but I haven't been able to find one of my T-shirts. It's the Padres shirt with the field of daisies on the back, the one that Veronica's boyfriend gave me the summer after sophomore year, do you remember? I think I left it in your room the last time I was there. Can you give that to Veronica to hold for me? It's one of my favorites, and I've been going nuts trying to remember where I left it.

I really miss you guys and hope to hear from you soon, if it's possible. They're treating me really well here, but it's lonely without my friends.

Love, Mac"

Alan reads the email three more times, then he shrugs, saying, "Okay. It seems alright. You didn't say anything that would be a problem. I'll send it to the L.A. office and, once the ADIC approves it, we'll send it on to your friend. Mac, I know this is hard. But I heard the DCFL people were very impressed with your skills. I know they were looking at your website, and they thought the security protocols you used were particularly ingenious. Maybe you'll get a job out of this."

"I don't know, I think I'm more suited to the private sector," Mac replies.

"Government work has its own rewards," Alan intones.

Mac shrugs. _No thanks. After the way they blew off Veronica, I think I'll pass._

Fri. 2/27/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

"Scoot down," Veronica suggests as she nears the office. "Let me make sure the paparazzi haven't come back." Logan complies, and she drives past the office and takes a right on the next street. She frowns when a gray sedan a few cars back does the same, but when she takes the next right, it continues straight, and she dismisses it as coincidence. Veronica drives around the block a few times, scanning each of the parked vehicles. "I think we're okay. I'll let you out, you go in, and I'll park the car and follow you in a few minutes just to be sure." She smiles at him. He nods gratefully, tacitly acknowledging just how much pain the paparazzi have caused him. He gives her a little wave as he exits the car.

When Veronica joins Logan and Keith inside, Keith kisses the top of her head 'hello' and runs the video for them to watch. Veronica gasps aloud.

"What?" Keith asks quickly, stopping the video.

"That's Duncan's new girlfriend," she explains.

Logan looks closely at the screen. "I'm sorry; even with Duncan's plastic surgery, she's totally out of his league. Score one for the Donut."

"Do you know her?" Keith asks. "Something's obviously going on here. I didn't make the connection that it had something to do with Duncan. Could she have been looking for information on you, Veronica, to damage Duncan's custody case?"

"I don't know. What have I done that would look bad for Duncan...oh. The kidnapping," Veronica realizes suddenly. "Do you think Mrs. Manning is still trying to use that against Duncan?"

Keith shrugs. "The court's going to look at Mrs. Manning very suspiciously; I'm sure she's going to use any dirt she can find on Duncan if she's serious about winning custody. Let's get started on the background check. You should work on the Argentinian databases, Veronica; your Spanish is a lot better than mine. I'll check with my friend in the FBI to see if the facial recognition software came up with a match, and I'll search the U.S. databases."

Logan watches over Veronica's shoulder as she works on the computer. After a few minutes, he turns back to the videocamera and watches the video footage. Occasionally, he pauses the video and looks closely at the woman.

Veronica, curious, asks, "Did you see something?"

"There's something about her...I can't put my finger on it," he replies.

"I know, I had the same feeling when I met her. It looks as though she's never been in the United States before several weeks ago. But Duncan told us that she's been in Neptune before, and she said she was here to collect on an old outstanding debt."

"So that means..."

"It means Katerina's using a false name now, or was using a different name in the past, or she's lying about why she's here now. I'm trying to do a backwards search on the history of that name, trying to identify the past whereabouts of Katerina Beversdorf, all her previous addresses." Veronica frowns at the computer screen.

"Katerina Beversdorf..." Logan mutters. "It doesn't sound familiar." He runs through the video at high speed again, stopping once in a while to focus on the woman.

After an hour, Veronica gives up in frustration. "I hate the South American databases. Sometimes you can't tell if it's just sloppy record keeping or if there's actually something of importance in the records. I can't find any address information on Katerina older than two years ago. It looks like she traveled to Europe a couple times recently. She doesn't have any kind of criminal record. I found her birth records and a record of graduation from a secondary school, and then there's no information for about ten years until she applies for a new driver's license in Buenos Aires in early 2007. Maybe she wasn't in Argentina those ten years."

Keith walks out of his office and says, "Any luck? The facial recognition software was a bust, and Cliff showed her picture around the public defender's office and the parole board, and no one recognized her. Although Cliff said he would defend her, pro bono, should the need ever arise." He laughs a little. Keith leans over Veronica's shoulder, and she pulls up the relevant records to show him what she's found. "Did you check the Bureau of Vital Statistics, or whatever it is in Argentina, to see if there was ever a death certificate in that name?"

"There's no death certificate on file. But...you and I know, it's possible to bribe an official to buy a death certificate to create a new identity," Veronica muses. "We need to get her fingerprints. I'm thinking...I'll ask Duncan to invite us over for dinner tomorrow night. We can have some wine, and we'll get her prints on the glass. Sometime during dinner, I'll excuse myself and sweep Duncan's bedroom for bugs. If she's planted any devices, I'm betting that's where they'll be, based on how embarrassed Duncan was when he talked about their relationship." She looks at Logan. "Are you okay with that? Seeing Duncan, I mean. I know you were upset..."

"No, it's all right," Logan says. "I want to find out who she is too. It's driving me crazy. I'm sure I've seen her before, but I can't place her face. And...it might be good to see Duncan" _and make sure that Duncan knows to keep his hands off Veronica,_ he adds to himself.


	16. Chapters 45 to 48

* * *

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy and Poniesforall. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility. Again, some of this story is not intended for those under seventeen. Your reviews are important to me; I'm not the kind of person that holds a story hostage for reviews, but at the same time, the encouragement of a review helps me write faster and better.

* * *

Previously on Veronica Mars: The Year of Living Dangerously Part Two:

vanessagalore•livejournal•com/40299•html

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**What's the Sitch?  
**Dick gets Mac's email and asks for  
Veronica's help; Wallace comes back  
to town and fills in Veronica on his  
investigation.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason  
Dohring. Dick: Ryan Hansen. Wallace:  
Percy Daggs III. Candice Pauling: Toy  
Connor. Alan: Ned Vaughn.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE: "WHAT'S THE SITCH?"

Sat. 2/28/09 very early morning: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Logan wakes up and rolls over to look at Veronica. He realizes that she's dreaming, twitching in her sleep, and her movements have woken him up. He reaches across her and gently caresses her arm while kissing her cheek. "Veronica..." he whispers.

She starts awake and looks at Logan as if she's never seen him before.

"Hey...it's okay. Veronica...you're dreaming," he says gently. He frowns a little, thinking that she looks completely terrified.

Veronica relaxes and smiles at him. "Hey."

Logan decides that he must have been wrong: that couldn't have been a look of utter despair that he saw on her face. "What were you dreaming about?" he asks curiously, stroking her cheek and looking at her with concern. "Chasing that wascally wabbit again?" he prods jokingly.

She huffs a quiet laugh. "Umm...I don't really remember," she lies smoothly. "What time is it?"

Logan rolls over and glances at the alarm clock. "6:45. We might as well get up. Do you want to shower first?"

"No, you go ahead."

When Logan leaves the room, Veronica closes her eyes and tries to calm her rapidly beating heart. _He seems more relaxed every day–he's almost like he was...like he was before he left. I just wish the stupid nightmares would go away. I can't tell him...he'd never let it go. He can't know how scared I am about Briar Hill. It's ridiculous...there's nothing to be afraid of._

Sat. 2/28/09 morning: Pi Sig Frat House, Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Dick, yawning, logs on to his computer, intending to look at the latest nude pictures of Tila Tequila that Chip Diller was raving about the night before. Mixed in with a multitude of spam emails advertising penis enlargement, porn sites, and Viagra is an email from clicks on it and reads Mac's email.

_Dear Dick,_

_It's great to hear from you. I'm going crazy trying to research these identity thieves. It seems like I'm not making any progress at all trying to trace their activities._

_I'm glad to hear you're going to class. The Women's Studies class might even be good for you. I'll quiz you on the history of the Equal Rights Amendment when I get back. And I can't believe the story about Veronica and Logan! Maybe there's hope for those two after all._

_This is going to sound stupid, but I haven't been able to find one of my T-shirts. It's the Padres shirt with the field of daisies on the back, the one that Veronica's boyfriend gave me the summer after sophomore year, do you remember? I think I left it in your room the last time I was there. Can you give that to Veronica to hold for me? It's one of my favorites, and I've been going nuts trying to remember where I left it._

_I really miss you guys and hope to hear from you soon, if it's possible. They're treating me really well here, but it's lonely without my friends._

_Love, Mac_

"Okay...no way," Dick mutters. "What the hell?" He reads the email three more times. Finally, he prints out the email and calls Veronica, asking if he can meet her to show her something. She demurs, holding her hand over the phone and conferring with someone on the other end, then finally asks Dick where he'll be that afternoon. When he tells her that he's planning on going to the varsity women's soccer game at the Hearst athletic fields, Veronica says, "Perfect. I'll find you there."

Sat. 2/28/09 morning: San Diego to Neptune, CA

At the baggage return carousel, Veronica searches the crowd for Wallace and Candice. When she sees them, she waves excitedly, and Wallace grabs Candice's elbow, guiding her over to Veronica. Veronica throws her arms around Wallace's neck and hugs him tightly. Wallace says, "I thought you'd be waiting outside in your car."

Veronica leads the way to the Saturn idling by the curb. "I had a driver to help me today."

"Logan!" Wallace says, leaning in the car window. "You're back! So were you part of the plan to get Keith off?" He glances back at Veronica, points to his face and whispers, "A beard?" She gives a small nod and makes a face.

Logan says noncommittally, "I was just here for moral support." He bumps fists with Wallace.

"And I'm T-Pain, and you're my posse," Wallace retorts. "I'll get Vee to tell me the whole story later. You and I know little Miss Marshmallow here is really Sydney Bristow in disguise."

Veronica comments, "There's nothing to tell, Supa-fresh. Leo just made me a little mistake with the evidence, and we pointed it out to him."

Wallace opens the car door for Candice, and she slides into the rear seat. Wallace gets in after her and says, "Candice, this is Logan Echolls. Logan, Candice Pauling."

Logan turns around and says, "Hello, nice to meet you." Noticing her stunned expression, he says drily, "Don't believe everything you've heard about me. In fact, don't believe anything. It's really rare for me to actually murder an ex-girlfriend. And my friend's girlfriends are completely safe." Veronica frowns at him.

Candice finally recovers her voice and says, "Hi."

Veronica says quickly, "Candice, Logan and I were really sorry to hear about your brother."

Candice nods her thank-you.

Veronica gets in the passenger seat, and Logan puts the car in gear and heads for Neptune. Logan asks, "I assume we're heading for Hearst College, otherwise known as the Hellmouth?"

He gives Veronica a wise-ass look, and she picks up on it immediately. "It's just a good old-fashioned college with keg-parties and boys, I don't know why you'd assume Hearst was evil," she snipes back.

"Oh, I'm so very sorry. My contrition completely dwarfs the impending apocalypse," Logan answers, mock-seriously.

"What is this, a Buffy marathon?" Wallace pipes up from the back seat.

"Well, you know, a little blonde girl kicks ass and saves the world from evil. Seems perfectly appropriate," Logan replies, waggling the fingers of one hand in the air for emphasis. He looks over at Veronica, who makes a face. "Right, sugarpuss?"

"So, Echolls, are you the Original Evil?" she shoots back.

"I'm so rotten, they don't even have a word for it. I'm bad. Baddy bad, bad, bad. Does it make you horny?" He glances sideways at her with his trademark smirk, and she takes the bait.

"Only if you take off your shirt and flex for me, baby," she retorts. "You know how I like it."

"C'mon, Veronica, admit it, I'm your favorite bad boy," he snarks.

"Completely unreformable," she agrees.

"Okay, we're going to puke back here," Wallace interrupts from the back seat. "Enough of the foreplay. I really need your help, Veronica. You know...Shawn?" He glances at Candice, who flinches slightly.

Veronica looks guilty. "Oh, Candice. My god. I'm sorry, we're screwing around and–"

"It's all right," Candice replies. "Wallace told me about your dad; it must be a huge relief. You're allowed to be happy about it."

"You don't know how worried I've been," Veronica admits. "But still, I'm sorry. We're idiots." She looks back at Candice and Wallace regretfully.

Wallace says, "The police recovered Shawn's Blackberry. It was password-locked, but I got help from our old friend Leon."

"Leon, formerly of the Hearst computer science department, and mastermind of the magnetic card scam?" Veronica comments, turning to look at Wallace quizzically.

"Yeah, Professor Winkler hooked me up. With Mac in witness protection, I needed someone to help me crack the Blackberry," Wallace confirms, "and it turns out Leon took a job at Magneta-corp, not far from Atlanta."

"Magneta-corp?" Veronica repeats. "You're kidding."

"Nepotism at work. He sends his regards, by the way," Wallace adds, sarcastically.

"I bet."

Wallace pulls a sheaf of papers from his carry-on bag and hands them up to Veronica in the front seat. "Leon gave me a printout of everything on the device."

She shuffles through the papers. "It looks like he was meeting every week with someone with the initials CF."

"Until about two weeks before he disappeared," Wallace notes.

"And there's a number beside each entry. '500', '1200', '850', different amounts each time. 'CF'...maybe one of the Fitzpatricks?" she queries.

Logan says, "Ciaran. Do you remember him, Veronica? A big goon, repeated senior year like six times. Of course, everyone knew he was flunking on purpose so he could keep dealing drugs at the school."

Veronica nods. "He had quite a reputation. He was finally expelled two years before you transferred, Wallace."

Logan adds, "Weevil told me he thinks Ciaran and his brother Padraig killed Gustavio Toombs for trying to move in on the Fitzpatrick drug trade. Those guys are serious bad news, Wallace."

"Candice, I'm sorry to ask, but...did your brother ever deal drugs in the past?" Veronica asks cautiously.

She shakes her head. "No, not that I know of. But...I suppose it's possible. He was really smart, just not...common-sense smart. That's why my dad wanted him to go to college in Atlanta. But Shawn really seemed to have grown up and matured. And...Dad said he'd have to be on his own at some point, and we'd have to let him sink or swim." Candice looks incredibly sad. "I just feel so bad that I was overseas. Maybe I would have noticed something was going on if I was talking to him every week."

"It's not your fault. You couldn't have known," Wallace comforts, putting his arm around her.

She falls silent, staring out the window.

Veronica turns around in her seat and looks at Wallace. "You know, you can't just start asking questions about the Fitzpatricks and dealing meth. They'll kill you without even thinking twice."

"I know," he admits. "I was hoping Keith might have some ideas. I really don't want Shawn's murderer to get away with it."

Logan asks, logically, "Why was Shawn killed up in Washington State?" Looking at Veronica, he adds, "That's what you said, right?"

"I don't know," Wallace replies. "Maybe to throw suspicion away from the Fitzpatricks? Maybe there's a Canadian connection. I was hoping your dad would know more about it."

"I think he's going to say the same thing I did. You should leave this investigation to the authorities. What if you just turned this data over to Leo?" She meets Logan's sideway glance. "Leo's a good investigator." _Although I don't think he's going to be doing me any favors in the near future._

Logan shakes his head. Veronica glances at him again, slightly nervous.

"I'll be careful," Wallace insists. "You know my moms would get all up in my face if I got hurt. She's still fussing at me about the Harmony shooting. I told her about going undercover at the gym, and she had a heart-attack. 'What if that guy had been the killer? I don't want you working there any more. Veronica always takes too many chances. She's a bad influence on you,'" he says in a high feminine voice.

"It's not your mom I'm worried about," Veronica replies, completely serious. "Wallace, the Fitzpatricks don't kid around. I had to be rescued twice just for going into the River Stix, and I wasn't accusing them of murder." She looks at Logan, and he takes her hand for a second.

Wallace falls silent. Then he says quietly, "I'll show what I found to your dad, and I'll listen to what he says."

Sat. 2/28/09: Hearst Athletic Fields, Neptune, CA

Dick cheers as one of the more well-endowed members of the Hearst Varsity Women's Soccer Team intercepts a pass and takes the ball down the field. "Yeah, baby!" He stands and high-fives Chip Diller next to him. "Almost as good as 'Baywatch'". He sees Veronica standing down on the ground next to the spectator stands, crooking her index finger at him. "Later, dude," Dick says, hurrying down the steps to meet her by the entrance to the field. When he gets to her, she motions with her head, and leads him toward the nearby parking lot.

Veronica looks quizzically at Dick. "Since when are you a women's soccer fan?"

"Since Brandi Chastain took off her shirt at the '99 World's Cup. A life-changing event. Some of these chicks are total babes," he responds.

Veronica rolls her eyes. "And here I thought you were just being an athletic supporter."

"A jockstrap joke? That's cold, Veronica. Don't be hatin'," Dick replies. "Where are we going anyways?"

"To my car." They get to her Saturn, and she opens the back door, motioning for Dick to enter.

Dick looks nervous. "Wait, are you kidnapping me? I've been good lately. Really. What did you hear?"

From inside the car, Logan says, "Get in the car, dickhead."

"Dude!" Dick replies, jumping in the back seat. Veronica gets in the driver's side. Dick says, "When did you get back? Why didn't you call me? What the hell, Logan?"

Veronica interrupts Dick's blathering. "I'm pretty sure the paparazzi are watching you. They know you're Logan's best friend. They probably have a tap on your phone. Logan wanted to call you as soon as we got back, but we decided it'd be better to wait until we were sure you weren't being observed. We took a look around the parking lot, and I'm pretty sure it's safe here."

"Gnarly hair, dude," Dick comments, looking at Logan. "Veronica, I hate to tell you, but I think you're dating down."

"Nice to see you too, Dick. Good to know you're not pining away for me," Logan replies. "What d'you want to talk to Veronica about?"

"It's an email from Mac, and she's completely flipped out." Dick digs out a piece of paper from his pocket and hands it to Veronica. "I don't think I would have recognized you, Logan. You've totally leaned out. Must be–"

"Don't say it," Logan warns. Dick shrugs and holds back.

Veronica frowns, reading the text, then when she finishes, she hands it to Logan. "I see what you mean. 'Love, Mac' sticks out like a sore thumb." At Dick's expression, she adds, "Sorry, Dick. She's obviously trying to send us a message. Padres, field of daisies," she muses. "Padres means San Diego, obviously. And then she says, 'Veronica's boyfriend the summer after sophomore year.' That's got to mean Mike Fields, that was my second summer internship with the FBI."

Logan says, "What about daisies? That really doesn't sound like Mac."

"Daisies...daisy..." she mutters to herself. "Wait...I think they call the Hearst supercomputer 'Daisy'." She fumbles in her purse and pulls out her iPhone. Using Google, she looks up FBI regional offices. "That's it! There's an FBI regional computer forensics center in San Diego. Mac's trying to tell us that's where she is. She's not at Quantico."

"But...what does it matter? We still can't get to her if she's in witness protection, right?" Dick says.

"I think she's saying that Mike Fields could get a message to her. Or maybe she wants to use him to get a message to us. Maybe she found something in the system that's important. Something about Hannah's case, maybe. Maybe she's been snooping around," Veronica wonders.

"Logan..." Dick says hesitantly, "Seriously, are you okay, dude? I was worried."

"I'm better," Logan replies succinctly. "Thanks for figuring out my password, douchebag. Last time I tell you anything."

"Hey!" Veronica butts in, elbowing him. "You did great, Dick. You get one free favor from me."

"No Pi Sig rate?"

"Nope. Absolutely free." She extends her hand to Dick, who shakes it cautiously.

"This can't be good," Logan observes. "I don't think I like you guys being friendly. My entire world order has been perverted."

"Don't worry, I'm sure he'll do something to piss me off soon enough."

"Count on it," Logan says drily.

"Hey!!" Dick cries aggrievedly. "I'm right here."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Beast With Two Backs**  
Logan, Veronica, and Duncan surprise  
Katerina.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason  
Dohring. Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack.  
Katerina: Katherine Heigl.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FORTY-SIX: "THE BEAST WITH TWO BACKS"

Sat. 2/28/09: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

The elevator doors open with a ding, and Veronica starts to walk out, but Logan hesitates. She turns back and catches the door with her hand. "Are you going to be okay?"

"It's just..." he says tentatively.

"I know. It's hard. It's weird to be back here again. There's too many memories. And...I know how you feel about Duncan." He looks at her searchingly; she stretches her hand to him, and he takes it and follows her out of the elevator. Veronica stops just outside the elevator and turns to him. "Wait a second," she whispers. She reaches up to Logan, and pulls his face to hers. She kisses him, stroking the back of his head. "You know you have nothing to worry about. You can't get rid of me now."

"Sure, you say that now..." he replies, pressing his forehead against hers.

"I'll say it every day until you start to believe me." She thinks a minute, "How about, every time you see me scratching my cheek tonight, it means I'm thinking that I love you."

"Secret signals? Are we back in third grade?"

"You bet." She punches his arm lightly. "I'll be expecting you to respond with a spitball."

"What do you say...after we're done with this, we get a room of our own for tonight? Maybe the Honeymoon Suite, with the jacuzzi for two." He pushes a strand of her hair behind her ear, and unconsciously she shivers. "Your dad is cool but..."

"He's been unbelievable." She thinks about her dad telling her that he wanted her to move in with Logan if he went to prison. "But I know what you mean. We've had to be a little...restrained."

"Do you remember the list?" Logan asks. He shifts his cane to the other hand and pulls out his wallet. He takes out a well-worn folded piece of paper and hands it to Veronica.

She unfolds it and reads,  
'1. In the shower, from behind, while soaping her breasts  
2. Against the wall, with her legs wrapped around me  
3. Doggy style  
4. In the backseat of the BMW  
5. In the backseat of the Saturn  
6. Missionary, missionary, missionary  
7. On the kitchen counter after I lick her  
8. With her legs flipped up and wrapped around my neck  
9. In the Hearst library on the third floor--the Congress of the Cow  
10. Tie her to the bed and make her come ten times'

Veronica looks up at Logan and laughs. "Oh my god, you kept this?"

"Yeah, I had it with me the whole time I was gone." He smiles. "What do you say we start working on it tonight?"

"Hmm." She pretends to think. "I suppose that would be okay."

"I'm thinking number one and number eight for sure." He asks Veronica for her cell phone and dials a number from memory. "Can I speak to Tina, please?" He put his hand over the mouthpiece and whispers to Veronica, "You remember, my friend on the staff here?" In a normal voice, he says, "Tina. It's Logan Echolls. Can you do me a solid, strictly on the down low?...Yeah, I remember, fun times." He rolls his eyes at Veronica. "I'm in town just for one night, and I'd like to rent your best available suite...This needs to be under another name, let's say...Charles Windsor...and I'll be paying cash."

Veronica makes a face at him, mouthing, "Prince Charles? What, are you kidding?"

He shakes his head at her, smiling ironically. "That's great, Tina. I'll pick up the key card in your office in an hour or so. See you then." He hits the end button and hands the phone back to Veronica. Then Logan extends his hand for the list; she makes a show of being reluctant to give it back, smiling all the while. He takes it from her and carefully refolds it, replacing it in his wallet. He remarks, "Now I'm ready to face Duncan." Logan takes her hand, and she leads him to Duncan's door.

Duncan opens the door, obviously nervous. "Logan, hey..."

"Duncan...I'm sorry about Lill– your daughter...I mean..." Logan stumbles a little over the words.

"Yeah. Me too," Duncan says shortly. "Come on in. Katya's not here yet."

"Good," Veronica says.

When Veronica called Duncan to tell him about the break-in at Mars Investigations and the video of Katerina, Duncan reacted bitterly, complaining that yet another woman had lied to him. He angrily told Veronica to forget it; he was just going to tell Katerina to go away and concentrate on the custody battle. Veronica calmed him down and convinced him that they needed to find out what Katerina's agenda was and what damage might have been done to Duncan's case. Duncan finally agreed; he vetoed Veronica's dinner plan, saying that Katerina would know immediately that it was a setup. He suggested instead that they come over first and let Katerina walk in on them unawares; her reaction might tell them everything they needed to know.

Veronica asks, "What time did Katerina say she was coming?"

"She just said she'd join me for dinner tonight. I guess around seven," Duncan replies.

Noting Duncan's return to his normal hair color, Logan says to Duncan, "Blonds really don't have more fun?"

"To tell the truth, I wish I could erase all the plastic surgery too. Every time I look in the mirror, it just seems like a nightmare." He looks at Logan. Overtly trying to be friendly, he says in a mocking tone, "You need to eat, dude. You're too skinny. And the beard? And the cane? Come on. Who are you kidding? Did the queer eye guys get a hold of you?"

Taking the bait, Logan drops his cane, limps over to Duncan and puts him in a headlock. He snarks, "I'm not too skinny to kick your ass."

"You wish, girly man."

"Oh, you die," Logan says. He tries to pull Duncan to the floor, and they begin to tussle, eventually dissolving into laughter.

"Logan, watch out for your knee," Veronica calls out, laughing along with them. She breathes a sigh of relief; they seem to be getting along, for the moment at least. Logan looks over at her; she ostentatiously scratches her cheek, and he smiles back. She gets his cane and hands it to him. The three of them sit down on the couch, Veronica in between the two young men. She thinks, _Just like old times at the Neptune Grand, except...this time I'm going out with the right one._

Slightly out of breath, Duncan says, "You hardly even need that cane. Guess you're not going to be a cripple after all."

"I'll be shredding the waves before you know it."

Duncan nods his head toward Veronica. "Do you think you'll ever get her on a board?"

"Nah. I think the Neptune Cocktail was named for her," Logan replies deprecatingly.

Veronica looks a little puzzled. Duncan leans over and says, "That's when you wipe out on a big wave and drink the sea-nectar of the god Neptune."

She rolls her eyes and retorts, "Perhaps I just need better instruction."

Logan condescendingly says, "It's all right, Veronica; you look good in a bikini. That's all you need to worry about, honeybunch."

"Oh, thanks, sweetie-pie."

"No problem, snookums."

Veronica notes a shadow passing over Duncan's expression. She elbows Logan and subtly nods toward Duncan. She changes the topic. "Duncan, we ran every check on Katerina's name that we could think of. My dad even ran her face through the government's facial recognition software without a hit."

Logan chimes in, "Duncan, I know I've seen her before. I just...I just can't place the face."

"Well, she said she's been in Neptune before. She's probably using an alias. Do you have any sense of where you might have met her?" Duncan asks.

"No clue," Logan replies.

There's a knock on the door, and the three of them immediately go silent. Duncan goes to answer the door. "Katya." The beautiful blonde woman kisses his cheek, stroking his arm, and enters the room. She stops short when she sees Logan and Veronica. Veronica thinks she perceives Katerina visibly calming herself. Duncan says, "You remember my friend, Veronica. This is...um, my friend, Logan."

Logan uses his cane to stand up; he turns toward Katerina and scrutinizes her face. Katerina says easily, "Hello, Logan. Nice to meet you. Nice to see you again, Veronica." She turns back to Duncan. Veronica looks at Logan questioningly; he shakes his head 'no'.

Duncan says, "My friends just stopped by for a few minutes. I was just going to open a bottle of wine. Unless–Logan, would you rather have a beer?"

"Actually, a soda would be better. Coke, if you got it."

"R-r-right." Duncan looks slightly surprised at Logan's request. "Veronica?"

"Coke for me too," she says in solidarity.

"Well, I'm having some of that Beaujolais we opened the other night." Duncan goes behind the bar; he brings two Cokes to Logan and Veronica, then returns to the bar and pours two glasses of wine. As Veronica had coached him, he holds two prepared wine glasses by their stems and hands one to Katerina. Veronica looks on in satisfaction as she grasps the wine glass by the bowl. _Let's see who you really are, Katerina._

Katerina, resplendent in a low-cut purple and scarlet dress that shows off her impressive cleavage, settles next to Duncan on the couch. Veronica notices that she makes sure to contact Duncan's body and touches his knee or arm casually as she speaks. Katerina says, "So did you three go to school together?"

"Good old Neptune High!" Veronica says sarcastically.

"Go Pirates," Duncan echoes, unenthusiastically.

"Duncan, did you or Logan play any sports?" Katerina asks.

Logan says sarcastically, "I lettered in partying. Oh, and don't forget about boxing. I had a bit of notoriety for that."

Veronica nudges him. "Katerina, Duncan says this is not your first visit to Neptune. Do you have business here?"

"Business associates is more accurate." Katerina takes a sip of wine, skillfully eluding Veronica's question.

"What line of work are you in?" Veronica persists.

"Investments. Real estate and banking for the most part," Katerina answers.

"Oh really? I'm taking a seminar in investment fraud for my criminology degree."

Logan says, "Isn't she adorable? Beauty and brains in the same package." He chucks Veronica under her chin, and she frowns back at him.

Veronica continues, "Is that something you've ever run into? I ask because I'm in the middle of my research, and the field is changing overnight. As internet fraud becomes more prevalent, the investor has to constantly be on the lookout for new scams."

"I really wouldn't know. I have advisors who vet every proposal for me before I invest...Would you excuse me for a moment?" Katerina stands up and strolls to the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. Watching Katerina's mesmerizing, erotic progress across the room, Veronica reflects that Duncan never had a chance when this woman set out to bag him.

Duncan looks quizzically at Logan; Logan shakes his head 'no'. Veronica says quietly, "Just...follow my lead. We might as well try to get some information out of her."

When Katerina emerges from the bathroom, for a moment she is backlit by the bathroom light, and her curvaceous profile is silhouetted. Logan frowns, then he suddenly pushes quickly to his feet and limps over to Katerina. She turns to him in surprise. Logan grabs her upper arm, looking closely at her face. He turns her left arm so that he can look at the inside of her wrist. Katerina has a tattoo of a strand of flowers, with one larger flower of an intricate design. Logan appears to be thinking as he examines her arm.

"Logan?" Veronica asks.

Logan suddenly and viciously twists Katerina's wrist, forcing her to turn around and fall toward the nearby wall. He pulls down the zipper on her dress to expose her lower back.

"Logan, what the hell?" Duncan asks. He stands up and goes over to them; Veronica follows quickly behind.

Logan traces his hand over the junction of Katerina's spine and buttocks; there are very faint marks, almost a pattern of lighter marks against her skin color. Logan says harshly, "I bet it hurt like hell to laser this tattoo off. I hear your skin smells like burning pork chops."

"Logan?!" Veronica asks again.

"It's Kendall. Fucking bitch Kendall. She used to have a rosary tattooed on her left wrist; she covered it up with a new tattoo of flowers." To Kendall, he says, "You always were too proud of your boobs, Kendall. If you really wanted to hide, you should have gotten a breast reduction," Logan bites off.

Kendall turns her head and says spitefully, "Fuck you. Poor little rich boy and all your problems. You always treated me like I was a whore."

"If the shoe fits...Veronica, give me your taser," Logan says, holding Kendall tightly.

Veronica scrambles for her purse and hands the taser to Logan. "Logan, I think we should call my dad."

"If not the police," Duncan remarks.

"I'm dead, you idiot. Kendall Casablancas doesn't exist anymore," Kendall sneers. "Duncan, you should take some lessons from your friend Logan. Christ, you're the worst lay I've ever had. Good thing you have a lot of money."

Duncan grabs the taser from Logan and triggers it against Kendall. She slumps against the wall and slides down to the floor. Veronica looks at Duncan in shock. Duncan says quietly, "I'm sick of everyone fucking with me. I always just tried to do the right thing." He hands the taser back to Logan and returns to the couch, dropping his head into his hands.

Veronica disappears into Duncan's bedroom and returns a few minutes later with some of his neckties. Duncan mopes on the couch, drinking his wine, while she and Logan heave Kendall into a chair and tie her securely with the neckties. "Too bad Wiedman isn't still around; this kind of thing was right up his alley," she mutters under her breath to Logan.

"Call your dad," Logan says brusquely. "...Fuck! I really want a drink tonight."

Veronica shoots a glance at him.

"I'm not going to drink, Veronica. But, goddamn, I feel like I'm being forced to deal with every mistake I made senior year."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Revelations 17:4-5**  
Kendall is interrogated.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason  
Dohring. Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack.  
Kendall 2.0: Katherine Heigl.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN: "REVELATIONS 17:4-5"  
_"And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication. And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH."_

Sat. 2/28/09: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

While they wait for Keith, Veronica goes into Duncan's bedroom to search for bugs or recording devices. After a moment, Logan follows her and sits down heavily on the bed. In a quiet voice, Veronica says, "Are you okay?"

"Fucking Kendall," he mutters. "She's...she's the reason you and I..." Logan looks at Veronica with a despairing look. "I'm just afraid...I'm afraid you're going to remember just why you broke up with me." Bitterly, he concludes, "I was a goddamn fool. All I ever did was hurt you."

Duncan watches through the open doorway from the other room as Veronica moves to Logan's side. She puts her arm around Logan's shoulder and pulls him to her. Logan leans his head onto her torso, putting one arm around her. Duncan feels a stabbing pang of jealousy and clenches his fists.

Veronica says to Logan, "We talked about this. You've got to let it go. We both made mistakes." She looks toward the living room and sees Duncan watching them. Veronica pulls away from Logan, frowning. He looks up at her, and she subtly motions her head toward the living room. When Logan's eyes meet Duncan's, Duncan turns away and busies himself picking up the glasses from the coffee table and taking them to the wet bar.

Veronica begins to search the bedroom methodically. All the lamps are secured to the tables, and she dismisses them quickly. She runs her hand over the flat-screen television, shaking her head. She looks up, noticing a smoke detector, and she grabs a chair and pulls it over.

Logan queries, "What is it?"

"My dad and I use a fake smoke detector all the time. It has a camera in it that transmits to a recording device up to 40 feet away." She stands on the chair, but she is unable to reach the smoke detector.

"Here, let me," Logan says. He climbs up on the chair and easily reaches the device. He opens it up and says, "What am I looking for?"

"Is there a camera lens? And then there would also be a transmitter, attached with two wires."

"I think so," Logan replies. "If you have a screwdriver, I'll get it down."

Veronica goes into the living room to get her Leatherman all-in-one tool from her purse. She returns to the bedroom and opens it up to the screwdriver tool. She hands it up to Logan, and he looks at it, noting the color. "Purple?"

"It's called the Juice. No self-respecting P.I. would be without one," she answers. "Can you get it?"

He responds by taking the smoke detector off the ceiling and handing it to her.

"Yep, that's it. Wireless, black and white picture with a microphone as well. So Kendall must have a VCR somewhere in her room." Logan carefully steps off the chair, holding onto Veronica to steady himself.

There's a loud knock on the door. Duncan opens it and invites Keith in. Veronica and Logan walk out to greet him.

Keith sees the smoke detector in Veronica's hands, and he nods grimly. Looking over at Kendall tied to a chair, he asks, "So who is she?"

"It's Kendall. Logan recognized her uh..." Veronica stumbles.

"Her profile. And she still has a slight scar where she used to have a tattoo on her back," Logan explains.

Kendall, deciding to try a new tactic, says, "I don't know what they're talking about. I had a burn on my back when I was a kid. I don't know why they keep calling me Kendall. My name's Katerina, and when I tell the police what happened here, you're all going to be in a lot of trouble."

Keith walks over to her and studies her carefully. "No, I see it too. It's very good plastic surgery; it must have taken quite a bit of money...So Kendall, how 'bout you save us some time and tell us where the video recorder is in your room?"

Kendall obstinately stays silent. Veronica shrugs and finds Kendall's purse. She retrieves Katerina's card key and goes across the hall to Kendall's room. While they wait, Logan, Duncan, and Keith stare at Kendall, who is becoming increasingly nervous but keeps quiet.

Veronica returns five minutes later with a small video recorder and several small tapes. Duncan extends his hand, and Veronica gives him the tapes. He looks over the tapes with a resentful expression and drops them onto the table.

Keith pulls up a chair and sits close to Kendall, scrutinizing her. "So you did survive the shooting. I bet you have quite a tale to tell about that night in the desert."

Kendall stares at him, impassively.

Keith continues, "Did the Mannings hire you?"

"What?" Kendall replies, genuinely shocked.

"Did the Mannings hire you to get some dirt on Duncan to hurt his custody case?" Keith repeats.

"No. I don't know what you're talking about."

"I don't believe her," Duncan says.

Keith turns to him and comments, "I think she might be telling the truth." He turns back to Kendall, "So if you're not working for the Mannings, why are you videotaping Duncan?"

Kendall stares back angrily, then shrugs and admits, "Duncan's got millions. The first night, I was just looking for company, and he was attractive enough. A little uninspired in the bedroom, but what the hell. Then when I found out he was Duncan Kane and realized what he was worth..." She shrugs again, her meaning clear. "The video is insurance. If I couldn't convince him to part with his money willingly, I'd blackmail him. At the very least, I could sell the tapes to the tabloids."

"Then why did you break into our office?" Veronica chimes in.

Kendall looks shocked.

"That's right, we have video of you searching our office." Veronica turns to her dad. "Let's just call the police...let them handle it. We can tell them her real name. You never know, there might be some old charges too."

"Even better, we should deliver her to Liam Fitzpatrick. I'm sure he's still pissed that you double-crossed him." Keith stares at Kendall, who looks agitated at the mention of Liam. "Yeah, that's what we should do. We'll leave her someplace and call Liam, tell him where she is. She'll be dead by morning."

"You can't do that! That's murder!" Kendall replies heatedly.

"Yeah, Kendall, it is. And what were you planning to do out in the desert after I dropped off Cormac?"

"Nothing. I swear. I thought we were going to run away together. I didn't know Cormac was going to..."

"What...murder you and then get rid of me, the only witness? You play a dangerous game, Kendall. You have to expect there's going to be some consequences. I was a fool to take your case."

She sits silently, thinking, then blurts out, "What the hell happened to the money from the painting? I heard it made its way back to the open market. Cormac and Liam were too stupid to figure out that the painting was how I was transporting the money. I know you had to have taken the painting." She sneers at Veronica, "But you and little Miss Detective are still living the middle class dream. No fancy cars, still living in that crappy apartment. What the hell did you do with the money?"

"You're really not in a position to ask questions," Veronica chimes in.

"No, it's okay. It'll kill her to find out." Keith leans over Kendall and says quietly, "I donated the money to charity...the South Neptune food bank. The proceeds from whatever scam you were running are feeding the poor of Neptune."

Kendall looks stunned. "It's gone? You gave it all away? You're a fool. You could have retired, could have stopped spying on men cheating on their wives and prying into other people's business."

"And look over my shoulder every day, wondering when Liam was going to catch up with me? No thanks. I'll stick with snooping. I sleep okay at night."

Logan interrupts, speaking in a quiet, dangerous tone. "Why did you have an affair with me?"

Kendall looks at him nervously.

Logan stands up and walks over to her. "Why, Kendall? Why would you take that chance? I treated you like shit, and you kept coming back for more. I don't believe you were just there for the sex." He sees Veronica's anguished face out of the corner of his eye, and he almost stops. But he thinks to himself, _I've got to know, I've got to understand what the hell was happening that year._ "Why?" He leans down and grabs her neck with his hand, shaking her a little.

"Logan..." Veronica says, almost in a whisper, scared of what he might do.

Kendall swallows, staring into Logan's angry eyes. "I told Liam that you were sniffing around, hinting and flirting with me. I was mad at Liam, and I wanted to piss him off. And that did it...I thought he was going to kill me right then.

_FLASHBACK (narrated by Kendall)  
Liam says, "You're not going to fuck around on my brother. You do what I tell you to do, Kendall, and only what I tell you to do." He draws a gun and presses it hard into the side of Kendall's forehead._

_Then Liam freezes abruptly; he brings the gun down, but Kendall is still too frightened to move. He paces a little, then whirls around to look at Kendall again. "Actually, you know, banging the Echolls kid might come in handy. He's gonna have to take the fall for offing Felix. We can't have the cops looking too closely at the PCHers...You're gonna fuck the kid, Kendall. And you're gonna fuck with his mind too, so he doesn't know if he's going or coming. Yeah, coming." Liam laughs uproariously at his inadvertent joke. "Coming, that's great. That's what you do best, Kendall. It's your special talent."_

_Kendall looks at Liam, scared._

_Liam leans in and talks to her, his mouth inches from her face. "You're gonna fuck the kid, you're gonna stay close to him, so we know exactly how to set him up."_

"So you were reporting to Liam the whole time...?" Veronica says, sickened.

"C'mon lover boy, you've got to admit we had some fun," Kendall says to Logan, in a mock-sweet tone.

"You make me sick," Logan says. "You're worse than a whore."

"A very rich whore," Kendall corrects. "I've managed to accumulate some funds since I left Neptune. There's always a rich gentleman in need of companionship. Of course I would have been a little richer if your daddy hadn't been killed."

"What?" Logan thunders, whirling around to face her again.

"Yeah, he promised me 200,000 to get one of Duncan's hairs out of the shower drain...from that shower right over there." Kendall laughs, motioning with her head. "I think his sleazebag attorneys planted it on his Oscar trophy. Then, after the trial, Aaron got shot before I could collect. We were sealing the deal that day, and I went to take a shower. When I came out, he'd been shot, and I got the hell out of there."

Duncan exchanges a glance with Veronica. Veronica thinks, _When Wiedman shot Aaron, on Duncan's orders..._ Logan is fixated on Kendall and doesn't notice Veronica's and Duncan's unease.

Kendall continues, "I think you should pony up the two hundred grand that your daddy promised me, Logan. I have to say, you definitely inherited his skills in the sack. Quite memorable, just like you, lover."

"Oh that's just great, Kendall. Just fuck everyone to get what you want," Logan says bitterly.

"But it all worked out anyway." Now Kendall is talking quickly, as if she's been waiting to tell this story to someone, anyone who would listen. "Good ol' Beav really came through for me. What a fabulous stepson he was. Eight million dollars he makes on land deals, then he takes a header off the roof, and I get it all. I decided to forget about the deal I had with Liam, and I hired the only honest man in Neptune to make me a new identity and get me out of town. I waited for the only man I've ever loved to get out of prison...and he double-crossed me."

"Wait...what was that about a deal with Liam?" Veronica asks, curiously.

"Liam and I were running a con on Richard Casablancas Senior. We were siphoning funds off every deal that guy was making."

Veronica remembers observing Kendall making a delivery to a hotel room._ That must have been the bag man, someone working for Liam._

Kendall continues, "...I knew Dick Senior was crooked, but I thought he was too smart to get caught. And there was so much money changing hands, it was easy to make some of it spill into my hands."

Keith asks, "How much?"

"Five million. My cut was half. Liam and I had an arrangement. But I never trusted him; I always knew he was likely to screw me over. When Beaver took his swan dive, I decided to take the Phoenix Land Trust money and run."

"Except...Liam figured out that you were running," Keith comments.

"As usual, he thought he deserved half of that money too. I actually had to work for that money," Kendall says, in a surprised tone. "That was legitimately my money. Great, huh? The only time I ever made money legally. And Liam decides he wanted half of it."

"And the love of your life wanted all of it," Keith adds. "Cormac always intended to kill you, as soon as I delivered you to him."

"Never con a con artist, right?" Kendall muses.

"So, how did you survive? Your blood was all over the cabin," Keith asks.

"Yeah, scalp wounds bleed like a mother." Kendall inclines her head, thinking about it. "Cormac dumped me in the desert. I guess he thought I was dead. I woke up, I guess a few hours later, and I tried to get back to the cabin, but I was too weak to make it. Some guy picked me up on the roadway and took me to a doctor. I managed to convince them it wasn't a bullet wound, and he patched me up. By the time I got back to the cabin, it was a crime scene, and I decided to cut my losses and get the hell out of there. I watched art auctions to see if the painting ever showed up; it never did, but then it was listed at an exhibition, so I knew there'd been a private sale."

"What painting?" Duncan queries, completely confused.

"Kendall used the cash from the Phoenix Land Trust to buy an extremely valuable painting, Van Gogh's 'The Two Lovers'. It was actually pretty smart...easy to take through customs, a small portable package, relatively easy to convert back into cash if you have the right connections," Keith comments, admiringly.

"I just didn't know who sold the painting. I figured it had to be you, Keith, since Liam and Cormac were too stupid to think of hiding the money in plain sight. But I couldn't understand. I've been watching you. This fall, when Veronica was arrested, you didn't bail her out. You had to get Echolls to put up the bail money. I knew you wouldn't let your kid stay in jail, so it seemed like you must not have the money. But...I've heard rumors that Liam's been trying to locate the eight million dollars as well, so I didn't think he had it either."

Veronica says, "You never thought about charity."

"Suckers," Kendall snorts. "You gave up the easy life to be a do-gooder. It's insane."

"So you broke into my office trying to find the money from the sale of the painting?" Keith asks.

Kendall nods. "The money, or a secret account or safe deposit box where you have the money stashed. Listen, I told you everything. You're going to let me go, right?"

Logan recognizes Kendall's practiced art of deception. "Sounds like you knew that it would be a long shot to find the money from the painting in Keith's office. Why are you really in town?"

Kendall shuts up.

Keith and Logan exchange a glance. Keith says, "Veronica, take a picture with your phone. And then send it to Liam Fitzpatrick. He'll be very interested to know what Kendall looks like now."

"You can't!" Kendall says, begging. "Stop!"

Veronica aims her phone at Kendall and takes the picture. She ostentatiously pushes buttons on the phone. "What's the number, Dad?"

Kendall says quickly, "Liam and I have a joint bank account, and I need to find out his password."

Keith stares at her, waiting.

"We didn't trust each other on the Casablancas con. So we came up with the idea of a joint account in the Caymans. You need both our passwords to access the funds. Or...a death certificate."

"So Liam can't access it either, because there was no body. Kendall Casablancas is still considered missing, presumed dead. After seven years, the state will issue a death certificate..." Keith thinks aloud.

"And he can get into the account, by right of survivorship," Kendall finishes.

"You gave Liam an awfully good motive to kill you."

"Except it would be killing the goose that laid the golden egg. Liam's drug running and racketeering aren't nearly as profitable as the real estate scams I've been doing," Kendall says proudly.

"Just think if you had done it legitimately. You'd be a millionaire, and you wouldn't be worrying about Liam hacking you into little tiny pieces," Veronica observes.

"As if a poor girl from the wrong side of the tracks can get seed money to start a business venture!" Kendall sneers. "The system is rigged against the little guy. The only way to beat it is to be a crook. And I needed Liam to launder the cash, in one of his many little enterprises."

Duncan speaks up. "Do you have any other photos or tapes of me? Remember that I can tell the Fitzpatricks what you look like too."

Sullenly, she replies, "No. The videotapes are it."

"Good," he answers. "And you're not going to cause any other trouble for my custody case?"

She shakes her head 'no'.

Veronica says, "Duncan, give them to me. We'll erase them for you at the office with our degaussing machine."

"No. I'll take care of it," he says firmly. Duncan gathers the tapes and the video recorder and takes them into his bedroom.

"What do we do with her?" Logan asks Keith.

"I guess we let her go. There's probably no evidence left of her involvement in the Casablancas real estate swindle, and Richard Casablancas has already served his sentence for that crime, so there's no point to calling the police. She knows that we'll tell Liam what she looks like if she causes any more problems for us," Keith muses. He directs his attention to Kendall. "I suggest you get out of Neptune, Kendall...or Priscilla, or Katerina, whatever the hell name you want to use. Go back to bedding rich men and forget about that account in the Caymans. It's not worth dying over. If Logan could recognize you, then Liam probably could too. He's got millions of reasons to keep looking for you."

Logan nods his agreement. He and Veronica begin to untie the neckties securing Kendall to her chair. When the bonds on her wrists are untied, Kendall begins massaging her wrists. "So lovely to see you again, Logan," she says sarcastically. She looks at Veronica. "And you...still just Veronica Mars, still a disappointment."

Logan, angered by her words, grabs her arm and propels Kendall towards the door. "Don't let the door hit you on the ass on your way out, bitch. Hope to never see you again," he says furiously.

"Likewise I'm sure," Kendall replies sarcastically, a little off balance from Logan pushing her. She grabs the woodwork on the doorway and turns around to say, "And don't you worry about me. I always manage to end up on top. Right, Logan?" She smirks and exits.

Logan rushes to the door and slams it, turning the lock viciously. When he turns to face Keith, Veronica, and Duncan, his face is reddened by anger and humiliation. He struggles to speak. "Veronica, I'm so...I'm so sorry about her. I wish..." He drops his eyes, unable to look Keith or Veronica in the face.

Veronica silently walks over to him and hugs him. At first, Logan is unsure what to do with his hands, but he finally returns the embrace, hanging his head in embarrassment. Duncan fidgets uncomfortably, then begins to gather up the neckties they used to tie her up, managing to keep from looking at Veronica hugging Logan.

Veronica pulls away slightly, keeping her arm around Logan's back. "Dad? Do you think she's telling the truth?"

"I don't know. She seemed genuinely surprised to hear that I gave the money away. I don't think she was hired by the Mannings to hurt Duncan's custody case. She probably makes it a habit to tape her conquests in case it turns out to be useful later." Keith shrugs. "I wouldn't be surprised if she turns up dead one of these days. You would think after what happened in the desert that she would have wanted to stay far away from Liam Fitzpatrick, and with him out of prison now, it's incredibly dangerous for her to stay in Neptune."

"She's greedy," Veronica comments. "She saw an opportunity when she realized she was sleeping with Duncan Kane. She should have left town the moment Liam was released from prison."

"I don't care," Logan says. "I don't care if she gets stabbed or shot or beat up or whatever." His voice rises in anger. "She was reporting back to the Fitzpatricks every time I was stupid enough to go to bed with her. She tried to set up Duncan for Lilly's murder. If you guys weren't here..." his voice trails off.

"Logan, stop!" Veronica says.

He looks at her, his eyes finally focusing on her face.

"It's over. Forget about her. She's not worth it," she says firmly. "I'm glad we figured out who she was. If you didn't know her...maybe Duncan would have lost his chance to get Lilly." Veronica keeps her voice steady, but, inside, she's teeming with emotions. _I hate her too. Fucking Kendall._

There's an uncomfortable silence. Duncan finally says, "Listen, if you guys don't mind...I don't even want to think about this any more."

"Yeah," Keith replies, clapping a hand on Duncan's shoulder. "You'll be okay now. I don't think you have to worry about her anymore. I know everything's going to work out for you, Duncan." Keith grimaces and thinks to himself, _I just wish you hadn't kidnapped the baby in the first place; I'll never forgive you for putting Veronica's future in jeopardy._

Duncan nods, hearing Keith's unspoken thought as loudly as if it was uttered. "Thanks, Mr. Mars."

Keith, Veronica, and Logan gather their things and make their way to the door. Duncan silently closes the door behind them. In the hallway, Keith turns to Veronica and asks, "See you at the apartment?"

"Uh, actually, we...uh, we have plans for the evening," Veronica says, blushing furiously. She adds lamely, "Dinner and a movie. Don't wait up for us, it might be late."

"Oh. Uh, okay," Keith sighs. He walks to her and hugs her. He says quietly, "You're still my little girl, you know. I love you." To Logan, he adds, "Be careful. Take care of her." He releases Veronica and says, "See you, uh, tomorrow, we got that meeting at noon, right?" Keith stammers a little, unable to look her in the eye. He hurries off, glancing once over his shoulder at the two of them watching him leave.

When the elevator doors shut, obscuring them from Keith's view, Logan says morosely, "I don't know, Veronica. Maybe a quiet night with your dad would be better...let's just forget about the Honeymoon Suite."

"No! Don't let her...don't let her ruin things for us," she finally finishes lamely. She takes his hand. "Logan?"

He looks at her.

"I'm proud of you. You tried really hard with Duncan, and he tried too. It was hard for both of you tonight," she comments.

He drops his eyes and mutters, "I don't deserve you."

"Don't you _dare_ let her ruin things for us," she repeats, more strongly.

"Yes, mistress," he says quietly, then looks up to see her reaction, with the faintest of wry looks.

"That's better," she replies. "So I get to be in charge tonight? What's your safe word going to be?"

He chuckles softly, "I don't need one with you...but let's say..." He smoothes the hair from her forehead with a gentle caress as he pretends to think, gradually getting into the game with her. "How about...Texas?"

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Code Word: Endurance**  
Gratuitous pandering to fangirls ahead.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason  
Dohring. Tina: Anna Campbell.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT: "CODE WORD: ENDURANCE"

Sat. 2/28/09: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

"Let's go see your friend Tina," she replies. "I'm thinking...we should use the stairs."

When they descend to the main floor, Veronica peeks around the corner, looking for paparazzi. "Seems safe," she whispers to Logan directly behind her.

They hustle down the hallway to Tina's office; Logan knocks gently, and, when he hears 'Come in', pushes the door open.

"Logan, so nice to see you." Tina stands up and hands a keycard to Logan. He fishes out his wallet and hands over the agreed-upon amount of cash. Tina says, "I hope you don't mind..." She looks at Veronica with curiosity and not a little envy. "I asked housekeeping to put a few surprises in the room for you. My treat, to welcome you back, Mr. Windsor," she says, winking.

"Thanks, Tina," Logan replies with a little wave.

Veronica checks the hallway again, and they proceed to the elevator quickly. The doors open almost immediately, and they enter, pressing the top button marked 'P' for penthouse. Logan whispers, "Do you want to give the security guards a show?" He nods with his head to the security camera, then bends down and begins kissing her neck.

"Stop it," she says, without conviction. "Do you have to be a bad boy all the time?"

"Yes, I do," he snarks, then begins to kiss his way to her mouth. When his lips meet hers, he tongues her fiercely, taking her breath away and making her sag against him.

The elevator dings quietly as they reach the penthouse floor. Logan releases her from his kiss, and she gasps, "Oh...there's definitely something about a bad boy..." He grabs her hand, tugging at her to come along to the room.

Logan inserts the keycard and pushes open the door. He drops the keycard and his cane and grabs her, propelling her across the living room to the bedroom beyond as he continues the kiss he started in the elevator.

"Slow down a little," she begs him, not meaning a word of it.

He chuckles, "Yes, mistress. If I may suggest?"

"Yes?" she replies, encouragingly.

"May I take off your clothes, mistress?" He leads her to the bed, gently urging her to lay down and sitting beside her. He bends to her neck and kisses her as he starts to unbutton her shirt. With each button, he trails kisses down her torso, lingering a little as he exposes her exquisite body, inch by inch. He tugs her shirt out from inside her jeans and delicately presses his lips below her bellybutton, and she shivers in response. "Ah, I think I've pleased the mistress," he murmurs. He urges her to sit up a little, and he takes off her shirt completely, revealing her delicate pink bra, and he kisses her along the scalloped edges of the lacy material.

"Umm, yes. That's pretty...ah...nice," she says, exclaiming as he presses a hand to her crotch, rubbing his hand gently against the seam of her tight jeans.

Logan comes up to nuzzle against her ear, whispering, "I think these jeans have to come off, my dear. Does the mistress approve?" He strokes a little harder against her crotch, and she hitches a little in response. She nods, and he firmly presses his lips against the sensitive skin beneath her ear. He lingers on her neck, kissing and sucking gently, as he unbuttons her jeans and draws the zipper down tortuously slowly.

"Ohhhh," she moans, wishing that he would hurry up and slow down all at once. She reaches for him, running her fingers through his hair and stroking his shoulders.

Logan ravages her mouth, taking her breath away, then pushes himself off the bed. He bends over her and eases her jeans down over her hips, just enough to expose her matching pink panties. He places a kiss on the waistband on her panties, then moves down and presses his mouth to her delicate thatch of hair hidden by the soft silkiness of her underthings. Veronica writhes a little under his kisses, spreading her thighs a little, hoping he'll release her from the confinement of her jeans, wishing he would kiss her a little lower. He follows her cues, sucking a little through the smooth material, rubbing her gently with his lips and tongue. She sighs her appreciation, panting loudly, engrossed in the profound sensations that are paradoxically heightened by the flimsy barrier of the silken material.

Finally, when Veronica thinks she cannot withstand any more of his restraint, he stands up and moves to the foot of the bed. He removes her shoes and reaches for her jeans, quickly pulling them off her legs and throwing them across the room. Logan sits down again and takes her calf in his hands. As he eases her sock off her foot, he kisses her ankle tenderly and follows the sock's progress with a trail of soft kisses. He repeats his loving motions on her other foot, tossing the socks away as he removes them. He lies back down beside her, pressing his body against hers; he reaches one hand down to stroke her through her satiny panties as he kisses and tongues her mouth. Logan fondles her through the soft and damp material, gliding his finger across her nub, tormenting her with his ministrations.

"Logan?" she gasps, caressing his chest.

"Yes, mistress?" he answers, moving down to kiss her neck again.

She pulls gently on his shirt. "You have too many clothes on..."

"Your wish is my command." He brushes against her neck one last time, then stands up and moves to the foot of the bed. He waits until she props herself up on her elbows to watch, then he mockingly strips for her. Logan does a little dance to imaginary music, posing and strutting as he unbuttons his shirt. Logan's still a little cautious of his healing leg, but he manages to do a passable burlesque for her. He throws the shirt away, then puts his arms behind his head, gyrating and thrusting his pelvis. Veronica begins to giggle at his antics. He turns his profile to her and makes a show of drawing the zipper of his jeans down as he bumps and grinds enticingly.

"Oh my god, you need a pole," Veronica laughs. "Pretty good dancing for a gimp. Come on, baby, take it all off!"

He kicks off his shoes and turns away from her, looking coquettishly over his shoulder at her, then draws his jeans down slowly, gradually exposing his boxers. Veronica claps her approval, saying, "Yeah, baby!" He moves his hips from side to side and then finally steps out of his jeans. Logan turns to face her and dances slowly for her. She says, "Come on, all of it!" and he makes a show of reluctance, wagging his finger at her. He acquiesces and hooks his thumbs into the sides of his boxers, wriggling his boxers off slowly, watching her face the entire time. He eases the boxer over his erection, and she smiles lasciviously at him, urging him on with catcalls. "Come on, boy! Show us what you got! Let me see your manly goodness," she giggles.

He twirls the boxers on his finger for a moment, making her dissolve in laughter. Logan throws the boxers away and comes back to lie beside her. He resumes kissing her neck and says, "Did the mistress like my dance?"

She replies, "Logan. Stop calling me mistress."

"Ah...What would you prefer? Sweetie-pie, honey, darling, sugarpuss..." he mutters as he rubs his face against her neck.

"Just say my name."

"Veronica," he whispers, his lips brushing against her as he speaks. "Veronica, Veronica, Veronica," he says, humming the syllables against her neck.

She smiles and reaches for his head, pulling him to her lips to kiss him passionately. She tongues him and grabs his hand, putting it to the clasp of her bra. "You do remember how to work this, right?" she snarks breathlessly.

"A challenge from Mistress Veronica," he responds. He gets lucky and opens the clasp the first time, saying, "Ta-da! Nothing to it!" He pulls the bra off as she wriggles to assist him; he throws the bra across the room. It lands on the lampshade and dangles there.

"Oh, you'll be unbearable now..." she laughs.

"Really? Unbearable?" He caresses her breast, stroking the nipple to attention. "Do you mean to say you don't like this?" He rubs a little harder, tweaking the nipple suddenly, and she gasps. "I think you like it," he comments, devouring her mouth again and continuing his ardent assault on her breast.

Veronica turns a little to press her pelvis against him, and he reaches down and pulls her firmly against his erection. He slips his cock between her legs and rubs himself against the crotch of her damp and silky panties. "Mmm, love your underwear," he mutters. "But...next time, a thong, okay?"

"Touch me, you jackass," she says, in a strangled tone. "Touch me, Logan," she begs, and he takes pity. He pulls back a little and slips his fingers under the waistband of her panties. Logan insinuates his fingers into her heat, stroking gently and firmly, bringing her to the peak of arousal. She moans loudly, spurring him on. She reaches down, trying to pull off her panties, and he takes the task from her, quickly pulling them down her legs. As he gets them off, Veronica surprises him by turning over and positioning herself on all fours. She looks back at him with a smile, saying, "We haven't...because of your leg...I've been thinking..." her voice trails off shyly.

"Ah. Somebody else was making a list," he says throatily. He covers her with his body, stroking her shoulder as he positions himself. "I didn't know..." he whispers in her ear, gently taking her earlobe between his teeth and nipping at it. Veronica reaches for his cock, stroking it strongly, driving him insane with her touch. He thrusts against her, and she guides him inside. Logan's cock slides into her wetness, and she arches her back, gasping and breathing heavily. He slowly pulls out and then thrusts strongly into her, making her groan loudly. She bucks against him, urging him on, and he begins to fuck her, trying to please her and destroy her all at once. Veronica is thrusting back against him, and he sees her move her hand to her crotch to touch herself. He whispers urgently, "Let me," and he takes her place, stroking diligently at her clit, balancing on one arm. She moves her hand to her breast, working her nipple as she fucks him.

"Oh, god, oh, god, Logan..." she cries, "Oh god, don't stop!"

He endeavors to thrust deeper, to really please her; she is whimpering and begging him, and he is impossibly aroused by her erotic abandon. He presses his fingers strongly against her clit, and she jolts at the new intensity. "Oh god," Veronica says once more, as she begins to throb around him, losing the rhythm of her thrusting in her climax. Logan continues to fuck her as she loses herself in her orgasm; as she shudders and moans, he thrusts once more and erupts deep within her. They collapse onto the bed, his cock still pulsating inside her; he rolls them onto their sides, and he gently slides in and out of her, making the most of his waning erection. He pushes in one last time, staying within her luscious depths, and hugs her to him. He kisses her back and neck, murmuring nonsense to her as they begin to calm themselves.

He whispers in her ear, "So what else is on this list of yours? I showed you mine, now show me yours..."

"I think I want to see if you can figure out what I want...I'll let you know when you've completed a task," she says, slyly.

"Oh, I see, it's a challenge." He kisses her neck again. "Have I at least completed one item?"

"Let me think...Actually, two. The strip-tease can count as one, although I really would have preferred some musical accompaniment," she snarks back. She turns her head so she can kiss his lips.

He caresses her arm, reveling in her softness and delicacy, thinking of the many contradictions that make up this woman: tough and soft, shy and courageous, beautiful and dangerous. She possesses him, whether he wants her to or not; he's helpless, smitten with her, impossibly bound to her. He knows she's not going to stop taking chances; she's going to live life to the fullest and drag him along for the rollercoaster ride. All he wants to do is protect her, yet there's a small part of him that admits that her obstinate recklessness is an essential aspect of his attraction to her.

"What are you thinking?" Veronica asks, rolling over in his arms so she can look at him.

"Just thinking how much I love you..." he whispers. "I'm the luckiest bad boy in the world."

"Don't ever change," she replies.

Logan smiles at her. "I promise," he says truthfully. "What do you say we raid the security office and get the videotape of us making out in the elevator? We could start a collection. Now that's a hobby I could get into."

Veronica huffs a quiet laugh. "It's true, you do need another hobby," she fires back. "And you do seem to have a predilection for sex in public places."

He doesn't answer, just captures her mouth in a passionate kiss.

"Hold on a sec, big boy," she says breathlessly, "I'm not quite recovered yet."

"Just making sure you know...how much I love you," he repeats, stroking her face with a single finger. She shivers a little under his intense gaze. He continues, "I'm never going to leave you again." He kisses her again, convincing her and himself of his promise.

* * *

Neptune Cocktail: Surfer speak for the large bellyful of seawater that one ingests during a particularly gnarly wipeout. Usually happens concurrently with the Sand Facial.

Charisma Carpenter's actual tattoos (and quite a bit of her actual body, like whoa) can be seen at this site.  
www•vanishingtattoo•com/tattoo/celeb-carpenter•htm


	17. Chapters 49 to 53

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall and Kazy. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

* * *

Previously on Veronica Mars: The Year of Living Dangerously Part Two:

vanessagalore•livejournal•com/42061•html

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Sweating the Details**  
A planning meeting on the Briar Hill operation.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Epstein: Scott Grimes.  
Kavner: Eric Bana.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FORTY-NINE: "SWEATING THE DETAILS"

Sun. 3/1/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

When Logan and Veronica walk into the office, Keith notes that they look happy and well-rested. _Logan looks better every day; when he first came back, he looked haunted by his demons. Sometimes I forget that this is the same boy I threw out of the apartment three and a half years ago. And Veronica...I know how hard it was on her when he left, and then she had to deal with my situation too. It's good to see her smile._

Veronica walks over to Ryan Kavner and says hello. "Do you remember Logan Echolls? He was with me when you were protecting me last fall."

Kavner nods. "Right. The guy with the cast. You look a little different."

"Exactly the point," Logan says. He walks over to Kavner and shakes his hand. "So you're going to be undercover with Veronica? I'm depending on you to keep her safe."

Kavner shoots a glance at Keith. "Well, that's what we're here to talk about. I flew in for the day to discuss the operation." Kavner nods at Logan with a questioning look.

"It's okay to speak in front of Logan. He asked to be apprised of all the details," Veronica interrupts. She and Logan sit down together on the couch.

Keith nods and says, "So tell us what to expect. We have about a week to finalize our plans, and I'm really hoping that we won't have any surprises." He picks up a pen and prepares to take notes.

Kavner clears his throat. "When the girls get there, the process is called intake. Several of the older girls who have progressed in their program are assigned to perform a strip search and an interview."

"A strip search?" Keith asks.

"Yes, to make sure they're not carrying any illegal drugs. Most of the girls are there because they're involved with drugs. Some of them should be in prison–some really tough characters that have learned how to work the program." Kavner glances at Veronica. "It's a full body-cavity search. And it's purposely humiliating. The oldcomers–that's what they call the girls who have been in the program–the oldcomers take the opportunity to mock the newcomers. Sometimes they come up with a nickname, 'Lardass' or 'Princess' are two that I've heard. The girls learn quickly to point out other girls' flaws; the counselors are always talking about what a gift it is to learn about your weaknesses. I wrote it down because I couldn't believe it." Kavner pulls out a sheet of paper. "Here it is. 'To prod someone in their emotional sore spot is an act of love for which you should be thanked.' The headmaster, Peter Klein, is always saying that."

"Peter Klein? So the CEO is also the headmaster?" Keith asks, making a note on his pad.

"That's what he calls himself to the students. He's really the puppetmaster...an expert manipulator. About half of the staff are former graduates of the school or one of the affiliated programs, and they think Klein is a cross between Gandhi and Jesus. They worship the ground he walks on and constantly spout his aphorisms. What's that other one...here it is. 'Based on the results, you have exactly what you intended.'"

Veronica frowns. She repeats the phrase. "'Based on the results, you have exactly what you intended.' So, you have to accept personal responsibility for what happens to you?" she asks.

"Not just that. They're also saying that you can't be trusted to do the right thing. The girls are told over and over again that they need the program to survive, and will probably always need the program, because of their character flaws. 'There's no right or wrong, only what works.' In other words, the only thing that's keeping you alive and out of trouble is the program. So some of the employees are basically committing to a lifetime of the program. Then the outsider employees..." Kavner shakes his head. "They're a bunch of sadists and criminals."

"Right, they don't bother to do background checks," Keith says.

"Actually, they do background checks, so they have something to hold over the employees if they ever get out of line," Kavner responds. "The employees have to sign a nondisclosure agreement when they're hired."

"Okay, go back to the intake process. We have to figure out how to get a wire in, so we can monitor Veronica and secure the evidence to shut the school down."

"It's going to be tough. The girls are stripped naked, and then they are interviewed by the other girls, when they are at their most vulnerable. The girls are forced to sign a pledge that they voluntarily commit to staying at the school for six months."

"Forced?" Veronica echoes.

"They're told that they won't be allowed to contact their family unless they sign the pledge. But then...afterwards, they still aren't allowed to call home," Kavner explains.

"Are the girls' clothes returned to them?" Keith asks.

"Just their underwear. They all wear sweatshirt and sweatpants, so that no one can express any individuality."

Keith frowns. "So...underwear...does that include the bra?"

Kavner nods.

"If we replace the underwire in the bra–" Keith starts.

Veronica interrupts, "We can replace the underwire with the transmitting wire. But...what about the microphone itself? They would notice that."

"I can probably hand it off to you soon after you get there. I've been making myself indispensable, volunteering for tasks that other guys don't want to do," Kavner notes.

"What's the smallest bug we can use?" Veronica asks Keith.

"The problem is distance. The bug has to be powered by a battery large enough to transmit a mile away, because the grounds of the school are fairly large," Keith muses.

"What about a repeater?" Kavner suggests. "I can probably install repeater devices in all the rooms Veronica would be in that would amplify the signal enough to reach you a mile away. That way the bug could be powered by a watch battery. I can hand it off to Veronica, and she can install it in her bra. You'll be able to hear everything."

"What about video?" Logan adds worriedly. "Aren't you guys going to be doing any video? What if Veronica can't talk? We won't know what's going on."

Kavner explains, "I've already installed videocameras in a few of the rooms. They're hidden in clocks or smoke alarms." He turns to Keith. "I can put the repeaters inside light switches or outlets; I can tap into the wiring for my power supply. That would guarantee a strong signal."

Logan asks, "What's your work schedule? I mean, you can't be on duty twenty-four hours a day, right?"

Veronica squeezes his hand. "Logan, I'll be alright. Dad can get in touch with Kavner at all times."

Logan doesn't say anything, but everyone is aware that he's not happy.

Keith says, "So tell us about the average day there."

"The girls get up at six. Most days they do chores in the morning...a lot of make-work kind of jobs. The oldcomers have extra privileges and usually just supervise the newer students. Some days, they take the girls on long hikes, or make them do extreme workouts. I think the point is to wear the girls down, to make them too tired to resist. The oldcomers can ask to be excused from the hikes if they've earned enough credits."

"What do they get credits for?" Veronica asks.

"Usually for turning in other girls for infractions of the rules," Kavner replies. "The system is set up to turn all the girls against each other. But then, in group, the girls are always, 'Love you, Caroline. Love you, Jessica.'" Kavner shakes his head. "Everything's backwards there, discipline is love, love is exposing someone's faults, abusing someone is helping them."

"Group? You mean, group therapy?" Keith asks.

"Yeah. Every afternoon, for hours. The girls have to sit on hard plastic chairs, completely motionless, unless the group leader asks for volunteers. Then they wave their hands in the air like lunatics, begging to be called on. They testify about some terrible thing they did in the past; if the leader believes that they've been truthful, they can earn some points toward eventually leaving the school. Or so the girls think. I've heard the employees talk: no one ever leaves before they're eighteen, no matter how well-behaved they are or what progress they make. The school always finds a way to tack another month onto your program. Parents are told over and over again that the girls need the program. Eventually, all the girls embrace the program and begin to believe that it is the only thing keeping them alive."

"All the girls?" Veronica asks. "Surely some of them are strong enough to resist."

"No, I bet they're not. If you're in that situation, your entire psychological makeup is altered. You become the prisoner," Logan says. Veronica looks at him quizzically, and he adds, "It's like the Stanford Prison Experiment that we studied in my sociology class. If you're a prisoner, you begin to act like one. And if you're a guard? Most guards begin to treat the prisoners inhumanely, brutalizing and torturing them. The guards rationalize it by saying that the prisoners deserve it, and they begin to believe the prisoners are actually being helped by the guards' harsh treatment. It's the same thing that happened in Abu Graib."

The room is silent, as Keith and Veronica absorb the impact of Logan's statement. Finally, Veronica asks Kavner, "Is that true? Do the guards think they're helping the girls get better by brutalizing them?"

Kavner nods.

"You liked that professor, didn't you?" Veronica asks Logan.

"Dr. Kinny? Yeah, his class was alright. And...I think he'll definitely remember me," Logan smiles wryly.

Veronica asks, "Maybe he'd want to consult on the case, Dad. Maybe he'd want to help me prepare for the operation."

"I think it's a good idea," Logan adds. "He wrote a book on the psychology of prisons."

Keith nods. "So the afternoons are lectures and group therapy? When do the girls take classes?"

"After supper, the girls go to classrooms. It's crazy. The classrooms are completely silent; the girls just do worksheets over and over until they get a 100 score, then they start the next one. Anyone who talks, even to ask a question about the worksheets, gets assigned to write a long essay, or if they're really disruptive, they get 'observation placement'. That's basically being locked in a small dark room for hours on end. I've seen them use restraints on one girl. I think she's mentally ill and can't help her behavior, or she might even have Tourette's syndrome from what I saw. The second time she cursed at the group leader, she was put in restraints for twenty-four hours. She's in real danger; the school doesn't tolerate people who don't follow the rules, and the school definitely does not believe in psychiatric medications. I'm no expert, but many of the girls seem depressed."

Keith makes a few notes. "I'm not surprised. Veronica, we have to think carefully about this. We need to provoke the employees at the school enough to document their abuses, but not so much that you'll be in danger of being harmed."

Logan frowns at these words. "I–"

Keith continues, "I know we're all worried about this operation. The attorney, Epstein, is coming by later. We need to focus very carefully on exactly what our goals should be. Let's take a little break." Keith excuses himself and leaves the room.

Veronica turns to Logan. "We're still just planning. You've got to believe me; I don't want to do this either if we can't find a way to do it safely."

Logan purses his lips, holding back on what he wants to say. Finally, he says, "Who else is going to be helping your dad monitor the wire? He's going to have to sleep at some point. Is Wallace helping too?"

Veronica shakes her head 'no'. "He has basketball playoffs. Besides, he's going to be running the office while Dad and I are away. The attorney is going to help monitor. As soon as he says that we have sufficient legal evidence for the case, Dad will contact Kavner, shut the operation down, and get me out of there."

"What if I helped monitor too?" Logan suggests.

"Okay. I'm sure that would be fine with Dad, an extra pair of eyes," Veronica agrees.

_And an extra pair of fists,_ Logan thinks. Aloud, he adds, "And I think talking to Dr. Kinny would be a really good idea. I don't think you know what you're getting into. When we ran just our short version of the prison experiment, it was pretty unbelievable the way people reacted. And you remember...Mercer and Moe. That was how that sick relationship got started."

"I agree, Logan. We'll talk to Dr. Kinny." Despite Logan's calm demeanor, Veronica is quite positive that he is very unhappy about everything's he heard today.

The attorney, James Epstein, arrives, and Keith introduces him to Kavner and to Logan. The attorney looks at Logan quizzically, and Keith explains that he's Veronica's boyfriend and has some concerns about Veronica's safety.

Epstein says, "Are you sure it's okay to discuss this..." He glances at Logan.

Veronica interrupts, "Logan has offered to help monitor the wiretap during the operation, and I would feel a lot more comfortable if he's there."

Keith nods, saying, "That sounds like an excellent idea. It'll be good to have an extra pair of eyes and ears, especially someone who knows Veronica so well."

Veronica squeezes Logan's hand and looks at him, clearly conveying the message that she's paying attention to his concerns. He nods back.

Kavner goes over the daily schedule again for the attorney's benefit, and Epstein begins grilling him about the procedures at the school. The lawyer takes copious notes and asks Kavner to go into more detail about his training or the lack of it by the school. While they talk, Keith researches some of the options for listening devices that could be concealed in Veronica's bra, and he calls her over to look at some possibilities. Logan watches at she points at the computer screen; she gesticulates as she speaks to him about the device. Logan's attention wanders a bit; he's imagining Veronica at the school, trying to fit in, and somehow managing to gather evidence and investigate. He tries to tune back in to Kavner's and Epstein's conversation; it all seems a little unreal, that Veronica is going to be there in just one week.

Keith changes the subject to the transportation details. "So I'll be heading up to Boston early on Wednesday. There's a educational consultant there who's on the Briar Hill payroll for 'services rendered'. I'll be wearing a wire and a digital videocamera to document the interview. I'll insist that my daughter needs to transfer to the school immediately, and I'll ask about arranging secure transportation. I'll ask that they come on Saturday night to the house we rented outside of Boston. Veronica, you'll take the 12:00 flight out of San Diego on Friday. That will give you a day to rest before they..." He glances at Logan, and continues, "Before they take you to the school."

"You mean before they handcuff her and drag her off?" Logan comments.

Veronica squeezes his hand. "It's okay."

He frowns at her. _Nothing about this is okay._ "So I'll fly out with you on Friday, too, okay?"

"Sure," Keith replies. "I'll be glad of your company, Logan. Epstein's will be joining us on Saturday as well."

"What if somebody recognizes Veronica?" Logan says. He turns to Veronica and asks her, "Didn't you talk to one of those educational consultants here in Neptune? Won't he recognize you?"

"It's pretty unlikely that he would go to the school. Most of the consultants just receive a kickback for each successful referral that they generate," Keith answers.

"Veronica was also on a national news show last fall. I think she needs some sort of disguise," Logan says persuasively. "I don't think you can take the chance that someone might remember her from the Dateline exposé or the interview we did on 20/20. And there was some national press coverage of the shooting."

Keith mulls it over. "He's right, Veronica. It can't be a wig with the strip search. Brunette or redhead?"

Veronica makes a face. "Ugh. I hate dying my hair."

"You were pretty cute as a brunette last fall. It made you look smarter," Logan snarks.

"Like, ohmigod, as if I would ever want to look smarter. Can I get a cute outfit too?" Veronica retorts in a high mocking voice.

"Redhead, for sure. Suits her temperament better anyways," Logan remarks to Keith.

"Dangerous territory you're treading, Logan," Keith laughs.

"Seriously, Dad, can I get one of those temporary tattoos? You know, the ones that fade after a few weeks. Daddy, please!" She clasps her hands and looks imploringly at her father.

"Only if it says, 'Property of Logan Echolls, Reward for Return'," Logan replies.

Keith chuckles and says, "A tattoo or two actually might be good, Veronica. It might help sell the image of a bad girl that we're trying to achieve here."

"If you're very nice, Logan, I'll let you come and pick out my tattoos," she mutters to him.

He puts his mouth to her ear and whispers, "Remember, I'm the bad boy in this relationship." She smiles back.

Kavner stands up. "I've got a 5:00 flight to catch."

"Are you leaving from San Diego?" Epstein asks. "I'll give you a ride; I still have questions I want to ask you."

After Epstein and Kavner leave, Keith asks, "You're staying tonight, right, Logan?"

"Yeah, Veronica's going to drive me to L.A. tomorrow."

"So...let's make it a family dinner tonight."

"You're on," Logan replies.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Downright Testy**  
Veronica and Logan clash over the Briar  
Hill operation.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FIFTY: "DOWNRIGHT TESTY"

Sun. 3/1/09 evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

"You know, Veronica, you don't have to literally eat your weight," Logan remarks.

She sticks out her tongue at him and continues to eat her ice cream.

"You had some good ideas at the meeting today, Logan. I was glad you were there. It would have been a disaster if someone had recognized Veronica," Keith muses. "What'dya think of the attorney? He doesn't make a good first impression, but he really knows his stuff on this case."

"He seems smart, but he's too excited about the operation. I don't like it; I think he should be more worried about Veronica's safety," Logan replies. Veronica makes a face at him and kicks him under the table. "Stop kicking me, Veronica. Frankly, Keith, I'm surprised you're going along with this."

Veronica looks incredibly pissed. "Logan!"

"Get mad at me all you want, Veronica. I don't understand how you think you're going to be able to get the evidence on the school at the same time that you're trying to investigate Hannah's time there. It sounds like the students are watched at all times. What was that that Kavner said? That for the first few months, they don't even let newcomers go to the bathroom unsupervised. There's no way you're going to be able to snoop into the files, or whatever it is you're planning to do. And if you try to do it, and get caught...what if Kavner can't get to you in time?"

Keith says, completely confused, "What?"

"Logan, shut up," Veronica says. She quickly glances at her dad, and he is finally realizing that Veronica has been holding back information once again. No one speaks, until Veronica turns to Logan and says spitefully, "You bastard."

"I bet he doesn't even know about the FBI. Or the files you got from Mike Fields. You promised me that you were telling your dad everything."

"Veronica, what the hell is he talking about?" Keith says with a worried expression.

"I didn't lie to you," Veronica replies. "There's nothing to tell. While I'm at the school, I'm hoping to find out more information about Hannah. But I'm not going to be taking any extra risks. I know it's too dangerous."

Logan scoffs. "You promised me, Veronica. Why am I not surprised? You always think you're smarter than everybody else. You're going to get killed if you do this. And I'm not going to stand by and watch you do it."

"Find out what information about Hannah?" Keith asks. "Veronica." He stares at her, and she stares back defiantly. "Veronica, tell me, or the operation is off."

She sighs. "I know that Hannah wasn't killed by the Saturday Night Slasher. There are some discrepancies in her case compared to the other victims. I think she might have been killed to cover up the abuses that were going on at the school."

"And you didn't think it was relevant to tell me that?" Keith thunders. "Logan's right. You're crazy if you think you're going to be able to investigate while you're there. Weren't you paying attention during Kavner's briefing today? The students are controlled completely. You won't have any opportunities to snoop around." He sighs again. "Veronica, we've already invested a lot in this operation. I can't believe you would jeopardize it like this. And what's this about the FBI?"

Veronica obstinately refuses to speak. Logan says, "Tell him, or I will."

Glaring at him, she admits, "The FBI kicked me out of the internship program. Either because of the exposé last fall or because of the Harmony shooting."

"And?" Logan prompts. She steadfastly refuses to continue, so Logan tells Keith, "She thinks she'll get back in the program if she solves Hannah's murder."

"Veronica, honey, I'm sorry about the FBI. Why didn't you tell me?" Keith says. "Where did you get the information about the serial killings anyway?"

She avoids his eyes, and he knows. Keith says, "You got it from that putz Mike Fields. If anybody should be kicked out of the FBI, it's him."

Veronica says to Logan, "I can't believe you. I'm doing this for you too. Weren't you paying attention today during the meeting? We're taking appropriate precautions for the operation."

Keith looks puzzled. Logan explains, "She thinks I won't ever get over Hannah's death unless the killer gets put away." He turns back to Veronica, "I'm over it. You don't need to do this. Do you know what I won't ever get over? If you get hurt or killed trying to do this."

Veronica turns her back to Logan. "Dad..." she pleads. "I'm just going to keep my eyes and ears open. If there's an opportunity, I'll take it. But if there isn't, I'm going to let it go. And...I don't really care about the FBI."

Logan scoffs again. "She's lying. Dammit, Veronica! You swore to me. You gave me veto power."

"We incorporated all of your suggestions today, Logan! What the hell! You still have veto power. Are you telling me that you're using it?" she says bitterly, staring at him angrily.

Logan pauses. Finally, he says, "I'm going to leave it up to your dad. I trust him to keep you safe."

Keith says, "Veronica, I'd like to see the files you got from Mike Fields. And I'd like to hear why you think Hannah wasn't killed by the Saturday Night Slasher."

Veronica goes to her room and gets the files; Logan walks out to the living room and turns on the television. He starts flipping through channels disinterestedly while Veronica shows the evidence to her father.

After she concludes, Keith says, "It's good work, Veronica. But...how did you get from Hannah wasn't killed by the Slasher to Hannah was killed because of the abuses at Briar Hill? That's a big leap."

"Why else would she have been killed? Someone went to a lot of trouble to cover up her murder. Someone either in the FBI or someone who had access to FBI files. You said that Briar Hill is paying off politicians to look the other way. What if Hannah witnessed something like that while she was there? Maybe that's why she was scared enough to run away. Can't high-level politicians get access to FBI files?" Veronica says persuasively.

"It's possible," Keith admits. "Veronica, Logan's right. You can't take the chance that you'll get caught snooping. You have to focus on the objective. I'm worried that you're not taking the danger seriously."

"That's exactly my point," Logan mutters, as Veronica shoots another angry glare his way.

"Let's make a deal here, Veronica," Keith says. "I have to say that I've been convinced that it's important to try to get evidence of the abuses going on at the school. Epstein showed me his research on all the tough-love schools in the country, and I'm scared for these kids. You have a unique ability to get this evidence, Veronica. You're tough and you're smart, and for your age, you have more experience undercover than another investigator would have. Here's the deal: if you agree to hold off on investigating Hannah's murder during the undercover operation, I promise I'll make it my priority once the operation's concluded. We can't take the chance that you'll be found out, Veronica. If you won't agree to stop, I'm going to halt the whole thing. And...I want you to report back to Mike Fields what you've discovered: the discrepancies, the full moon angle, everything. I never liked the guy, but I want someone in the FBI to know about this. Let him deal with it."

"But–" Veronica starts.

"No buts, Veronica." Keith sighs. "Do we have a deal?"

Veronica pouts sullenly.

"Veronica. Do we have a deal?" Keith repeats.

"All right," she says finally. "I'll talk to Mike tomorrow when I drive Logan to L.A."

"And you promise? To stick strictly to the plan while you're undercover?"

She nods.

"You swear? Veronica, I want to hear the words."

"I swear I'll stick to the plan," she acquiesces.

Sun. 3/1/09 evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Throughout the evening, the tension between Logan and Veronica continues. They watch a Lakers game, and at several points Keith and Logan exchange a high-five, but Veronica sulks. Logan tries to direct some comments to her, but she pointedly ignores him.

Finally, Keith yawns and heads for bed. "I'm getting up early tomorrow, guys. I guess I'll see you in Boston, Logan."

Logan nods. After Keith goes in his bedroom, Veronica stands up and goes to the linen closet. She pulls out sheets and a pillow and walks to the couch. To Logan, she says, "Move please," in a barely polite tone.

Logan stands up and moves to the chair. "So am I banished to the couch?"

"No, I'm sleeping out here. You can have the bed."

"Come on, Veronica. You know it's better that your dad knows everything. Please don't be this way."

She doesn't respond, and he stares at her back for a few minutes as she makes up the couch. Finally, Logan shrugs and goes to bed. She turns and watches him leave, torn between wanting to punish him for betraying her and wanting to be with him on their last night together. She thinks despondently about the fun they had the night before and about waking up in his arms that morning. Then he shuts the door to the bedroom, and her heart hardens. She lays down on the couch.

About an hour later, Veronica has not slept. She keeps going over the angry words they said to each other that evening. When the door to her bedroom opens, she knows he's coming to talk to her.

Logan sits down on the couch next to her. "Veronica. Please come to bed. Don't do this on our last night together."

Veronica moves in on the couch to get away from Logan's body. He notices and moves to press against her again. She sighs loudly, then whispers, "You're such an ass. You think you can just touch me, and I'll melt and forgive you. It's not going to work."

"Really?" he says, as he begins to caress her leg.

"Stop that," she hisses. "If I yell, then Dad's going to come out here."

"Yeah, I think your dad's on my side this time," Logan replies. He continues to touch her, and she tries mightily to move away from his wandering hands. "C'mon, admit it, you can't resist me," he chuckles.

"You're a bastard," she says. Veronica sits up and glares at him, then suddenly she jumps up and runs for the bedroom, intending to lock him out. He gets to the door just in time and prevents her from closing it.

"Don't be that way," he pleads quietly and intensely. "You _know_ it's better that your dad knows everything." He struggles against her as she tries to force the door closed. Suddenly he stops resisting, and the door slams closed. He sinks down to the ground and sits against the door, waiting in silence.

On the other side of the door, Veronica is out of breath and confused. She stands there trying to calm her heartbeat.

In the living room, Keith pokes his head out from his bedroom to see what's going on. He sees Logan seated on the floor in front of Veronica's door. Logan salutes, and Keith nods knowingly and disappears back into his bedroom.

"Logan?" Veronica whispers.

Logan doesn't answer, knowing it's driving her crazy.

"Logan, what the hell are you doing?" she tries.

Still he sits there silently, smug in the knowledge that she won't be able to hold out for long against her curiosity. He hears her move away from the door and walk around the room. Logan knows she's trying to figure out what to do, how to win this fight. But he's absolutely certain how to beat her at her own game.

After twenty minutes, he hears the lock being turned, and the door is opened. He turns his head and sees her. She extends a hand down to help him up; Logan takes her hand and stands up. She pulls him into the room and says, "You win. I can't stay mad at you." Veronica sits down on the bed, defeated.

"Well, if that's true, I'm the only person that can beat you at your own game," he replies, looking down at her. "Am I invited back in your bed?"

She sighs. "Yes. I'm still mad at you though."

He sits down next to her and laughs. "You just said you can't stay mad at me."

She sits there fuming.

Logan continues, "Look, Veronica, I don't care if you hate me. All I care about is that you're okay."

"So you don't care if I love you?" she shoots back.

"Of course I care. It's just not the most important thing. If you survive, I survive," Logan says. "Even if I have to give you up, or do something that makes you hate me forever. It's crazy, I know. But that's never going to change. You have to be alright." He sounds forlorn, lost, confused.

She lays down on the bed, and Logan lays down next to her. They both stare up at the ceiling, remembering the bitter words they threw at each other that night.

"Why do you have to be so pigheaded?" she says quietly.

"Pot, meet kettle," he replies.

"I'm not going to get hurt," she insists.

"I'm not willing to take that chance," he retorts bitterly, then reconsiders. "I don't want to fight, okay? Let's talk about it in the morning, all right?"

"Okay," she sulks.

He sighs, knowing the fight is far from over. He rubs his eyes in fatigue and frustration. _Sometimes I almost wish...that I didn't love her...it's too goddamn hard._ He rolls over, facing away from her.

Veronica hears him sigh. There's a quality of despair in the sound that penetrates her seething anger. She rolls over and stares at his back, wondering what he's thinking. She realizes she's missing his constant affection that she's taken for granted since she brought him home. _He's walked away from me before. He's willing...to go all in, to risk everything._

Suddenly, she's terrified that she's going to lose him again. Veronica scoots over on the bed; she presses her body against his back and puts her arm over his waist. His only response is to take her hand in his. She lies quietly, expecting him to roll over and kiss her, but he just lies there, impassively. Finally, she decides to take matters in her own hand; she pulls her hand free from his and reaches down to stroke his thigh. He doesn't respond, so she becomes more bold and touches his cock through his boxers. _Logan may not be paying attention, but his body is,_ she thinks as he begins to respond to her touch. She wriggles against him, trying to provoke a reaction, but he's still ignoring her. In desperation, she decides to go for it; she slides down and begins to draw down his boxers. All of a sudden, he rolls over, grabbing her and flipping her underneath him. He pins her beneath his body, his hands trapping her arms above her head.

"Logan..." she tries, but her voice dies when she sees his expression. The pupils of his eyes are completely dilated, black with anger or some other unfamiliar emotion.

"I'm not your stud, Veronica. I can't just turn it on five minutes after you tell me you're mad at me. I care about you. I'm worried about what you're doing," he says intensely.

"Logan, I know..."

"Let me finish. I want there to be an us in the future. I trusted you to tell your dad about everything. And I know, you didn't lie to him; but Veronica, you knew I thought you had told him everything. And you said I had veto power."

Talking fast, she says, "You do. I'm sorry I got angry with you. I promise..."

"Does your promise mean anything? You're killing me, Veronica. I can't live like this, worried about you all the time, and then I'm always apologizing for caring about you too much!...Dammit! One time last fall, Weevil told me I should just hold you down and fuck you silly until you learn to behave. Is that what you want, Veronica? Is that what I need to do?" He shifts his body, forcing her legs apart and laying between them.

"Logan! I'm sorry," she pleads desperately, shocked at his anger and forcefulness.

"Maybe it is what I need to do." Logan kisses her harshly, forcing his tongue into her mouth. He releases her mouth and pulls back to stare at her. "Is that what you want? Should I keep going?" He bends to her again, kissing her again. To his surprise, she opens her mouth to him, tonguing him back ferociously. "So this _is_ what you want. You do want me to take you, to possess you," he mutters, half to himself. Keeping her arms pinned with his left hand, he reaches down and pulls down her shorts and his boxers; he positions himself at her opening and thrusts in. She gasps at the suddenness; he allows her barely enough time to recover before he begins to fuck her. She moans loudly enough to wake her father sleeping next door, and he takes her mouth again with his to quiet her, still trapping her hands tightly above her head. After a few strokes, he pulls out and stops.

She opens her eyes and looks up at him.

"Do you want me to keep going?"

"Yes...please..." she whimpers.

"All the times I've loved you...I've never forced myself on you. I've never done this to you." His voice is heart-rending. "I don't want to be angry with you." Almost to himself, he repeats, "I don't want to be angry with you."

"Logan...please...you do...possess me," she admits.

He pushes into her again, and she moans quietly, closing her eyes in pleasure. "Open your eyes, Veronica." Her eyes pop open, and he says intensely, "I'll fuck you until you're black and blue if I have to. You're not going to ruin us. You're going to keep your promise to me. You're. Going. To. Be. Careful." With each word, he thrusts, driving his point home. Veronica is still immobilized by his weight and his grip on her arms. When he starts to pound into her with renewed force, she groans loudly and helplessly, and again he swallows her cries with his mouth. After five minutes of intense thrusting, he feels her shudder in climax around him, but still he continues, fucking her, fucking out his anger at her, his terror that this will be the chance she takes that kills her. When he finally ejaculates, he pulls out quickly and sits on the edge of the bed, ashamed and horrified at what he's done. Veronica sits up and kneels behind him on the bed; she puts her arms around him, but he shakes her off and stands up, pacing unsteadily around the room, tearing at his hair in his distress.

Veronica untangles herself from her clothes and the bedsheets and gets out of the bed. Tentatively, she tries to touch his arm. He turns violently towards her, and she jumps in alarm. At her reaction, he drops onto the bed and begins to weep silently. Veronica is in her turn horrified at his sobbing. Uncertain what to do, she sits next to him on the side of the bed. Finally she decides to offer her hand to him. She holds her hand out to him; long seconds go by until at last he grasps her hand in mid-air.

"Did I hurt you?" he asks in a strangled tone.

"No, of course not. Actually..."

"What?" he says, turning to her.

"Actually, it was pretty exciting. You're the only person that...that can get so mad at me. Other than Dad." She pauses. "It's scary and thrilling that you care that much," she muses.

"Veronica...I have to tell you something. I'm...I've been too ashamed to tell you...When I was in Texas, after I saw you and Duncan at his press conference..." his voice trails off, his courage leaving him.

She starts to speak but realizes she should keep quiet.

"I...I tried to kill myself. I walked into the ocean. I wanted to just sink down in the water and never come back up."

She waits, but he has stopped speaking. "What happened? How did you..." Veronica wants to scream at him, tear into him, eviscerate him, but she holds back. _How could he do that?_ And then, she despairs:_ What do I do? How do I make it better? _She remembers her desperate visions of Logan standing high atop a bridge, preparing to leap. She forgets to breathe momentarily, waiting for his response.

His voice breaking with emotion, he explains, "I couldn't do it. I kept hearing your voice, telling me that you loved me. I don't know why I believed it. I saw you hugging Duncan on the TV. All my common sense was telling me you were back with him again. You've always chosen him over me. But..." he shrugs expressively.

She still wants to lash out at him, for trying to take the coward's way out and for not trusting her, but finally she settles for, "Nunh-uh."

"What!?" he turns to her questioningly.

"Nunh-uh!" she says more forcefully. "Did not." She waits a moment, then says more specifically, "Did not always choose Duncan."

He scoffs a little, then replies weakly, "Did too."

"Did not."

"Did too." This time he chuckles softly, and she breathes a sigh of relief. She takes a chance and leans over to kiss his cheek.

He turns to look at her. "You're sure I didn't hurt you?"

"Never," she swears. "But...I think I'd like a hug." He puts his arms around her tentatively, and she leans into him. "Logan? Are we okay?"

"I don't know," he replies truthfully. Wretchedly, he continues, "It's always so hard..."

"We said we would work on it together, right?"

He doesn't answer at first, so she repeats, more forcefully, "We said we would work on it together, _right_?"

"Actually, you said that. And since you had just given me a monumental blowjob, I had no choice but to agree," he mumbles.

She huffs a quiet laugh. "Monumental?"

He gestures with his hand, punctuating his words. "Okay, maybe...the blowjob of a lifetime. An epic blowjob. The Cadillac of blowjobs. The blowjob to end all blowjobs. Should I continue?"

"Not if you ever want another one."

He mimes zipping his lips shut.

"Let's get some sleep, okay?" she suggests.

"You're the one who always keeps me up all night with your frivolous sex demands," he complains.

"All right, you're off the hook for the rest of the night. Okay?" Veronica asks.

"Yes, Veronica," he replies as they lay down, her back against his front, every inch of their bodies pressed together. He breathes in the familiar scent of her hair and tries to set aside his worries for the rest of the night.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Dream On, Jump Street**  
Veronica's unresolved issues surface.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Mercer Hayes: Ryan Devlin.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE: "DREAM ON, JUMP STREET"

Mon. 3/2/09 morning: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

The next morning, after tossing and turning the whole night, Veronica has the dream again.

_She is at Briar Hill. She has survived the transport service and the strip-search without incident, and she tries to settle into the routine of the school. But one day, a guard looks at her suspiciously, and Veronica ditches the wire. For some reason, Ryan Kavner, the other undercover operative, has disappeared, and now she's all alone. Afraid to make waves without backup, she desperately tries to blend in with the other girls. She echoes the catchphrases she hears around her. "There's no right or wrong, only what works. I need to work on my program. I know I need help to get right." She repeatedly asks to call her dad, and she is told that she hasn't earned a phone call yet. Every day, she scans the faces of the guards, expecting to see Kavner, but he's never there._

_The week-long operation stretches to two weeks, then to a month, and Veronica is still not allowed to call her dad. One day, she seizes an opportunity and sneaks into an office. She dials her dad's cell phone number and gets a recording, "The number you've reached is no longer in service." She cradles the phone, puzzled; she thinks desperately who she can call for help. "Logan..." she breathes, but she remembers: she has no idea where he is, and she hangs up the phone, shaking in frustration and fear. She tries Wallace, and there's no answer; in desperation, she calls Alicia Fennel. Alicia says, pityingly, "Veronica, your dad's in prison. He pled guilty to the arson charges. Wallace is in Georgia with Candice. I'll tell him you called."_

_Veronica protests, but Alicia has already hung up, and Veronica realizes she needs to get out of the office before her absence is discovered. She returns to the cafeteria; two of the guards notice her arrival and have an animated discussion, looking over at her pointedly. As the day progresses, she realizes that all the staff are watching her closely._

_Veronica begins to be monitored night and day and subjected to random strip searches. She tries to cooperate, but one day in frustration she protests loudly, and they drag her to an isolation room. She doesn't know how long she's in isolation; she loses track of the days and nights in the windowless room. She's hungry all the time; it seems like they are only bringing one meal a day._

_Suddenly, they release her from isolation, and she returns to the 'normal' routine. Veronica fights her panic and tries to blend in with the other girls._

_The headmaster of the school announces that a new teacher has come to the school. Veronica files in to the classroom with everyone else. The new teacher has his back turned to the girls and is writing on the board. 'Based on the results, you have exactly what you intended.' The teacher turns around, and Veronica gasps._

_It's Mercer Hayes, and he recognizes her immediately and smiles. Veronica forces herself to sit quietly as her heart races and she begins to sweat profusely. After a long lecture, in which Mercer makes a point of meeting her eyes repeatedly, Mercer dismisses the class and walks toward her._

_Veronica bolts from the classroom, the other girls staring at her curiously. She has no idea where she's running; she had memorized a floor plan of the school when she and Keith were preparing the operation, but now hallways seem to lead to sections of the school that she was unaware of. She tries some doors, but they're all locked; she struggles to open a window that refuses to budge. Glancing over her shoulder at the pursuing Mercer, she runs up a set of stairs. Mercer follows calmly, not bothering to rush after her; she realizes he knows she can't escape, and he's enjoying her panicked flight._

_At the top of stairs, the door is unlocked, and she breathes a sigh of relief. She pushes it open, runs through the doorway, and closes it frantically behind her. She's on the roof, and she looks around, trying to find a way down to the ground. She hears the door open behind her, and she whirls around._

_"Ve-ron-i-ca," Mercer sings out. "My very favorite chick on speed. We'll be needing some mood music, don't you think? It's gonna be good, Veronica, I'd wager your best ever." He smiles and walks toward her, and she backs away, getting closer to the end of the roof. He keeps himself between her and the doorway to the stairs. She desperately looks around for another exit, while Mercer speaks confidently and menacingly as he closes the distance between them. "I've been meaning to get you alone for some time now. It really wasn't too smart to come to this school. Don't you know I've always had a thing for you?" She backs up the last foot and stops right at the edge; she looks behind her at the ground dizzyingly far below. Mercer reaches for her face, and she flinches. He touches her hair as she struggles to hold herself away from him. "Such pretty hair. It's a shame you have to lose it." He grabs her hair viciously and tries to pull her down to the roof._

_She cries out, "No! Stop! Get off me!", resisting with all her strength, pushing against him._

_"Come on, Veronica, it's nothing new for you. You've been raped before; just relax and enjoy the ride. It's gonna be good, I'd wager your best ever." He laughs. "Groan if you disagree, Veronica, but I think you're on the same page."_

_She tries to knee him in the groin, and he slaps her hard. Veronica struggles with Mercer who forces her underneath him and rips her shirt. She fights with every ounce of her strength, but he seems to know what she's going to try before she does, and he counters her moves efficiently. She's weeping and panting with exertion, her face bruised and bloodied, her scalp aching from Mercer pulling on her hair. Finally in desperation, she shoves him with all her remaining strength and rolls away from him, rolls and rolls, and falls off the roof..._

She sits up in the bed and looks around her familiar, comfortable bedroom. Her heart is still racing, and the nightmare still feels very real. Veronica reaches over to touch Logan, sleeping quietly beside her, almost as if she doesn't believe he's really there. Suddenly, she remembers their bitter fight, last night's emotional words that couldn't be taken back and couldn't be forgotten. He stirs, mumbling, and she withdraws her hand so he won't wake up. She looks at the alarm clock: 6:14 am. The alarm is set for 7:00; she's going to drive Logan to Los Angeles, where he intends to see his therapist and meet with his advisor at UCLA, hoping to resume his classes. She breathes in and out, trying to calm herself; she lies down again, hoping to sleep a few more minutes. She concentrates determinedly on the facts: _Logan and Wallace are back; Dad is not going to jail; and Mac is completely safe in Witness Protection._ But her nightmare images of Briar Hill persist. Combined with the turmoil of the fight last night, the nightmare feels too upsetting for her to go back to sleep, and she gives up and goes into the bathroom.

A few minutes later, Logan wakes up, suddenly aware of Veronica's absence. He listens and hears the shower running; he smiles, thinking of her, naked and soapy. He's becoming aroused, thinking about surprising her, making up with her after the rancorous words of the night before; the sound of the shower continues, and he gets out of bed. He opens the door; Keith's bedroom door is ajar, and Logan observes that Keith's keys are missing from their hook by the doorway. He smiles and decides to go for it.

He opens the door cautiously, soundlessly; the bathroom is steamy from Veronica's long shower. Logan quietly pulls back the curtain, and she screams at the top of her lungs. She's been crying; her red eyes are a dead giveaway, and Logan stares at her stunned. "Veronica...what...what's the matter?" She begins to cry in earnest, hiding her face in her hands, and he reaches over and shuts off the water. He grabs a towel and wraps her in it, gathering her into his arms. "Veronica, it's okay, it's okay, I'm here," he murmurs. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." She buries her face in his chest and sobs.

Logan is terrified. He hasn't seen Veronica so upset since...since she thought her dad had died. He rocks her, trying to calm her; when her sobs quiet a little, he walks her back to the bedroom and bundles her into the bed. She protests a little, saying, "I'm all wet, Logan, don't," but he ignores her.

He gets into the bed with her, pulls the covers over them, and holds her tight, not asking questions, just holding her until she finally starts to calm down. He strokes her wet hair over and over, saying, "It's okay, Veronica, it's okay. You're okay."

Finally, she says quietly, "I'm alright. You just scared me."

He pulls back and looks at her, saying, "I don't think you're alright. What the hell's going on?" She refuses to look at him directly, and he repeats, "Veronica, what's the matter?"

She shakes her head; he strokes her cheek, and she begins to cry again.

He whispers, trying to calm her again, "Veronica, please tell me what's wrong. Are you still upset about our fight last night? I did hurt you, didn't I?" Overwhelmed by guilt about his actions the night before, he adds wretchedly, "I'm so sorry I hurt you, I don't why I was so-"

She shakes her head, interrupting him. "No, Logan, I'm not upset about last night." Realizing that the only way to reassure him is to tell him the truth, she admits, "I've been having nightmares...about Briar Hill. They started a few weeks ago, when you were gone. I'm there at the school, and the other undercover has disappeared, and I can't contact Dad. And...I try to call you, and I realize I don't know where you are, and Wallace is gone too, and...I'm at the school all alone, and I can't leave..." She can't even tell him about the newest addition to the nightmare: Mercer Hayes at the school too. Veronica realizes that yesterday's discussion of the sociology class's prison experiment triggered his inclusion in the dream. The tears flow down her cheeks, and she turns her face into the pillow.

"That's it. You're not going. It's too dangerous," he replies heatedly. "I can't believe your dad is even considering letting you do this."

"Logan, I have to go. There's no one else. It's going to be perfectly safe, and I don't want to give up," she protests.

He sighs and hugs her tighter. "We're not done talking about this...Veronica, I'm...I'm so sorry I ran away. I'm sorry about last night too. I took my frustration out on you. I promise you...I'm going to protect you. No one's going to hurt you, ever again. Especially not me. Veronica, I swear I'm going to protect you. I won't let anyone hurt you."

At his vehemence, she catches her breath in a hiccup and looks at him. The alarm suddenly goes off, startling both of them. Veronica fumbles with the switch and silences the racket. They stare at each other, and he caresses her face; he draws nearer and kisses her, with love and concern. He says quietly, "Do you want to finish showering? I'll be right outside the door. No one's going to hurt you." She nods, and they get out of bed.

He watches her obsessively as they get ready for the day. While she takes her shower, he makes a brief phone call; when she's finished, he quickly takes his own shower. When he emerges from the bathroom, she's made breakfast, and they eat it, with little conversation. She keeps catching him staring at her intently, but to her surprise, she doesn't mind his hovering for once. When they leave the house, he says seriously, "I'm going to be watching you. All the time. Nothing's going to happen to you." She looks into his eyes and nods.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Less Blood, More Emotional Distress**  
Wallace consults Keith; Logan and Veronica  
consult a professional.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Dr. Friedman: Lorraine  
Bracco. Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO: "LESS BLOOD, MORE EMOTIONAL DISTRESS"

Mon. 3/2/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

When Wallace comes in the office, he's surprised to see Keith already there. "Yo, Keith."

"You're in early, Wallace," Keith replies.

Wallace notes the piles of files scattered around the room. Keith straightened the office a little after the break-in, but there's still plenty of paperwork that needs to be put in order after Kendall rifled through everything. "I guess I know what I'll be doing today. What happened?" Wallace asks.

Keith explains about the break-in and the identity of the burglar. He relates the tale of the interrogation at the Neptune Grand.

"I would have paid a lot of money to see that," Wallace comments. "You're sure Veronica didn't slap her?"

Keith chuckles. "Veronica was pretty restrained. Now Logan, on the other hand...I think if I hadn't been there, Logan might have taken Kendall's new face off. It's unbelievable to think that she was pursuing him on Liam's orders."

"I'm not sure if that makes it better or worse for Veronica. There was a time when Veronica really hated Kendall," Wallace remarks. "Keith, can I ask you for advice? I'm trying to investigate Candice's brother's murder, and...I think the Fitzpatricks are involved. Veronica convinced me that I can't just ask around about Shawn; she says the Fitzpatricks would kill me without a second thought."

Wallace relates to Keith everything he's learned about Shawn's murder up in Washington; Shawn cashed in his airline ticket, he was dealing a drug called Meth-X on campus, and his body was found near the Canadian border in a national forest. He shows Keith the printout of the information that was on the Blackberry.

Keith shuffles through the papers, frowning.

Wallace adds, "Logan said something about Ciaran and Padraig Fitzpatrick purposely flunking senior year repeatedly to keep dealing drugs at Neptune High. Weevil told Logan that they murdered Weevil's predecessor as head of the PCHers, Gustavio Toombs–"

Keith looks at him sharply. "The guy they called 'The Reaper'? That was when I was sheriff. Gustavio Toombs disappeared, and we never found a body. I was never able to close that case."

Wallace nods. "That's what Weevil told Logan. And the initials in the Blackberry are CF."

"Veronica's right. For once, she's thinking straight about the dangers involved," Keith comments. "You can't just ask around about the Fitzpatricks. I'd help you, but...you know I have a lot on my plate this week. There's a lot to prepare for the undercover op, and I need to get you up to speed on a few cases you're going to have to handle while Veronica and I are out of town."

"I know you're busy, Keith. This can wait," Wallace replies. "It's already been a year. You don't have to worry; I'm going to take care of everything around here."

Keith thinks for a moment. "I'll tell you what I can do. I'll give Inga a call and have her make me a copy of the file on the Gustavio Toombs murder and everything the department has on Ciaran and Padraig Fitzpatrick. And Wallace?"

"Yeah?"

"I think the person to talk to about this is Eli. He still must have some contacts in the PCH gang. And, I have to tell you, he really showed a flare for detective work when he worked here. I was sorry it didn't work out, and I've tried to throw him a few small jobs when I could."

Wallace nods, remembering that Veronica told him that, by her dad's request, Weevil was secretly guarding her last fall during the time when Keith was getting threatening letters.

Keith continues, "You know, Wallace, it's looking like Liam is going to get off scot-free on these racketeering charges and the protection scam he was running on Eli's uncle. I might be wrong about this, but I bet Eli might be interested in settling the score with the Fitzpatricks. But you didn't hear that from me."

"That's the real rap, yo," Wallace agrees.

Mon. 3/2/09: Los Angeles, CA

When they get to Los Angeles, Logan checks his watch and says, "We better head directly to Friedman's office. Get in the right lane; we'll take this exit."

Veronica parks the car, and Logan says, "You're coming up, right?"

"All right," she agrees.

When they walk into the waiting room, Dr. Friedman walks out of the treatment room. Logan nods to her, and Dr. Friedman says, "Hello, Veronica."

Veronica looks from Friedman to Logan and says, "What's going on?"

"Logan asked me to clear some time in my schedule in case you wanted to talk to me too," Dr. Friedman responds.

"You set me up?" Veronica hisses to Logan.

"Yeah, I care about you enough that I thought you might want to talk to my doctor, okay?" Logan replies. "You don't have to. It's just an option."

Veronica stares at him in disbelief.

"She's helped me a lot, Veronica," he tries. "You scared me this morning. I'm worried you're not telling me everything."

"Whatever you say to me is completely confidential. I won't repeat anything you say to Logan," the doctor confirms.

Logan puts his arm around Veronica and says quietly, "Please. I'm worried. About last night, and this morning. And...it's always so hard for us. Friedman's not on anybody's side. She just listens."

"All right, I'll talk to her. Just to prove to you that everything's okay," Veronica retorts, belligerently. She follows the doctor into the treatment room, and takes the same uncomfortable chair she sat in the last time she was here. Veronica stares at Dr. Friedman, unreasonably petrified about what will happen next.

"So...did something happen?" Dr. Friedman asks.

"Logan's just being ridiculous, as usual. He's worse than an old woman, the way he worries about me," she replies.

"Explain."

Veronica sighs. "We fought again last night because he found out I hadn't told my father a few things about the case we're working on."

"So he was mad at you?"

Veronica sits, fuming. "He's always overreacting. He doesn't understand about the FBI, how important it is to me, and he thinks I don't pay any attention to the risks I'm taking."

"Do you pay attention?"

"Of course. We've been preparing for this undercover operation for weeks."

"This is at the tough-love school you asked me about last time you were here?"

Veronica nods.

"So if you have been preparing for the risks of this operation, what was Logan upset about?"

Veronica drops her head, looking at her lap. She mumbles, "I didn't tell my dad I wanted to use the operation to also look into Hannah Griffith's murder. I think she wasn't really killed by the serial killer."

Friedman remains silent, and Veronica rushes in to explain. Defensively, she says, "I found a lot of discrepancies between the other victims and Hannah, and I think she might have been killed to keep her quiet about what was going on at the school."

"How would you want Logan to react to that? You going into a situation that you think led to the death of another girl?"

"I don't know, I guess I want him to trust me, that I know what I'm doing," Veronica answers.

"You don't want him to worry about you?" Dr. Friedman presses.

"No, that's not what I'm saying. And look at what he did this morning, shanghai-ing me into talking to you about it. It's manipulative. I can't just sit at home and be perfectly safe just to keep him happy," Veronica replies angrily.

"Is that what he wants?"

Veronica stays silent. Finally, she says, "I don't know what he wants from me. We just...always seem to have the same fight over and over. And...I love him, I want him in my life, but he can't seem to accept that I have a dangerous job."

"Job? Veronica, I thought you were still in school."

"Okay, a dangerous career," she replies, exasperated.

Dr. Friedman makes a couple notes, and Veronica seethes, wondering what she's writing. The doctor looks up, sees Veronica's expression, and explains, "I'm just taking a few notes to clarify. You can see them if you want."

Veronica catches her lower lip with her teeth, thinking that she's going to kill Logan when this is over.

Dr. Friedman changes tacks. "Tell me about the FBI. Why is it so important to you?"

"Because it's the FBI! It's the best job in my field. I was recruited for the internship program, and that means a lot. My dad was so proud of me. And it was humiliating to be kicked out."

"Did you like the internship program at the FBI?" Friedman asks.

Veronica squirms.

"Did you?" she presses.

"No," Veronica admits. "They didn't let us do anything. Some of the seminars were interesting, but a lot of the topics they covered–honestly, I've already worked cases in those areas with my dad, and I really didn't need to go over the topics again. And a lot of the rules were ridiculous. But it won't be like that when I'm an agent."

"What about the rules was ridiculous?"

"Everything's about the chain of command. And then there's the BuSpeak."

"The what?"

"Bureau Speak. The stupid acronyms for everything and bureaucratic lingo."

Dr. Friedman just waits for a moment, then says, "What would you do if you couldn't be in the FBI?"

Veronica feels as if the breath was knocked out of her. "What do you mean?"

"It's a simple question. What if you had to do something else?"

Veronica ponders. "I guess...I guess I'd work with my dad, or maybe try another government agency or police work. Maybe investigative journalism." She rushes to explain, "But that's not the point."

"What is the point?"

"If I can solve this case, Hannah's murder, I..." She realizes it sounds stupid. Lamely, she concludes, "I think I could get back in the program."

"You mean if you solved it, because the FBI wasn't able to?"

"Right. What's so bad about that?"

"You tell me."

Frustrated, Veronica blurts out, "How does anything ever get worked out here, when all you do is ask questions? This is ridiculous."

"Therapy's not a car wash. You don't just show up and magically get better when you sit through the session. You have to do the work. I'm just here to guide you."

"Therapy, huh?" Veronica answers. "So Logan said I needed therapy?"

"No, he didn't. Actually, I don't think he'll mind if I tell you what he said. His exact words were, 'I think it might be good for her to talk to a neutral party,'" Friedman responds.

"You mean..."

"I think Logan knows that he's too invested. Sometimes it helps to talk with someone who's not actually involved in the situation. He has a large stake in this, you know. He cares about you a great deal."

"And that's why he ran away from me?" Veronica blurts out.

Friedman waits.

"He told me he was afraid I would judge him for how he treated Hannah, that I would be ashamed of the way he acted. That he did a terrible thing, and caused her to be sent away. He still thinks he's responsible for her death, you know. Sometimes it's...it's obscene the way he thinks he's responsible for everything, like he's a god or something."

"What _do_ you think about the way he acted with Hannah?"

"I was furious with him at the time. He was so transparent, using her to goad her father." Veronica tries to silence the internal voice that keeps shouting,_ you were jealous, jealous, jealous.  
_  
"And now?"

"I don't know how I feel about it," Veronica says wretchedly. "I guess...it's good that he's trying to take responsibility for it, but...I want him to be able to move on. And that's why I have to..."

Dr. Friedman looks at her quizzically.

"That's why I have to solve her murder, so he stops blaming himself," Veronica finishes. _And stops walking into the ocean_, she adds to herself.

"Let's go back to the FBI. How do you envision your personal life if you do end up working for the FBI?"

Veronica is completely stumped. "I don't understand what you're asking."

"Well, for instance, do you see yourself having a family, being in a committed relationship?"

Veronica stares at Dr. Friedman. "I've never thought about it. Besides, how can you know what will happen to you in the future?"

"Well, you may not be able to control the future, but if you don't examine what you truly want, you might not ever be able to achieve personal satisfaction. Do you want to devote your entire life to your career? Are you willing to give up children and a husband if necessary in order to achieve your career goals?"

Hesitantly, Veronica replies, "I...I really haven't thought about it." For a moment, she tries to picture herself ten years from now. She thinks about the agents she met in the program. There were very few women in the highest ranks, and many of the older men she met seemed to have gone through bitter divorces. Even Mike...Mike was separated from his wife when he met Veronica and eventually became divorced. She considers the long hours of a typical day and the frequent traveling that agents mentioned to her; _frankly, most of the agents I worked with were assholes_, she reflects. She tries to imagine getting married and having a family while working at the bureau; she cringes, thinking about Logan fighting with her over her hours and her dangerous job. _Wait...I can't imagine...I can't even imagine a future with him not there._ She has a moment of perfect clarity: seven months pregnant, and Logan leaving her, because she won't take care of herself and the baby. Veronica formulates a ridiculous mental image of herself struggling to put on a bulletproof vest over a very large baby bump, strapping on her gun holster and waddling onto a crime scene, then coming home to an empty house and surviving on a diet of pickles and chocolate ice cream.

"Are you nervous about the undercover operation?" Friedman asks, interrupting Veronica's musings.

"What?" Veronica stares back, trying to shake the image of herself pregnant and alone.

"It would be understandable if you were."

"Goddammit, he told you about the dream, didn't he? He is such a bastard," Veronica comments bitterly.

Friedman waits.

"Okay, I admit it, I've been having nightmares about being undercover. Maybe we can get this over with."

Friedman leans forward, and Veronica tells her about the dream. At one point, Veronica stops to explain who Mercer is and what happened with him.

When Veronica finishes, Friedman leans back in her chair and regards Veronica.

"So are you going to do some magical Freudian interpretation of my dream?" Veronica asks, flippantly.

"I don't think we need Freud for this. You're in a dangerous situation, and you've been abandoned by the people you care about. And it ends with you being menaced by the man who almost raped you two years ago."

Veronica swallows. _Abandoned. Raped._

"Veronica, you've been through some tumultuous times the last few months. Your mother's murder, the shooting, Logan's injury, Logan running away, your dad being arrested...Are you sure you're mentally prepared for the situation you're going into? The emotional abuse you're going to be facing is not a joke."

"I know that," Veronica protests. She wipes away a tear, mentally cursing herself for revealing a weakness.

"Can you put off this operation?"

Veronica shakes her head. "I can do this. It's just a dream. Like you said, it's been a hard year. But I can do this," she repeats.

"You're a very capable young woman, and you're a survivor, Veronica."

Veronica thinks, _Now why is that making me cry?_ She brushes away the tears.

Friedman continues, "Let's stop here. Veronica, I just wanted to assure you–I'm not going to tell Logan anything you said to me."

"Dr. Friedman?" Veronica asks.

"Yes, Veronica."

"Why...why is it always so hard for me and Logan? Why do we always fight and...I mean, we've never been able to sustain a relationship for more than a few months, but...at the same time, we always end up back together. I love him so much, but he drives me crazy."

Dr. Friedman regards Veronica. Finally, she says, "You've both been through a lot in your short lives. The external pressures on your relationship have been intense."

"But if it's so hard, why don't we just give up?" she asks despondently. "Why don't we just try to find something that's easier?"

"We can't always control our feelings," Dr. Friedman replies. "And we certainly can't control everything that happens in our lives. All we can control is how we react to our feelings and the events in our lives."

When Veronica walks out into the waiting room, Logan stands up nervously. He walks to her and hugs her. "Are you okay? I'm sorry I...sprang this on you. I was just so worried this morning, I didn't know what to do," he says quickly.

She puts her arms around him. "It's okay. I know you were worried."

He caresses her hair, trying to comfort her, hoping he did the right thing. "Veronica, I'm going to have my session. I'll be done in an hour. There's a pretty good coffeeshop in the lobby. Do you want to meet there?"

She nods, and he bends to kiss her. She sees the worry on his face, and she takes pity on him. "I love you, Logan."

When he disappears into the inner room with the doctor, looking over his shoulder at her, she realizes that, during the entire time she was talking with Dr. Friedman, she was completely aware, in an acutely physical sense, that Logan was nearby. His presence was as palpable as if she could actually see him through the walls. She wonders if he feels her presence the same way.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Toddling Steps**  
Mac's surreptitious activities in Witness  
Protection; Duncan's supervised visitation;  
Logan and Veronica come to an agreement.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack.  
Alan: Ned Vaughn. Mrs. Dominguez: Shelley  
Morrison. Mrs. Johnson: Mare Winningham.  
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CHAPTER FIFTY-THREE: "TODDLING STEPS"

Mon. 3/2/09: San Diego RCFL, San Diego, CA

Mac puts her head on her arms and closes her eyes for a few minutes. She thought she was close to tracing the originating ISP of the flirt-bot program, but she has run into another set of barriers thrown up by the program's creators. _At least I'm learning a lot. More than I'd be learning in my computer classes at school. Maybe if I took a break..._ She looks around. Alan is several desks away, engrossed in his work. No one is paying attention to her.

Whenever she can spare a moment and is unobserved, Mac has been using the powerful FBI computers to investigate several aspects of Hannah Griffith's murder. Veronica had shared all of her theories with Mac, who was completely intrigued. After Mac learned that the security on the case files of the investigation was relatively porous, she began trying to determine who exactly had access. Mac has begun to compile a list of every FBI agent who has accessed the case files. In addition, she has been carefully snooping to see if she can identify any unauthorized persons who may have hacked into the case files. The process is slow-going, since she is careful to cover her own tracks as she works. But she has identified several occurrences of remote access by non-Bureau personnel; the question is whether they left traces of their identity when they snooped into the files.

Mac is wondering if Veronica was able to decode her message; _surely 'Love, Mac' made it obvious._ She laughs a little, and Alan looks over at her. She quickly closes the window she was working in as he walks over to her.

"Any progress?" he asks.

"I think so. Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course."

"Could I possibly order Indian food for lunch today? The vegan options on room service..." she shrugs expressively. "And the cafeteria here is even worse. Salad, and more salad. I'm turning into a bunny rabbit."

"Vegan," Alan repeats. "I barely even knew what that was before I met you. You really never eat meat?"

"Never," she swears. "A hamburger hasn't crossed these lips in ten years. Nothing with a face, you know."

Alan rolls his eyes. "All right, Indian food. Show me what you've got." He leans over her, looking at the files Mac's been reconstructing on her computer screen.

Mon. 3/2/09: Los Angeles, CA

Veronica sits waiting for Logan at a table in the dark recesses of the rear part of the coffeeshop. He walks in slowly, looking around for her, and she notices that he barely limps anymore. She's gotten so used to the cane that she hardly notices it, but today she realizes that he won't be needing it for much longer. It's almost an afterthought for him already. He sits down across from her, and she pushes a tall latte to him. He takes off the lid and smiles at her. "Everything okay?" she asks.

He nods. "How about you? You still mad at me?"

"No. You're right about Dr. Friedman...she somehow manages to clarify the issues." In fact, Veronica has been compulsively reviewing her discussion with the therapist. She reaches under the table and puts two shopping bags on the table between them.

"What's this?" he asks, poking at the bags.

"A couple going-away presents," she replies.

He looks at her sharply. "I'm going to see you again in a few days. We'll be flying to Boston together on Friday."

"I know, just...open them," she says. She pushes the larger bag to him, and he reaches inside and pulls out a cell phone. "Just like the one you threw into the ocean when you left town, except it's the newer model. Pre-programmed with my number."

Logan plays with the phone for a minute and accesses the menu to set a ringtone. To his surprise, she's already downloaded a few of his favorites and programmed it to ring with "Sway" when she's calling him. "I love it," he says. "And you got the new 747 area code. 747-555-5683..."

"...So the paparazzi won't know your number," she finishes his sentence. "Yeah, that's 555-LOVE. They probably thought I was a hooker in the Cingular store. Now get busy and record an outgoing message; I've missed the jackass-quote-of-the-day," she snarks.

"Okay," Logan replies. He thinks a minute, then records an outgoing message. "Hello, this is 747-555-5683, with your inspirational message of the day. '_When my love swears that she is made of truth, I do believe her though I know she lies, That she might think me some untutor'd youth, Unlearned in the world's false subtleties...Therefore I lie with her, and she with me, And in our faults by lies we flatter'd be.' William Shakespeare._"

"Oh, you!" Veronica says coquettishly, swatting his arm. "I am _so_ made of truth."

Logan looks curiously into the other bag. "And what's this?" He pulls out a small thin box from Victoria's Secret. "Whatever could this be?" he says chuckling. He opens the box and pulls out a very dainty black lace thong. Logan dangles it in front of Veronica's face and says, "Oh, you are a dirty girl, Veronica Mars. So am I supposed to rip this off you?"

She blushes furiously, and he looks closely at her, narrowing his eyes and assessing her expression. He sniffs the thong delicately and remarks, "Ahh. These are already broken in. Something to remember you by..."

Beet-red, she says, "Now you can get rid of the beard and the mustache. Please. I'm begging you. All the women in the world are begging you."

Logan crushes the thong into his face and inhales deeply. He whispers to her, "Let's get out of here..."

"What, too public for you?" Veronica teases.

He reaches under the table and strokes her thigh, saying, "Never!"

"Come on, let's get you home," she laughs.

Logan reluctantly puts the thong back in the bag, and they leave the coffeeshop hand-in-hand with Veronica solicitously carrying Logan's presents.

Mon. 3/2/09: Neptune, CA

The limo drops Duncan off at the foster home where Lilly is living until the custody issue is settled. The court-ordered social worker, Amy Dominguez, who supervises his visits with his daughter, is waiting for him to arrive. She steps out of her car and greets him.

"Hello, Mrs. Dominguez, how are you today?" Duncan says in response.

They ring the doorbell, and Mrs. Johnson opens the door, with Lilly anxiously waiting beside her. Lilly cries, "Daddy! I thought you'd never get here."

Duncan bends down and scoops her up into his arms. "Mrs. Johnson, how are you? Thanks again for taking such good care of my daughter."

Mrs. Johnson shakes her head. "Mr. Kane, I've never seen a more well-behaved child. And she loves you so much. Most of the children I foster are troubled and, to be honest, a real handful. Lilly says 'please' and 'thank you' and does exactly as she's told."

"We were moving around so much that Lilly got used to doing what I said quickly. We made it a game," Duncan remarks. To Lilly, he says, "I'm glad to hear you've been behaving for Mrs. Johnson."

Lilly cups her hand around Duncan's ear and whispers to him, "She doesn't know any good stories. When can I go home with you, Daddy?"

"Soon, sweetheart," he promises. In truth, he's chafing at the amount of time the custody process is taking. His attorneys promise him that the matter is being expedited, but Duncan is impatient. He is ready for the next phase of his life to begin. He walks to the living room, bouncing his daughter in his arms as he goes. "Lilly, do you want to guess what I'm doing today? I'm looking at houses to buy. What kind of house should we get?"

"A castle," Lilly says. "With a moat, so the mean man who was chasing us can't get to us."

Duncan smiles and explains to Mrs. Johnson and Mrs. Dominguez that 'the mean man' was part of their game. Mrs. Dominguez nods approvingly, taking note of the care that Duncan took to protect his daughter emotionally. Duncan, with Lilly's assistance, has won them both over; Mrs. Johnson has even offered to testify on his behalf.

"I don't know about a moat, Lilly. We can certainly have a fence with a gate. Would that be okay?"

She thinks a moment, then nods her head vigorously.

"What else, Lilly?"

"A swimming pool!" she exclaims. "And a sand box to play in. I miss the beach in Austria."

"You mean Australia?"

She nods. "And Daddy? Can we paint my new name on my bedroom door? I love my new name. Lilly, just like Aunt Lilly," she says proudly.

"Of course. What color should we paint your bedroom?" Duncan asks.

"Pink!! I want it to be pink, daddy."

Duncan laughs and puts his daughter down. "Why don't we draw a picture of our new house, Lilly?" He gets a piece of paper and crayons and sits down cross-legged on the floor with his daughter. The two women watch approvingly.

Mrs. Dominguez asks, "Duncan, would you like to take Lilly to the playground later this week? That might be fun. I'm sure I can convince the judge to give us permission."

"Thank you, Mrs. Dominguez, that would be wonderful," Duncan says gratefully. "I appreciate everything you've done for us."

Duncan plays quietly with his daughter for two hours. As he is preparing to leave, the doorbell rings. "Oh, she's early," Mrs. Johnson exclaims in annoyance. Mrs. Dominguez peeks out the window at the visitor on the porch.

"Who's early?" Duncan asks.

Mrs. Johnson purses her lips. "It's Mrs. Manning. The court granted her request for visitation."

Duncan is furious and vows internally to call his attorneys the moment he leaves and to rip someone a new one. Knowing that his behavior is being observed and reported to the judge, he struggles to maintain a poker face. He stands up and speaks in a low voice to Mrs. Johnson so his daughter can't hear. "Well, she is Lilly's grandmother. Of course, I want my daughter to know her grandmother." _Who really should be in prison for what she let happen to Meg,_ he thinks spitefully.

"Lilly's scared of her," Mrs. Johnson confides quietly. "Mrs. Manning is always talking about Jesus and telling Lilly she should do as the Good Book says. It's very confusing for Lilly. I really want to give that judge a piece of my mind."

Duncan manages a weak smile. "I'm sure it's all going to be okay. Thanks for everything. Do you think I could possibly leave the back way? I don't want Lilly to see...I'm worried what Mrs. Manning might say to me, and I'd rather avoid any ugliness in front of my daughter."

"Of course," Mrs. Johnson says. "Follow me."

"One second. Lilly, sweetheart," Duncan says, kneeling in front of his daughter. "Your other grandmother's here. Don't worry if you don't understand everything she tells you. Just be nice and respectful. I'll explain anything you don't understand the next time I see you."

"Tomorrow?" Lilly says hopefully.

Duncan nods. "Tomorrow. I love you, Lilly."

"I love you, Daddy." Lilly replies. She throws her arms around him and kisses him; Duncan hugs her back, wishing that he could keep her away from Mrs. Manning and all the ugliness in the world. _Maybe a moat's not such a bad idea._

Mon. 3/2/09: Venice Beach, CA

Veronica drives up and down Logan's street several times, but they don't see any sign of paparazzi. She stops the Saturn in front of his house and shuts off the engine. "So, I guess this is it," she comments in a forlorn tone that doesn't escape Logan's notice.

He shoots a glance at her, equally reluctant to part from her. He looks despondently at the beach house. Once upon a time, he loved this house and its impressive ocean views. But now, after the incident last fall when he broke the shower door and then was in the car crash with Dick, and, more recently, when he suffered through the paparazzi siege, the house just seems filled with bad memories.

Veronica breaks the silence. "Remember the last time I was here? You know, the kitchen counter, and then your list."

Logan smiles. "The kitchen counter was fun." He takes her hand.

"We don't have to stop the counter-lingus just because you got your cast off," she remarks, trying to cheer both of them up.

He laughs a little and falls silent again. He looks at her and says, "It just doesn't seem like home anymore. Your dad's apartment–that seems like home now. And...I know I'll see you in a few days, but..."

"I think the last few days are the longest time we've ever spent together. I mean, completely together, almost every hour of the day," Veronica finishes his thought.

"Except for your dad's hearing," Logan agrees. "I think I'm even going to miss fighting with you."

"Oh, that's not a problem. I think I could provoke a good quarrel even long distance," she teases.

He doesn't respond, just looks at her, rubbing her hand with his thumb.

"Do you want me to come in? I could check for intruders and sweep for bugs," she offers. "You know, since I'm the man in this relationship," she adds, in a mocking tone.

He refuses to take the bait. "No, you have to get going. You're going straight to the FBI to talk to Mike like you promised your dad?" he queries.

"Yes, Logan. Don't _worry_! I think Dad's going to check with Mike to make sure that I talked to him. Jeez, you guys don't trust me at all," she complains lightly.

"I think I should come with you," Logan suggests.

"Ah, so it's not just that you don't trust me, it's that you don't trust _him_," Veronica teases.

"Of course I don't. I'm well aware of the impact you have on the opposite sex," he explains, glancing at his crotch.

She laughs in embarrassment.

"No, seriously, I think I should come with you," he protests.

"You just don't want to leave me," she says.

"So? I don't see you pushing me out of the car and peeling out of here either." Logan smiles at her. "You're gonna miss me, you're gonna miss me," he adds in a sing-song.

Veronica shakes with repressed laughter. "Someone has a very high opinion of himself," she lectures.

He stares at her more seriously. "Veronica, I've been thinking about this meeting with my advisor this afternoon. There's no way I'm going to be able to complete this semester with all the classes I missed. Most of my courses have a class participation requirement, and I can't possibly pass now. I'll have to repeat the semester anyways. I'm just going to ask for a leave of absence. I can spend the rest of the semester with you in Neptune. I can begin work on my senior project, the movie screenplay I told you about, and then go back to school in the summer session."

"And give up all this?" she says, waving her hand at the beach house.

"In a second. I want to be with you. And, Veronica, I especially want to spend time with you this week before you go undercover. It's going to be rough for me, watching and listening to you and not being able to actually be there with you."

"Actually, I had a crazy thought while I was shopping for your presents," Veronica remarks. He waits, and she takes a breath and continues. "What if you tried to get a job at Briar Hill too? So there was another person on site to protect me? I know I'd feel safer if you were there. I think...I think you look different enough. Your face isn't as famous on the east coast."

He stares at her in surprise. _She's a lot more scared than she's letting on._ "Of course, if that's what you want. But I don't have any experience; do you really think your dad will let me help like that?"

"Dad really likes you. I didn't tell you this before. The night before we talked to Leo, before we–" she sighs, "blackmailed him, Dad told me if anything went wrong, and if he did go to prison, that I should move in with you and transfer to UCLA. He said he trusts you to take care of me. And you've been my backup before. In the River Stix, when Moe attacked me, when I needed you on the roof...you were always able to come to my rescue. Dad knows that. And if I tell him that I'll feel safer, and I'll be able to concentrate on my mission better, he'll definitely approve."

Logan hesitates. "What about my leg? My knee still bothers me. They won't be hiring guards who can hardly walk."

"I noticed this morning. You barely even need the cane anymore. You certainly seem able to contort yourself into various sexual positions whenever you want to," she shoots back.

He laughs. "Okay, you're right. Most of the time, I just keep the cane with me in case I have to walk a long distance. I suppose I could just tell them I'm getting over an injury. Maybe Kavner could put in a good word for me."

She turns toward him, taking his hand with both of hers. "It's just...you really know me. If I need help, I know I'll be able to let you know somehow. I'd feel safer with you there."

"Veronica Mars needing help? Hell has frozen over," he comments sarcastically. "This is a great idea; I did want to have some input on your tattoos."

"I'll give you complete creative control over my body decorations," she promises.

He grins salaciously. "I think I can come up with some good ideas."

Veronica laughs. "There's no point in getting a tattoo for the operation if it's going to be hidden by my clothes."

"Just one, on your beautiful ass?" he pleads. "Mmm. _I'll_ know about it. It'll get me through the lonely nights when we can't be together."

"Just one. Maybe we'll even make it permanent."

For a second, Logan thinks she means the relationship rather than the tattoo, and he looks at her sharply. She blushes a little under his stare, and he realizes that it was only wishful thinking on his part; but upon reconsideration he wonders if the thought had occurred to her as well.


	18. Chapters 54 to 57

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. All opinions regarding real-life organizations expressed in this fic are the opinions of the characters only. You may or may not agree with the conclusions of the characters, and no harm or insult is intended to these real-life organizations, or to any participant, past, present, or future, in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall, who is also my assistant casting director, and Kazy. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

* * *

Previously on Veronica Mars: The Year of Living Dangerously Part Two:

vanessagalore•livejournal•com/44079•html

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Illegitimi Non Carborundum**  
Evidence that the paparazzi are still  
stalking Logan surfaces; Wallace  
asks Weevil for help.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Eli: Francis Capra.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR: "ILLEGITIMI NON CARBORUNDUM"

Mon. 3/2/09: Venice Beach, CA

Now that Logan has decided to return to Neptune with Veronica, he considers whether he should take his own car and follow her. Veronica vetoes the idea, saying that his BMW being moved would alert the paparazzi that he's back in town.

Logan thinks a moment, then says, "What do you think about another headline story of Logan Echolls being a bad boy in Europe?"

"What do you mean?" she asks.

"Well, that guy Jason Dohring is still being paid to be me for another week or so. I could tell Harvey Greenblatt that I need Dohring to do something newsworthy again. A bar fight, partying with Amy Winehouse, or maybe hitting on Heidi Montag," Logan suggests. "Just to keep the paparazzi thinking that I'm still out of the country."

"In case someone recognizes you, they'll think it can't be, since they heard that Logan Echolls was acting out again in...where is it that you'll be exactly?"

He replies, "I think I'm in Paris for the ready-to-wear fashion week."

"I'm a little scared that you know that," Veronica comments wryly.

"My mother used to go every year, first week in March. I used to dread it; if my dad wasn't on location..." Logan's voice drifts off. He shakes himself and refuses to look at Veronica's sympathetic face. "Listen, if we want to keep the ruse going, that I'm out of town, let's use the back entrance to the beach house, just to be sure."

"Right. When Dick and I were here, we parked at the public beach and walked in," Veronica says, and Logan nods his agreement at the plan. She goes around the block and heads for the public beach down the road. They park the car, and Veronica grabs her baseball cap from the back seat to cover her blonde hair. Both don sunglasses. Logan decides to leave his cane in the car, and Veronica says, "Don't worry, you can lean on me if you need to."

"I just want to grab a few things and check to see that everything's okay," Logan explains. They walk down the beach, with Logan's arm draped across Veronica's shoulders. "How did you and Dick get past the paparazzi anyway?"

Veronica explains, "I got Ming from Woo Too to make a distraction at the front door so Dick and I could get in the back way and snoop around the house. Nice job, clearing your computer cache."

"I've been paying attention all these years to your stories, you know," he comments. "I've picked up a few of your tricks, Ms. Snoop."

As they approach the house, Veronica scouts for paparazzi. "I think we're cool. No one's watching the house. You did a great job fooling everyone into believing you were in Madeira," she says, sarcastically.

"Thanks," he replies, not missing a beat. "Figured if I could fool you..." he shrugs.

Once in the house, Logan looks around quickly, then heads for the bedroom. He packs a small duffel bag with clothes and other items. He returns to the living room and is looking for a book on the shelf when Veronica silently waves at him, holding one finger to her lips.

"What?" he mouths.

She walks over to him and shows him an electronic device. She cups her hands and presses her lips to his ears. "I brought Dad's new signal detector today. You know, like the one he..." Veronica pulls away, and Logan nods, that he understands. She points to the readout, her meaning clear.

Logan mouths, "Paparazzi," and Veronica nods her agreement. She walks around the room, scanning for likely locations for a bug to be hidden. When she points the detector at the landline phone, the LED display shows additional lights, and she nods grimly. She looks around for a few minutes and finds additional listening devices in the bedroom and the living room area. She leaves all the devices where they are, then Veronica catches Logan's eye and points her thumb at the back entrance with a questioning look. He holds up a finger to indicate she should wait one minute, and he turns back to the shelf, looking for a particular book. He finds it, tucks it in his bag, and they leave the house quietly.

Once outside, she says, "Someone's gone to quite a bit of trouble to spy on you. The bug in the phone is an expensive model. More high tech than my dad and I usually use; more like the one we're going to use in Vermont. Small, and high-powered...probably voice-activated."

"Do you think they've been there since I've been out of town?"

"I would imagine," she replies. "I guess a recording of you would fetch a high price on the open market."

"Those were just audio devices, right?" Logan says, thinking aloud. "Wouldn't pictures be more valuable?" He catches her expression of distaste and continues, "I'm just saying."

"I suppose. What book were you looking for?" she asks.

Logan digs in the duffel bag and shows her the book. "'The Lucifer Effect'," he replies. "It's an account of the Stanford Prison Experiment by the guy who ran the experiment. I thought you should read it. We read it in Kinny's class."

"Wait, you read a book?" she teases.

"Yeah, that and 'Emma'," he replies. He points to the text under the title on the cover. "'Understanding How Good People Turn Evil', how could I resist?" Logan pauses, then continues, "It actually helped me. It deals with the psychological barriers that prevent good people from stopping the evil people in this world." He looks at her, and she realizes that he's talking about his mother, why Lynn never was able to stop Aaron from hurting him. He thumbs through the book until he finds a page, and he hands it to her, gesturing at a particular paragraph.

_'If you were placed in a strange and novel cruel Situation within a powerful System, you would probably not emerge as the same person who entered that crucible of human nature. You would not recognize your familiar image if it were held next to the mirror image of what you had become. We all want situational forces of the kinds operating in this Stanford Prison Experiment. For some, that belief is valid. They are usually the minority, the rare birds, those who I will designate as heroic later in our journey. For many, that belief of personal power to resist powerful situational and systemic forces is little more than a reassuring illusion of invulnerability. Paradoxically, maintaining that illusion only serves to make one more vulnerable to manipulation by failing to be sufficiently vigilant against attempts of undesired influence subtly practiced on them.'(5)_

Veronica unconsciously shivers, thinking about the robot-like reactions of Anthea Gittleman and the stories that Kavner told them the day before. "Are you trying to scare me?" she finally says, handing the book back to him.

Intensely, he says, "Yes, I am. It's still not too late to change your mind. If you decide to go through with it, I'll have your back, Veronica. But...I still wish you wouldn't go at all. A body-cavity strip search, Veronica? God. You can't think that I'm eager for you to have to go through that. And handcuffs and restraints..." he shakes his head. He puts the book back in his bag and turns to her. "I'll give you anything you want, if you just decide not to go. A house, a diamond necklace. A Ferrari. Whatever it takes."

"A bribe?" she replies.

He pulls her into his arms. "You're not going to change your mind, are you?"

She leans against him and shakes her head 'no'. "Logan...I can't give up. I promise you, I will stick to Dad's plan. I'll be safe as long as you're there to watch over me." Veronica pulls away, and they walk a short distance, finally reaching her Saturn.

When they get to the car, Veronica rummages in her handbag for her keys. As she triggers the door locks, she frowns, noticing something in her purse.

"What?" Logan says, from the opposite side of the car.

She holds up the bug detector, and he sees that the LED lights are lit again. She pulls out a small makeup mirror from her purse and crouches on the ground, looking underneath the vehicle. Finally, she finds something hidden in the chassis behind the rear wheel well. She carefully removes it and shows it to Logan.

Logan looks at her questioningly, and she responds, "It's a GPS tracking device. I've been checking the car all the time. Right after you disappeared, I found a tracker on my car. The paparazzi, maybe even Carrie. She hasn't stopped calling, trying to get an interview with me. Most of her messages are trying to provoke me into giving her a reaction. The girl's persistent," Veronica comments. "But...I didn't think to check this morning...I was too upset," she admits.

"Give it here, I'll crush it," he says angrily._ Dammit, I didn't know Carrie was still bothering her._

Veronica shakes her head. She looks around and sees the taxi stand not far away. She hands the tracking device to him. "Logan, I'm going to go talk to the cab driver. While he's distracted, you put the tracker on the taxi. It's magnetic, just stick under the car as far as you can."

He laughs. "So the paps are following a taxi all day long?"

"That's the idea," she says. Veronica applies some lipstick and runs a comb through her hair. She opens the top button on her shirt and checks her appearance in the mirror; apparently satisfied with the results, she sashays over to the taxi stand.

"Hi..." Veronica says, winningly. "I'm only in town for a few days. I bet you know where all the hot clubs are. My girlfriends and I are anxious to see some celebrities."

As the cab driver turns to her and begins gesticulating, Logan approaches the taxi and stealthily places the tracking device. He watches in amusement as Veronica touches her index finger to her lips, apparently confused by the directions the taxi driver is giving her. As Logan walks away, he sees over his shoulder that she is tracing a route on a map, with a dazzling smile. She tosses her hair back over her shoulder at one point, and Logan almost laughs aloud.

He gets in the car, and a few minutes later she joins him. Logan remarks, "You didn't have to flip your hair, that's overkill."

"It always works on you," she replies. She double-checks the signal detector; satisfied that there are no other transmitting devices on the car, she starts the Saturn and heads for UCLA.

Mon. 3/2/09: Hearst College Food Court, CA

Wallace looks around the court, scanning faces. Finally he spots Weevil at the entrance, and he motions him to come over.

Weevil turns a chair and sits backward with his arms on the back of the chair. "You rang?"

"Yeah. I was wondering if–" Wallace starts.

"Listen, I'm not sure if Veronica owes me or if I owe her at this point, but I'm pretty sure I don't owe you anything," Weevil interrupts. "I got a busy day today. The air conditioning isn't going to repair itself, and that bitch at the bursar's office has been all over my ass since I got in today."

"Just hear me out. I think you owe me that much after taping me to a flagpole," Wallace says sarcastically.

"You know, you gotta let it go. A little duct tape doesn't mean we're going steady," Weevil retorts. "What are you looking for, an apology after all this time?" Placing one finger on the side of his face, he adds in a drawling, simpering voice, "Tell you what...truth is, sometimes I miss you so bad I can hardly stand it..."

Wallace stares at him.

Finally, Weevil sighs and wipes his brow with his hand. "Sorry, man, it's been a shitty day. These mother-fuckin' eggheads think I'm their personal slave."

Abruptly, Wallace says, "Keith said you might have a reason to be mad at the Fitzpatricks...since they're going to skate on the racketeering charges. I bet your uncle is looking forward to doing business with them again. Protection's a bitch, right?"

Weevil's eyes narrow. "What did you have in mind?"

"My girlfriend's brother, Shawn, went to Hearst. He disappeared a year ago, and his body turned up with a bullet hole up near the Canadian border. I've found out that he was dealing drugs, and I think he was working for the Fitzpatricks. Ciaran Fitzpatrick, to be specific," Wallace explains. "I'd like to find out for sure, see if I can get some hard evidence to turn over to the cops. But, you know, it's not like I can walk into the River Stix and start asking questions."

Weevil laughs without amusement. "Yeah, you wouldn't last a minute in there. Your girlfriend's brother...he was a black guy?"

Wallace nods.

Weevil muses, "It's not like the Fitzpatricks to go outside of the family like that...especially a ni– uh, an African-American," he amends.

"He was dealing something called meth-x, combination of meth and ecstasy. Maybe he had a connection that the Fitzpatricks needed."

"So why would he need the Fitzpatricks?" Weevil asks.

"You tell me. I'm a clean-livin' mama's boy; I don't know anything about slinging dope."

Weevil shrugs. "I suppose they could have supplied the financing, helped with distribution, who knows. Those micks aren't geniuses; I wouldn't look for a complicated scheme. But if Shawn crossed the Fitzpatricks, I'm not surprised he turned up dead. When they're tweaking, they would cap you just for shooting off your mouth."

"Logan told me you thought Ciaran and Padraig killed Gustavio Toombs," Wallace says.

"Yeah, that's true, they took out the Reaper."

"Who was in charge of the PCHers before the Reaper? Would they know anything?" Wallace asks.

"My cousin...Emilio Vargas. He's in Chino, serving a third strike sentence. He had my back while I was there," Weevil explains. "Ciaran was there too for a while, serving a couple months on a parole violation. That fucking culero got up in my face a few times, but Emilio and his boys made sure I got out of there intact, if you know what I mean." He raises his eyebrows.

"Emilio Vargas," Wallace repeats, writing a note. "What if we talked to him? Maybe he's heard something, or could ask around..."

"And what do I get out of this, other than the Fitzpatricks gunning for me?" Weevil asks.

"Well, if I get proof that Ciaran killed Shawn and can get him sent to prison..." Wallace shrugs expressively. "That's one less Fitzpatrick to deal with. And you'd be getting revenge for the Reaper."

"I'm going to need more than that to mess with those micks. How about a little inside information on Hearst's chances in the playoffs? Baby needs a new pair of shoes," Weevil entreats, rubbing his thumb against his fingers.

"Yeah, forget it, man. I'll figure something else out," Wallace stands up to leave.

"Yo, homie, sit your ass down. You've got traction with Vee; if I do this, she owes me, all right?" Weevil says quickly.

"Yeah, I think I can arrange that." Wallace holds out his fist, and Weevil stares at it a minute before bumping it with his own fist.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Tattoo You**  
Veronica and Logan meet with Mike Fields;  
more preparation for Briar Hill.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Mike: Michael Trucco.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE: "TATTOO YOU"

Mon. 3/2/09: FBI Headquarters, Los Angeles, CA

When Veronica and Logan knock at Mike Fields' door, they hear, "Come in," and Veronica pushes open the door. Mike looks up and says sarcastically, "Well, well. Look what the cat dragged in. I see you found Echolls. Nice job with the Madeira video."

Logan shrugs in reply.

Veronica says quickly, "Listen, Mike...I have some information about the Saturday Night Slasher."

Mike immediately forgets about Logan and focuses his attention on Veronica. She hands him a printout and explains her theory about the murder dates being connected by the times of the full moon. Then she shows Mike the rap sheets of all the other victims and says in conclusion, "Look, you and I both know, it's very unlikely that a prostitute would never have been arrested. Hannah didn't have a record at all. In fact, no one seems to know where she was after she ran away from the Briar Hill Academy."

Mike leans back in his chair. "A copycat murder?"

Veronica nods. "But, Mike, that means...someone had inside information. Someone knew about the design the Slasher has been carving on his victims."

Leaning forward suddenly, Mike replies, "You mean, someone in the FBI? Or the police?"

"Or someone who could hack into the FBI files," she answers. "Mike, are you familiar with the Cynthia MacKenzie case?"

"You mean, the girl who was targeted by the Russian mafia for discovering their identity theft scheme? Yeah, I've heard a little about it. She's in Witness Protection, right?"

"That's Mac. Cynthia MacKenzie is Mac...my friend, remember? And Mike, she sent me a coded message through a mutual friend. I think she's stumbled onto something in the Slasher case. She knows the theory I've been working on. Can you get in touch with her?"

"Veronica, I don't have any idea where she is. They don't make that information widely known."

"She's at the San Diego Regional Computer Forensics Lab. At least, I'm pretty sure that's where she is," Veronica says.

"Veronica, I don't know what you're suggesting here, but I think you should forget it," Mike answers. He stands up and adds, "Thanks for coming in, Veronica."

Logan chimes in, "Veronica just gave you a big lead in the Slasher case. Kind of a career-making lead, if you ask me. I think the least you could do is listen to her."

Mike carefully keeps his face blank, but Logan realizes that this guy absolutely hates him. Logan reminds himself not to screw around with the law anytime soon.

Veronica says, "Can you make contact with Mac and see what she wants to tell me? There's got to be some excuse why you need to go to the San Diego Computer Lab."

Mike says, "You're going to leave the Slasher case alone, right?"

Logan raises his eyebrows at Veronica; she swallows, then says abruptly, "My dad and I were hired to investigate Briar Hill Academy by Hannah Griffith's mother. It's a tough-love boarding school."

Mike says sharply, "Like those Outward Bound programs, where those kids were killed?"

"Yes. I'm going undercover as a student; Ms. Denenberg wants to shut down the school. I think there's a possibility Hannah was killed to cover up something that was going on at Briar Hill. Maybe she threatened to go public with something that happened to her–something that she had hard proof of. There's going to be two other people undercover with me," she glances at Logan, "protecting me, but also if they can, they're going to try to see if there's any evidence that points to someone at the school as Hannah's murderer."

"Such as?" Mike queries.

"Records of someone important at the school while Hannah was there; maybe a payoff that she witnessed; or maybe another girl was murdered, and it was covered up," Veronica muses. "I don't know."

"Tell me more about the undercover operation, Veronica," Mike asks.

Veronica goes into the specifics of their plans. When she mentions, hesitantly, that Logan will be undercover as well, Mike interrupts, "An amateur? Veronica, where's your head?"

"He knows me. He'll know if I'm in trouble and can't find a way to signal my dad."

Mike remains silent, staring at the two of them. Finally, he says, "What about the authorities there in Vermont?"

"That's the problem. What if it's a local police officer or a district attorney who's taking bribes to look the other way at what's going on? We would just be alerting them that someone's investigating at the school, and they'd make sure that the school is squeaky clean while we're there. They've always gotten high ratings from the state, so someone is tipping them off about surprise inspections. Dad's found evidence that a subsidiary corporation, BHA, has been making contributions to political campaigns. If we inadvertently bring the wrong person into the loop, we might never find out who had a reason to murder Hannah. I think we have to do it this way," Veronica concludes.

"I know an agent in the Boston field office. There's no way he'd be involved in any kind of coverup, and he was a cop in Boston before he joined the bureau. He's had a lot of experience with teenaged runaways and prostitution. You need to have a contact in law enforcement."

Veronica looks at Logan, and he shakes his head that he doesn't know what she should do. Veronica muses, "Could you see if he has an alibi for the time of Hannah's death?"

"He's been overseas until recently, working with the counterterrorism task force." Mike picks up the phone and asks his assistant to run a check on the whereabouts of Thomas Lynley in January. He drums his fingers impatiently on his desk while he waits, then hangs up the phone and addresses Veronica and Logan. "Like I said, he was out of the country until two weeks ago. This is someone I'd trust with my life, Veronica."

Logan thinks, _It's not your life we're worrying about._

Mike continues, "You need to have a law enforcement official in the loop on this...someone you can call on for help if you need it. And he can help you with information on which politicians or cops are known to be dirty in that area."

Veronica looks at Logan again, and he nods. She turns back to Mike and says, "Okay. My dad's going early to have me 'committed' to the school; maybe my dad can brief your friend...But Mike, are you going to help me? Will you try to make contact with Mac and then let me or my dad know what she's found out?"

Mike stares at her, obviously worried.

"Mike, Mac is smart. She'll be a tremendous asset to this investigation. I know she's found out something," Veronica pleads.

Finally Mike nods. "I'll find a reason to go to the RFCL this week, and I'll talk to her. When do you leave for the undercover op?"

"Friday," Veronica replies.

"Okay, I'll be in touch. It might take a day or two," Mike adds.

"It's okay, that's great." Veronica stands up. She walks toward the door, then stops. She turns back toward Mike and asks quietly, "Mike, did you know that...they kicked me out of the FBI internship program?"

Mike flushes. "I was hoping...I was hoping that they'd changed their mind."

"When did you know? Before the last time I saw you, with my friend Eli?" she asks, hotly.

"Back in December. They demoted me for using Bureau resources to help you in your investigation. They said that your file was under review," he replies.

"Why didn't you tell me? I could have–"

"No, you couldn't have. Anything you tried to do would have made it worse," he answers. "I'm sorry, Veronica. I know you had your heart set on being in the FBI. You can apply again next year."

Logan starts to speak, but Veronica nudges him. "Don't," she whispers under her breath. Aloud, she says to Mike, "Thanks for meeting with us today." She turns to leave with Logan close behind.

Mike watches Logan intently as he follows Veronica out of the office. At the last moment, Mike strides over and touches Logan on the shoulder. "Be careful. Don't let her get hurt," Mike says in a low voice.

"I won't let her get hurt," Logan replies.

Mike nods and watches them leave.

Mon.-Tues. 3/2-3/09: Neptune, CA

The next two days are a whirlwind of activity. Keith is enthusiastic about Logan's increased participation; Kavner agrees to put in a good word for Logan. They decide that Logan will fly out to Boston with Keith on Wednesday and start working at the school the next day. Later in the day, they hear from Kavner that the timing was perfect; another employee quit that morning, and he was able to suggest Logan as a replacement without raising any suspicions.

Veronica's alias, Connie Morris, has been selected to have similar phonemes to both her nickname, Ronnie, and her last name so that she will react when she is called by her new name. After a long discussion, they settle on 'Roger Oakley' for Logan's pseudonym, having discarded the previous suggestions of 'Joe Eckley' and 'Lowell Eckart' as being too close to 'Logan Echolls' for comfort. Keith sets up an identity for 'Roger Oakley' that will withstand a fair amount of scrutiny.

Since Briar Hill doesn't allow its employees to carry a normal cell phone–for fear that a student might be able to steal it to call out–Keith sets up a mobile phone for Logan similar to the one Kavner already has. The ultra-compact cell phone is designed to be hidden in a pack of cigarettes. Keith notes that Kavner and Logan can also use the excuse of a cigarette break to make contact with each other should the need arise. Keith also instructs Logan in the basics of installing surveillance devices. Veronica persuades her dad to give Logan a set of master keys for file cabinets, in case the opportunity arises for Logan to snoop in the files at the school. Keith exchanges a knowing glance with Logan; they silently agree to humor her, and Logan accepts the key ring along with a crash course in the various models of file cabinets.

On Tuesday morning, Veronica, accompanied by Logan, goes to a salon. Logan's dark hair color is touched up while Veronica undergoes a drastic makeover. Her hair is colored a vibrant red and permed into ringlets. When Veronica sees the results, she sighs aloud, but Logan is pleased. He knows that her safety depends on her keeping her identity concealed, and he thinks that even he might not have recognized her with this new look.

They stop at a tattoo artist that Mars Investigations has used before. Veronica gets a barbed-wire tattoo around her upper arm and the kanji symbol for love on her neck. Both are temporary tattoos done with silver nitrate that will fade after a few weeks.

Veronica looks at herself in the mirror at the results; Logan, standing behind her, massages her shoulders and kisses the top of her head. She rolls up her sleeve a little to display her tattooed arm more prominently and flexes her bicep. "Pretty scary," she muses. '_Check you out, Veronica Mars. You're like a rocker chick now.' _ Lilly's voice pops into her head unbidden, and Veronica shivers. Logan looks at her quizzically, and Veronica responds, "Lilly would have loved this." She traces the tattoo on her neck thoughtfully.

"Sometimes I still hear her voice," Logan replies. "I mean, I was so furious with her the day she died...I should have..."

Veronica turns around and looks at him. "What?" She remembers overhearing Logan talking to Miss James. _'You know Veronica was my friend too...and if she hadn't ratted me out...then Lilly and I would have stayed together. And Lilly wouldn't have been alone that day. I would have been there. So, yeah, I blame Veronica.'_ She's never told Logan what she heard that day–that she knows exactly why he hated her so much that year.

He looks down, avoiding her eyes. "Just, you know...I still sometimes think I should have known what was going on and could have stopped it. Stopped him. And instead I was...breaking up with her." He thinks about his confrontation with Veronica on the beach, mocking her sarcastically, '_Logan, I'm gonna go home and put my head in the oven because I can't go on living knowing what a heartless BITCH I am.'_ He remembers flinging the words in her face, his heart broken, his insides gutted by her doubts, but most of all, he remembers his despair: because, in the final tally, he knew he really was responsible for Lilly's death, as surely as if he had wielded the ashtray himself. Then he hears Agent Carney's voice, saying, _'After all, this is the second girlfriend of yours that was murdered,'_ and the roaring blackness of his grief suddenly threatens to overwhelm him again. _Because of you...because of you, Hannah was sent away to that hellhole. Second girlfriend..._

"I didn't stop it either. What kind of a best friend was I, that I didn't see what was going on with Lilly?"

Logan, completely oblivious and lost in his dark thoughts, realizes Veronica has said something. "What?"

"I said, I didn't stop it either. I wasn't a very good friend to Lilly," Veronica repeats, wondering what Logan was thinking.

"No, that's not true. You tried...you did what a best friend's supposed to do, you told Lilly what you saw." Logan tries desperately to focus. _This time...this time I'm going to make sure...make sure that Veronica survives._ He struggles for a moment, then he regains his control. "I can't wait to show your dad...see if he approves of your new look. Thanks...thanks for listening to me about the disguise. I think you'll be safer because of it." He plays with her unfamiliar hair. "Now I know how you feel when you look at my face. It's strange for you to look so different." He cups the back of her head with his hand and bends to kiss her. "Promise me...promise me you're going to be okay."

"I promise," she replies. "I'm not going to take any chances."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Codependence  
**Logan and Veronica meet with  
Professor Kinny; Mike makes contact  
with Mac; Keith and Logan head to  
Boston for the operation.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Mike: Michael Trucco. Dr. Kinny: Dan  
Castellaneta. Alan: Ned Vaughan.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FIFTY-SIX: "CODEPENDENCE"

Tues. 3/3/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Logan knocks on the door of Professor Kinny's office. "Hello?" he calls.

"Yes, may I help you?" the professor answers.

Logan and Veronica walk into the office. "Professor Kinny?" Logan starts. "Ah...you may not remember me. I took your Intro to Sociology course two years ago. Logan Echolls."

"Yes, I remember; you do look a little different," Kinny comments.

Logan runs his fingers through his dark hair and replies, "Yes, I'm trying a new look."

"Actually, I'm referring to your quite memorable class appearance _sans _clothing. It's nice to see you've turned over a new leaf," he says drily. "What can I do for you? I believe I heard that you had transferred, Mr. Echolls."

"This is my friend Veronica Mars. She's a private detective. She's investigating a boarding school for a client; the school is a tough-love school–I don't know if you're familiar with that term–and I thought you might be able to offer her some advice on the situation."

"Veronica Mars?" Kinny's eyes narrow as he evaluates Veronica. "Veronica Mars who was instrumental in solving the campus serial rapes and Dean O'Dell's murder?"

"One and the same," Veronica replies. "Professor Kinny, have you heard of the tough-love schools?"

"Of course. The schools are an outgrowth of the twelve-step programs and forcible drug rehabilitation programs that began in the sixties. There's currently little regulation of private schools, and there have been some cases of abuse in the press. What school are you looking at specifically?"

"Briar Hill Academy in Vermont," Veronica answers. "I'm going to be going undercover there to try to document what goes on at the school for a potential lawsuit, and Logan thought you might be able to help me prepare."

"You're not seriously thinking of going undercover at one these schools?" Kinny says in disbelief.

"If the schools are as bad as they appear to be, someone needs to expose what's going on there. And there will be two people undercover with me to protect me," Veronica replies defensively. Logan squeezes her hand, and she tries to calm down.

"This is an area I've been researching for thirty years. As Mr. Echolls probably told you, every year I conduct an experiment modeled on the infamous Stanford Prison Experiment. And every year, after just a forty-eight hour experiment, students report significant emotional disturbances."

Kinny stands up and begins to pace around the room. "The students who participate in my experiment are amateurs. The ones who act as prison guards are chosen at random and have no vested interest in acting cruelly towards their fellow students, yet they usually turn manipulative and even sadistic after a few short hours. Where you're going, on the other hand...many of these institutions recruit their employees from the damaged graduates of years past. The people who run these schools believe the students are incapable of acting morally and are committed to breaking them psychologically. They encourage the use of severe peer pressure to enforce their regulations and use a harsh system of reward and punishment to inculcate drastic behavioral changes."

"I know. I've met a graduate of the school. It was eerie; she was grateful for what the school had done, and she spoke of the honor of being allowed to help the newer students," Veronica comments.

"Yes, the school makes each student complicit in the damage that is done to the others. Everyone is afraid of having their program extended, so they willingly join in on the abuse of the others," Kinny explains.

Logan interrupts, "What was that about a twelve-step program?" More than a few people had urged Logan to look into Alcoholics Anonymous when his drinking was out of control, but he had always resisted because of the insistence on turning one's fate over to a higher power.

Kinny looks at him thoughtfully. "Some people regard Alcoholics Anonymous and the other twelve-step programs as cults. Now there's no doubt that some people have been helped by these programs, but if you look at the standard definition of a cult, there are intriguing similarities. For instance, one of the characteristics of a cult is a strong belief that anyone who does not embrace the tenets of the cult must be avoided and ostracized; in the case of AA, that refers to anyone who rejects the philosophy that they are powerless to resist drinking and therefore must turn their fate over to their higher power."

Veronica and Logan exchange a glance, both of them miserably thinking about their alcoholic mothers and their apparent helplessness.

Kinny continues, "AA preaches that it is only through the alcoholic's continued attendance at meetings, or 'working the program', that the drunk will continue to survive without alcohol. If you do not accept this belief, even if you stop drinking, you are what is termed a 'dry drunk', or you are said to be 'in denial'. They believe that an individual must renounce their belief that they have any control over their problems: that is, that the individual has no personal responsibility. You must submit to the group, attend meetings, and endlessly recite long stories of your past misbehaviors. If you question these principles, you are told that you are doomed to repeat your past mistakes and live a life of misery and shame. You are told over and over again that you are powerless and worthless."

Veronica swallows. "That does sound...a lot like what I've been hearing about Briar Hill's programs."

"Take for instance step four of the twelve steps, the moral inventory. You are expected to complete a checklist categorizing your moral failures. There are not too many self-aware individuals who would affirm that they have absolutely no moral failings; only a true sociopath is unable to admit their moral flaws. The program is designed to tear you down, and then rebuild you, or reprogram you, into a willing participant in the program. Let's look at some of AA's slogans: 'Your best thinking got you here;' 'You have a thinking problem, not a drinking problem;' 'Feelings aren't facts;' 'The program never fails; people just fail the program.'"(6)

Veronica remembers the slogan Kavner told them. "How about, 'There's no right or wrong, only what works.'"

"That's a new one to me, but it sounds like a typical saying. Think about the sponsor system in AA; isn't that just a glorified recruiting system for a cult? And no one ever graduates: you're in recovery, for the rest of your life. You'll never be free of the power of alcohol. And as far as the new recruits–they say that 'newcomers need fixing'; 'newcomers can't think right.'"

"Wait...that's what Kavner said. Newcomers are the new girls at the school, and the oldcomers are in charge."

"The oldcomers are in charge of fixing the newcomers, who are unable to fix themselves unless they accept the will of the group. Exactly," Kinny agrees.

Veronica says, "And the parents are encouraged to recommend other clients. They're doing the recruiting for the school. Oh my god. And the students have to admit that they need the school in order to graduate. The girl I talked to said, 'I'm so grateful that my parents sent me there; I tell them over and over again 'thank you for caring enough to help me'.'"

"When is this operation happening?" Kinny asks, curiously.

"Over spring break," Veronica replies, lost in thought.

Logan says to Kinny, "What are you thinking?"

"You're going to be monitored during this operation, Veronica?" Kinny persists.

"Yes, my dad and the attorney who's working on the case are going to be observing and listening. I'll have an audio bug, and another operative has already placed video surveillance devices around the school," Veronica answers, distractedly.

"This would be an incredible opportunity for me...to observe one of these schools firsthand. I've run my experiment numerous times, but it can't compare to actually witnessing the psychological abuse for myself," Kinny says. "Is there any chance–"

"I vote 'yes'," Logan interrupts. "The more eyes on Veronica, the better. I can't see that Mr. Mars or the attorney working with us would have an objection. You'd be willing to be an expert witness in a court case, right?" He turns to Veronica. "Don't you agree?"

Lost in her train of thought, Veronica jumps when Logan addresses her. "What?"

"Don't you think it's a good idea to have Dr. Kinny help with the monitoring?" Logan repeats.

"Oh, yes," she replies, still somewhat distracted. "I'm sure it would be okay."

"Dr. Kinny, maybe...maybe you could work with Veronica this week. Maybe there are ways you can help her prepare for what she'll be facing. Meditation, relaxation techniques, whatever."

Dr. Kinny looks at Logan sympathetically, realizing the extent of Logan's concern. He glances at Veronica and says, "Absolutely. We can do some role-playing, so she'll know what to expect." Kinny looks back at Logan, who nods his thanks.

Logan watches as Veronica literally shakes herself, steeling herself for the task she intends to do. Veronica says calmly, "Thanks for speaking to us, Dr. Kinny. I'll have my dad call you after I speak to him." She walks over to the desk and shakes Kinny's hand. Logan does the same, then he escorts her out of the office.

As they walk down the hallway, Veronica puts her arm around Logan. "What was that about you not wearing clothes?"

"Oh...I was hoping you missed that," he replies. "I had a side bet with Wallace on the outcome of the prison experiment."

"And you didn't invite me for the show?"

"You get a private showing anytime you want, m'dear. I think I might still have the mask I wore." At her quizzical expression, he explains, "Yeah...I wore a Lone Ranger mask."

Veronica chuckles. "And nothing else?"

"Nada. Zip. Buck-naked," he replies.

"Mmm...college hijinks. I'm going to take you up on that private show.

Tues. 3/3/09: San Diego RCFL, CA

When Mike steps out of the elevator, he walks slowly down the corridor, surreptitiously peering into each room and looking for a vaguely familiar face. Near the end of the hallway, he sees a young brunette with blue streaks in her hair working at a desk in a room with several other people. She nods slightly when he sees her; Mike enters the room and heads for the most senior-looking agent.

Mike clears his throat and asks, "Hi, I'm trying to find the hard-drive recovery service. This is a priority job from the LA bureau."

Alan replies, "Other end of the hall. The door is marked 'Data Recovery'."

"Thanks." Mike turns around and 'accidentally' drops a file folder as he passes Mac's desk. "Damn!" He stoops down and gathers the papers up; Mac unobtrusively presses a flash drive in his hand without looking at him. Mike pockets the drive and exits the room, heading for the other end of the hall. As he walks, he jiggles the flash drive in his pocket, wondering what it contains.

Tues. 3/3/09 evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

After a long day preparing for the operation, Logan and Veronica retire to the bedroom. They get ready for bed in silence and slip under the covers without saying a word. They lay facing each in the bed, and Logan caresses Veronica's new red hair. "Hey, stranger," he says finally.

"Hey yourself," she replies. "I'm going to miss you when you leave tomorrow."

"No, I'm going to miss you," he corrects her.

She scoffs. "You always have to have the last word."

Without saying anything, he puts his arms around her and rolls them over so that she is on top of him. Veronica kisses him, and he takes her breath away with the intensity of his response.

Finally he releases her mouth, and she breathes, "Wow. That was...nice."

"But I'm not a nice boy, remember?" he says.

"Oh, thank goodness," she replies, bending her lips to him again. Veronica draws back and says mischievously, "I know...I want to give you something to remember when we can't be together." She starts to inch down his body, kissing his chest and then his abdomen, but he grabs her and pulls her back up to him.

"No, stay up here," he begs her, kissing her again. "Just love me tonight...let me kiss you, I want to remember how you taste, how you feel." He holds onto her.

"Logan?" she asks.

"I just want to remember holding you like this, every time I see you and can't hold you. It's going to be hell for me," he says seriously. Keith drew him aside earlier that day and talked to him about making sure that he would be able to act the role of a guard at the school. _'Will you be able to physically restrain a young girl? What if it's Veronica, and you have to restrain her, even hurt her, while she pretends to fight you? Are you really going to be able to do this, Logan?'_ Logan said that he knew it was going to be difficult, but if it meant that Veronica would ultimately be protected, he thought he could act the part. He did well at his acting classes, he told Keith, and Keith nodded that he understood.

Logan didn't tell Keith about one frightening day at UCLA last year, when Logan was assigned the part of a villainous, evil character in an acting improv class. To his distress, at one point he found himself improvising lines his father had shouted at him during one of their pitched battles. The class applauded his efforts and lauded his realistic portrayal, but Logan had thrown up in the restroom after the class. He had looked at himself in the mirror, trying to see if he could spot any similarities to his father's famous face. Aaron's last words to him rang in his ears, _'I never stopped being your father, and I never will.'_ His stomach heaved again, and Logan stooped over the sink. He thought to himself, _DNA's a motherfucking sonofabitch._ He went straight from class to a bar and drank until he couldn't remember he was an Echolls.

Now, Logan concentrates on the softness of her skin and the feel of her supple body pressed against him, and he tells himself that he can act this part, he can do this role, just so that she will be okay.

"What are you thinking?" she asks curiously.

He shakes his head and kisses her again, trying to categorize the different flavors that make up Veronica Mars, memorizing the smell of her skin, her hair, her sweat, the various lotions and cosmetics she uses that add up to the overall scent of her. He closes his eyes and concentrates on her body pressed against him: the pebbled nipples jostling his chest; the slight bristle of a small patch of hair she missed shaving her legs; the dense thatch of hair between her legs that so titillates him when he brushes against it. Logan caresses her back and legs, stroking the full length of her, committing the curves and concavities of her body to memory. Finally, content that he's satiated himself with the unique loveliness of her, enough to sustain him over the coming days and nights, he reaches between her legs and begins to caress her slowly and gently. Logan contents himself with the sounds of her breath, hitching and gasping, as she allows herself to be stroked to arousal. Veronica begins to touch him, mimicking his languidness, and the feeling of her hand encircling him electrifies him.

When she moans her readiness, he adjusts their positions and slips up into her. Before she can sit up and set her own pace, he rolls them over again so that he is on top of her. Logan desperately wants to go slowly, to prolong and heighten the sensations, and for once he ignores her cues. He takes his time, frustrating her, lavishing and reveling in her. Veronica whimpers a little, and he kisses her again, silencing her with the proof of his intentions. Their bodies undulate and mingle as she acquiesces to his inexorable pace. He concentrates on the feel of her inside, trying to imagine their bodies merging and fusing.

Logan begins to stroke her clit at the same lazy, deliberate speed, and he suddenly hears her moan: a new susurration of acceptance and lust, a thorough succumbing to him; and he thrills as she shudders gently around him. Veronica grasps at him, holding on desperately as he inundates her with the tenderness of his implacable thrusting.

"What was that?" she whispers when he finally ceases moving within her.

"I think they call it making love," he replies. "It's how I want to think about you, when we can't be together."

Wed. 3/4/09: San Diego International Airport, San Diego, CA

Veronica drops off Keith and Logan at the departures area of the airport. Keith kisses her and says, "See you on Friday in Boston."

Logan takes a little more time. He hugs her gently, not wanting to let go. He stumbles a little over his words, saying, "When I see you...I won't be able to..."

"I know. But, Logan, remember..." Veronica deliberately scratches her cheek, as she did when they were at Duncan's suite at the Neptune Grand a few days ago. He smiles, remembering. She says, "You know I love you, right?"

"Love you too," he whispers before kissing her a final time. As he enters the terminal, he keeps looking over his shoulder at her. She waves goodbye again as he disappears from sight.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Ruse**  
Keith arranges Veronica's admission  
to the school; Veronica enlists Dick's  
help again.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Dick: Ryan Hansen. Dr. Castro: Bob Gunton.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN: "RUSE"

Wed. 3/4/09: Education Alternatives Office, Boston, MA

"Mr. Morris, the counselor will see you now," the receptionist tells Keith.

"Thank you," he replies, standing up and walking into the inner office.

"Mr. Morris, how can we help you today?" The man extends a hand in greeting, and Keith grasps it across the desk. "I'm Dr. Paul Castro. I understand you're here about your daughter."

"Please...call me Keith. Yes, I'm here about Connie." Keith pulls out a file folder from his briefcase and passes it to Dr. Castro. "I'm at my wit's end. She's been tested in the 98th percentile, but her grades have plummeted over the last year. Connie's mixed up with a bad crowd. I think they're drinking, maybe even doing drugs; she was arrested for shoplifting six weeks ago. I persuaded the judge to give her probation. Now I'm regretting that." He sighs heavily. "I wish I had let her spend a couple days in jail...maybe she would have smartened up. The last straw was two weeks ago. She got a tattoo on her neck; I don't know how she convinced them she was over eighteen. I'm assuming she has a fake ID." Keith pushes a picture across the desk of Veronica, with red hair and the tattoo on her neck clearly visible above a revealing top.

"How can we help, Keith?" Dr. Castro replies.

"There's a boy..." Keith starts hesitantly.

"There's always a boy, in my experience," Dr. Castro comments.

"I think if I can just get her away from him, that maybe...maybe she'll at least finish high school. She's threatened to run away. My wife died several years ago, and poor Connie has just deteriorated ever since."

Dr. Castro thumbs through the papers in the folder. "Keith, it sounds like it's been very frustrating for you. You probably had substantial legal bills resulting from your daughter's arrest."

Keith nods.

"And Connie's in real danger, make no mistake." Dr. Castro stands up and begins to pace around the office. "I've seen so many troubled girls in my career. Well-meaning parents are hesitant to take the necessary steps to help them. With the internet and all the raunchy shows on television, it's not surprising that young people have no moral boundaries." He looks at Keith shrewdly. "I'm betting there was a pregnancy scare as well. Maybe even an STD."

Keith nods and sighs again, his face the picture of a distraught father.

"You really don't have a choice. Your daughter needs a residential placement."

"Excuse me? I really was just interested in family counseling," Keith explains.

"I'm afraid it's way too late for that. It sounds like your daughter is in real danger: a drug overdose, running away and living on the streets, or even being arrested for a serious crime and spending her life in prison. I can cite you hundreds of cases of girls who didn't survive because their parents weren't willing to take the necessary precautions to safeguard them."

"What do you mean, a residential placement?"

"There's a boarding school where I've had a great deal of success with my clients. It's in Vermont, on a large campus. Girls only." Dr. Castro stresses. "The girls get a lot of physical exercise, they are assigned daily chores, and there's a strong emphasis on group therapy and personal responsibility. And 90 of the graduates go on to college, some even to elite schools like the Ivy League." Dr. Castro pulls a brochure from his desk and hands it to Keith.

Keith opens the brochure and begins to read. "I don't know about a boarding school."

"It's exactly the right idea for your daughter. No visitors are allowed. The inappropriate boyfriend will not able to be make contact, and your daughter will be safe. If she works hard and cooperates, she can talk to you every week. As her behavior improves, she can earn a trip home to visit." Dr. Castro looks somberly at Keith. "May I ask who referred you to us?"

"A business associate of mine raved about the work you did with his daughter." Keith mentions the name of a man whose daughter attended the Briar Hill Academy several years earlier; by doing dogged research, Keith learned that the man would be out of town and unreachable for several weeks, by the end of which time the operation would be concluded. "He said you saved her. He was certain she would be dead by now without your help."

"It's always gratifying to hear that my clients are happy with their results," Dr. Castro preens. "Do you have any questions about the school?"

"I'm concerned about the need of a security staff," Keith says nervously, pointing at the phrase on the brochure. "Are some of these girls dangerous?"

"Only to themselves," Dr. Castro answers smoothly. "Admittedly, many of the girls are resistant at first. Think of your own daughter. I bet she's cursed you, maybe even struck out at you."

Keith nods, ashamed.

"And you've probably yelled back in frustration, maybe even resorted to returning her physical violence. You're in a cycle of damage right now that needs to be broken. If you don't do something drastic, your relationship with your daughter may be lost forever. Based on what you're telling me, your daughter has a severe substance abuse problem and behavioral issues. The school is staffed by professionals–people who have been trained in therapeutic techniques and are experienced in the area of addiction treatment."

"Does that mean that Connie will be seeing a psychiatrist?" Keith asks.

"Of course she'll be evaluated when she enters the school and placed in a therapy group appropriate to her needs. We find that group therapy is ideal in these situations; the girls discuss their problems and help each other to change their behavioral patterns to more positive ones."

"What if she needs medication?" Keith says, worriedly.

"I'm not seeing any indications of that in her record; her school counselor didn't recommend it. But if she does need any kind of medical attention, of course she'll be treated immediately."

"And the school is accredited, right? She'll have the equivalent of a high school diploma?" Keith queries.

"Absolutely. Our graduates usually go on to college."

"I'm sorry to be such a worrier, it's just...it's been just the two of us now for the last five years, and we were so close at first..."

"Until she began to have problems," Dr. Castro concludes. "I know you want to do the right thing for your daughter, and I can guarantee you that if you hesitate to place her in some sort of residential program, she will suffer. One girl whose parents declined to place her in this kind of program committed suicide several years ago, and I'll never forgive myself for not convincing her parents that she truly needed help."

Keith remains silent, apparently processing this last statement. Finally, he speaks up. "I'm concerned about the fees. I'm not a wealthy man."

"How much would it cost if you had to engage a defense lawyer to defend her in court, or if you had to hire a private investigator to track her down when she runs away? Or perhaps more appropriately, what is it worth to you to have a healthy and happy daughter? Most parents would say that their child's happiness is priceless." Dr. Castro pulls out another brochure. It has several graphs, relating the total cost of private counseling sessions, lost wages due to time off work to attend therapy sessions and court appearances, costs of medications, and private tutors to the yearly cost of Briar Hill Academy. Finally, there is a brightly-colored graphic that ominously compares the recidivism rate of girls attending private counseling or nonresidential drug treatment programs compared to residential treatment. The caption claims that Briar Hill has nearly a 99 success rate. On the reverse side, the brochure lists payment options on a weekly or monthly basis, as well as an incentive program for referrals that lowers the total cost by 10 for each successful referral. Keith struggles to maintain his concerned, 'worried father' face and to hide his growing anger.

"Okay, you're right. I'm at my wit's end with Connie. The screaming match last night...she told me she wished I was dead. I'm willing to admit I don't know how to handle her," Keith concedes.

"You're doing the right thing. She will thank you for it. And she'll be alive and happy." Dr. Castro pulls some forms from his desk.

Keith reads the first form carefully. It specifies that the residential placement will be for at least ninety days, at which time the commitment will be reevaluated. The payment for the first ninety days is due in full at the time of commitment. It states that the student will not be allowed any contact with any family members for the first two weeks; at that time, limited contact with first-degree relatives on a weekly basis in permitted. The contract states that all communication is supervised by school staff; there are no mail privileges and no internet access whatsoever, and no visitors are allowed without prior written permission of the school's headmaster. Despite Dr. Castro's implication that new students were evaluated by a psychiatric professional, the contract makes no mention of such an evaluation.

Keith looks up and queries, "Connie will be evaluated by a psychiatrist when she gets there, right?"

"Yes, Keith. That's our policy."

Keith hopes that the bug he's wearing is picking up every word the slimeball is saying. He continues to read. "There's no mention in here of the living situation. Are there dorms? What are they like? What kind of recreation is available?"

"The girls sleep in bunk beds and share the responsibilities of maintaining the upkeep of their rooms. There aren't a lot of recreation options, to be frank. Most of the girls are at the school because of the lack of supervision of their free time at home. The girls are expected to participate in physical education daily, which is a state requirement, of course. The food is simple and nutritious at the school. The choices are limited; many of the girls' behavioral problems begin to improve due to a plain diet that restricts processed food and sugar. The girls all wear the same clothes, which means there is no opportunity to make poor clothing choices." Dr. Castro taps the photo of Veronica wearing a low-cut top and heavy eye makeup. "In short, the girls are given reasonable limits on their behavior to encourage them to make appropriate choices when they reenter the outside world. Most of the students welcome the restrictions at the school and tell us that they feel freer than they ever did before, now that there are no pressures on them to act inappropriately."

"That makes so much sense. Connie's so spoiled; she never had to work a day in her life, and she seems determined to throw away everything I've ever done for her," Keith says morosely. He continues to read the contract. He looks at the next section and reads it aloud.

_'When it becomes necessary, in the sole discretion of the Academy, to restrain the Student, the undersigned authorizes the employees of the Academy to use pepper spray, taser, mace, restraints, and/or handcuffs as a means to or an alternative to avoid, whenever possible, the potential for injuries, complications, and/or altercations that can can arise from the employees having to physically restrain or wrestle with the student in order to subdue the student.'(7)_

Keith doesn't have to act outraged; he merely reveals a small portion of his simmering anger to the doctor. "What the hell is this? Restraints? You've got to be kidding. And tasers? Why would you ever need to use something like that on a young girl?" He slams the contract on the desk.

"Mr. Morris...Keith...Please, listen to me." Dr. Castro waits a moment for Keith to calm himself. "Of course, the school has to have the option of controlling the girls in a safe manner should they become disruptive. They have these options, but they are rarely used. Such extreme measures would only be used if there is a danger of a girl hurting herself. I'm not going to lie to you: some of the students come from extremely disturbed backgrounds, and you would want us to protect your own daughter should another girl become violent."

Keith grimaces. He pretends to think a moment, then nods and continues to read.

_'Briar Hill Academy tries to make medical decisions taking into consideration a balance between added costs to the parent for medical care, and the true medical need of the Student. The staff, like any parent, can miscalculate the timing or need of medical intervention. Such miscalculations can result in the student not getting medical care as soon as would be recommended or to avoid complications. As a result of such judgment calls by nonmedical staff, if the child is harmed, the program shall be held free from liability.'(8)_

Keith asks, "I don't understand the section on medical care. Isn't there a nurse at the school? Why would there ever be a question whether a student needs medical attention?"

"The school has a nurse on call twenty-four hours a day, and the health needs of every student are taken care of. The waiver merely protects the school from frivolous lawsuits by overzealous malpractice attorneys. It's a standard legal release, similar to the situation at most public schools. If you had to pay to send your child to your local school, you would certainly be asked to sign a similar waiver."

_Not likely, you bastard, _Keith thinks. He pretends to waver. "I don't know. What proof can you offer me that this is the right thing for my daughter? What about this group therapy? What kind of therapeutic techniques are used?"

Dr. Castro sighs. "There are no guarantees, just as there is no guarantee that your baby will be healthy, that your smiling toddler won't grow up to be a screaming teenager who sneaks off to smoke marijuana and have sex with boys, that your teenager won't go to prison or buy a weapon and take their schoolmates hostage. But what the school does offer is the proven techniques of twelve-step programs and group therapy in a supportive environment, combined with limited access to the pressures that caused your daughter's problems in the first place." Dr. Castro looks at Keith sympathetically. "You obviously care about your daughter a great deal, and you're a knowledgeable parent trying to do what's right by asking questions. You took the most important step: you got a recommendation from a person you trust, and now you're examining your options carefully. Of course, if you're not comfortable making your decision today, you can come back at a later date to discuss it further. If there are no openings at Briar Hill at that time, we can look at some of the other options available to you. I know you want to do what's best for your daughter."

_Ah, there's the hard sell. Limited time offer,_ Keith muses. "No, I think I've made up my mind." He signs the contract and pulls out his checkbook to make out a check. "So when do I bring my daughter to the school?"

"Keith, we don't recommend that parents bring their children to the school themselves. Your daughter is smart enough to know that her situation has changed, and I wouldn't be surprised if she tries to run away during your trip. We've had great success with a transport service, J. Silver and Associates. They're a bonded agency that will pick up your daughter at your home and take her safely and securely to the school for an additional one thousand dollars. I guarantee you that Mr. Silver will save you from a lot of anguish," Dr. Castro explains.

"I don't know..." Keith replies. Dr. Castro waits patiently. Finally, Keith sighs and begins to write out a check. "Can we...can we set this up for Friday night? It's my mother's birthday that day. We're having a family dinner, and I'd like Connie to be there."

"Of course. I'll tell Mr. Silver to make a pickup at, shall we say, one a.m.? We've found that picking up the girls in the middle of the night, when they're not prepared for a confrontation, makes for the easiest situation all around. She won't need any clothes other than her underwear and the most basic personal toiletries. Everything else will be provided by the school." Keith nods his understanding, and Dr. Castro concludes, "You've made all the right decisions, Keith."

Thurs. 3/5/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Dick sees a girl that reminds him of Veronica with a red ponytail protruding from under a Che Guevara hat. He looks again, realizing it is Veronica, and hurries to catch up to her.

"Yo, wait up, Ronnie," he calls to her. "New look, huh? How's Emo Boy liking it?"

"Emo Boy?" she asks.

"You know, our friend who was caught on tape in Paris last night, chugging martinis with Mischa Barton." Dick arches an eyebrow, and Veronica laughs. He continues, "All of a sudden, he lands on the front page of 'The Smoking Gun' website after managing to behave himself for a month."

"It's tragic what's happened to him," Veronica replies. "I've begged him to seek help."

"Fer sure, dudette. So what up with the hair, Ronnie? New case?" he asks.

"Something like that," she responds. "Listen, Dick, he wanted to contact you but..."

"I know. He's worried about the paps."

"It's important no one knows where he really is. He's working with me on this case." She thinks for a moment. "Do you think you could maybe help us with this little ruse? Give Chip Diller a call on your cell and just casually say that you heard from him, he's really enjoying himself in Paris...throw in a few good details, maybe some celebrities he was hanging with?"

Dick nods that he can do it. "So, you really think the paps are monitoring my cell?"

"There's an easy way to find out," she says. "Make the call and see if the rumor shows up on TSG."

"When you see him, tell him the waves have been totally gnarlacious lately. The bone yard is waiting...Listen, Veronica, didya talk to Mac?"

"I didn't talk to her, but I was right about the code in her email. She made contact with my old boyfriend; she said she's doing all right, but she's bored. She's helping me too," Veronica adds. She starts to walk.

Dick falls in beside her, putting his arm over her shoulders. "What are you guys doing, trying to take down the president? Are we going to have to call you Jackie Bauer now?"

"Dick, I have killed two people since midnight. I have not slept for over 24 hours. So maybe, maybe you should be a little more afraid of me than you are," she replies sarcastically. Veronica tries to pry Dick's hand off her shoulder unsuccessfully.

"Oh, I've been afraid of you for a long time now. It's the taser. And, of course, I remember the good ol' days when you destroyed my surfboard without a second thought." Dick squeezes her shoulder. "But now, you're practically my boo. Don't forget, you said you owed me a favor, on the house."

"Don't remind me," she sighs. "Please don't waste it on a cheerleader."

Thurs. 3/5/09 very late: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, CA

VERONICA

The apartment seems too quiet. After I took Dad and Logan to the airport yesterday, I took Backup to the kennel, and now...the apartment feels too empty. My classes today seemed to drag; all I could think about was this evening's prep session with Dr. Kinny.

When I got to Kinny's office, we started with some role-playing, repeating the exercises until he was satisfied I was able to respond correctly. He talked about the warning signs that I needed to be watching for that would indicate that my anxiety and stress were building to dangerous levels. Then he spent an hour teaching me various mental techniques that helped Vietnam veterans survive their P.O.W. experiences. Then, Dr. Kinny led me through a series of guided imagery relaxation exercises, stressing that while I was undercover, I needed to maximize the benefit of whatever rest periods I was allowed. He talked for a long time about milieu control. He said that the school would be controlling every aspect of my existence while I was there, depriving me of sleep and adequate nutrition, and not allowing me to make any choices. I will be inundated with repetitive thought control techniques and intimidated physically and mentally.

Dr. Kinny scared me today. He seemed pleased by our session, but I can't help but think that to him this is just another experiment, like the prison simulation he runs every year. He said more than once that this is an incredible opportunity for him to do his research.

I'm tired...more tired than I remember feeling in a long time, but I know part of it is feeling alone again. I miss Dad and Logan. I know they need to be there ahead of time to prepare, but...I wish they were here with me.

Mike left me a message while I was working with Kinny; he said Mac gave him a flash drive with a list of all the FBI employees who had accessed the Slasher files along with the originating ISP addresses of several unauthorized incursions into the case files. Mike said she looked all right, but they couldn't talk. In a text file on the drive, Mac wrote, "Tell Veronica I'm okay, just bored out of my mind. I'll keep trying to find out who could have known enough to make Hannah's murder look like the Slasher did it." Mike offered to take a message back for me. I was too tired even to make a phone call, so I texted Mike to please tell Mac that I would be undercover at the school starting on Saturday, hopefully only for a week, and that Mike should arrange to meet up with Mac again in a few days and forward any new information to Dad's cell phone.

When I look in the mirror, my new look still startles me. I look tough and bitchy, like I belong in juvenile detention.

I've got to get some sleep. Tomorrow's going to be a long day; the plane flight to Boston, a last minute briefing with Dad, and then...I don't know how I'm going to make it through Briar Hill.

Fri. 3/6/09 late: Rented house, suburbs of Boston, MA

Keith knocks lightly on the bedroom door where Veronica is trying to nap. "Honey, they're here. I love you, Veronica. Remember, I'll be watching you every moment."

Veronica nods and closes her eyes, pretending to be asleep; her heart is pounding as she waits. She goes over the lines she rehearsed with her dad earlier that day. _I'm not going to have to act scared. I'm terrified._

* * *

(5) Zimbardo, Philip. The Lucifer Effect. New York: Random House, 2007, p. 180.  
(6) www•orange-papers•org/orange-culta0•html  
(7) For the purposes of my fic, I changed some of the wording from my source material. Here is the original text: 'When it becomes necessary, in the sole discretion of the Program, to restrain the Student, the Sponsors authorize the Program to use pepper spray (electrical disabler, mace, mechanical restraints, handcuffs) as a means to or alternative to avoid, whenever possible, the potential for injuries, complications, and/or altercations that can can arise from the Program staff having to physically restrain or wrestle with the student in order to subdue the student.'  
Szalavitz, Maia. Help At Any Cost. New York: Riverhead Books, 2006. p. 155; quoting a copy of an actual contract read on ABC News, "A Parent's Choice," _Primetime Live,_ 1/21/1998.  
(8) This is the original text: "The section on medical care in the 'Parent Manual', for example, reads, 'We try to make our medical decisions taking into consideration a balance between added costs to the parent for medical care, and true medical need of the Student. The staff, like any parent, can miscalculate the timing or need of medical intervention. Such miscalculations can result in the student not getting medical care as soon as would be recommended or to avoid complications.' The manual goes on to say that as a result of such 'judgment calls' by nonmedical staff, if the child is harmed, the program shall be held free from liability. Ordinary school or treatment contracts, while often containing legal waivers, rarely even imply that cost will be considered before a child can get medical attention." Szalavitz, p. 155.

Illegitimi Non Carborundum: Don't Let the Bastards Get You Down

Bone Yard: Surferspeak for the area where the waves break.


	19. Chapters 58 to 60

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. All opinions regarding real-life organizations expressed in this fic are the opinions of the characters only. You may or may not agree with the conclusions of the characters, and no harm or insult is intended to these real-life organizations, or to any participant, past, present, or future, in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17; this particular chapter includes a graphic depiction of violence.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall, who is also my assistant casting director, and Kazy. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility. Mexican-Spanish translations by Babushcka and PrincessBella24.

* * *

Previously on Veronica Mars: The Year of Living Dangerously Part Two:

vanessagalore•livejournal•com/46556•html

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Don't Let the Easy Entrance Fool You**  
Veronica is picked up the transfer service.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Carmen: Callie  
Thorne. Joe: Tom Sizemore. Tony:  
Romany Malco.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT: "DON'T LET THE EASY ENTRANCE FOOL YOU"

Fri. 3/6/09 late: Rented house, suburbs of Boston, MA

Keith knocks lightly on the bedroom door where Veronica is trying to nap. "Honey, they're here. I love you, Veronica. Remember, I'll be watching you every moment."

Veronica nods and closes her eyes, pretending to be asleep; her heart is pounding as she waits. She goes over the lines she rehearsed with her dad earlier that day. _I'm not going to have to act scared. I'm terrified._

She listens intently; first she hears a light tapping on the door, then quiet voices. Even though she can't make out the words, Veronica hears the tension in her dad's voice. She realizes he's not having to act scared, either, and for a moment, she thinks about bailing. Then Veronica takes several deep breaths and reminds herself of every single reason to do this: save other girls from having to go through this experience; prove that Hannah's death was a copycat murder; make sure that Logan recovers from Hannah's murder once and for all, and finally try to make Hannah's suffering and death count for something. _Hannah had to do this without people watching over her. I can't imagine how scared she was. I'm going to be all right...I'm going to be all right._

The door to her room is opened; if she weren't listening for it, she would not have heard it. Veronica feels rather than hears someone approaching her bed. Suddenly, the blankets are ripped off the bed as the light switch is flipped on. She blinks against the sudden glare and mutters, "Wah?" She tries to block out the light with her hand.

A woman shakes her and says sternly, "Get up, Connie. We're going to go to the bathroom, and then you're going to get dressed. Your dad's arranged for you to go somewhere you can get the help you need."

"Go to hell. I don't need help, and I'm not going anywhere," Veronica says in a nasty tone. "Fucking bitch, get out of my bedroom."

"Connie!" Keith says. "Connie, get out of bed and do what they say, right now."

"Fuck you, _Daddy_," Veronica replies. She turns over and presses her face into the pillow.

Keith starts to walk toward the bed, but the man beside him holds up a restraining hand, saying, "No. Let us handle it."

The woman grabs Veronica's arm and rolls her over. She gets right into Veronica's face and says, "We can do this the easy way or the hard way. Doesn't matter to me, you end up in the same place either way." She pinches Veronica's arm hard, and Veronica squeals in pain. "Get up!" the woman screams in Veronica's face.

"All right, all right," Veronica answers, sitting up on the edge of the bed. "Look, this is fucking crazy. Dad, I'm not going anywhere."

"Connie, I've decided that I don't know how to help you, and I'm sending you to a school where you can work on your problems," Keith pleads. "Connie, please don't fight this. I found the best place for you."

Suddenly, Veronica pushes hard against the woman and tries to run out of the bedroom. The man takes a few quick steps and catches her, twisting her arm behind her back. In a low voice he says, "Don't resist. I will hurt you." He bends her arm a little more for emphasis, and Veronica cries out. "Connie. Here's what's going to happen. You're going to get dressed, then Carmen is going to take you to the bathroom. She's going to watch you. This is your last opportunity to go the bathroom for four hours, so don't waste it."

Veronica struggles against him. "You cocksucker, get your hands off me."

Keith rubs his forehead. "Dammit, Connie. Where did you learn language like that? I can't do this anymore!"

"I wish you were dead!" Veronica screams at him. "I wish it was you that died, not Mom!"

"Enough!" the man shouts in her ear. He pulls her arm back harder and forces her to kneel down on the floor.

Veronica gasps in pain and begins to cry. "Daddy, why are you letting them do this? They're hurting me!"

"Connie, you hurt me every day. I don't know what to do anymore. Please, go with these people quietly," Keith says in a frustrated voice, his hands clenched in fists at his side.

"Mr. Morris, I think you should leave the room so we can get her dressed," the woman suggests.

Keith nods. _Of course, this entire incident is being videotaped, you bitch,_ he thinks as he leaves the bedroom.

The woman, Carmen, is looking through the drawers of the bureau. She sets out a bra and panties, a t-shirt, jeans, and socks. Veronica notes with satisfaction that the woman doesn't notice the unusual underwire in the bra. The man and woman drag her into the bathroom; the woman stays with her while the man exits, closing the door behind him.

"Okay, Connie, here's what's going to happen now. You're going to take off your pajamas and put on these clothes, then you're going to go to the bathroom." The woman motions to the clothes on the bathroom vanity.

"I'm not doing anything while you're watching me," Veronica snaps back.

"Oh yes you are. If necessary, I'll bring Joe in here, and we'll strip you and then hold you down and put your clothes on. It won't be the first time we've done it, and it certainly won't be the last time."

"God, what are you, a fucking lezzie? You get your thrills making young girls take off their clothes for you?" Veronica asks spitefully.

"It's time for you to accept that we're here to help you, and you need to do what you're told. The longer you resist us, the more trouble you're going to have," Carmen answers.

"There's no way that this is legal! You can't do this to me!" Veronica yells back.

"Actually, if you contacted a policeman right now, he'd have no choice other than to surrender you into our custody. We have all the paperwork with your dad's signature, committing you into a residential placement for ninety days," Carmen replies. "There's not a judge in the country that would dispute it."

Veronica swallows, staring at the woman. Finally, she turns her back to the woman and strips. She puts on the clothes and turns around. "Okay, I got dressed. I'll go to the bathroom if you get out of here."

"No. You go in front of me," Carmen says. "Get used to it. Where you're going, that's the rule. No unattended bathroom visits until you've proven you can be trusted."

"Where I'm going?" Veronica echoes. "What the hell is this place?"

"It's called Briar Hill Academy, and it's a school where parents send bad girls like you to get straightened out."

Veronica stares at the woman again. Finally, she pulls down her jeans and goes to the bathroom as Carmen watches. _I knew this was going to happen, but still..._ She finishes and flushes the toilet, realizing that she's blushing red from the woman's constant staring.

"Good, Connie. Let's hope that you keep behaving," Carmen says. She knocks on the door, and the man, Joe, comes in to the bathroom. Carmen says, "Okay, Connie, put your hands out in front of you."

Veronica looks from the woman to the man and tries to back away from them, but is immediately stopped by the wall at her back. Joe walks toward her and grabs her hands strongly, with Veronica struggling all the while. Carmen takes a pair of handcuffs from her belt and puts them on Veronica, securing her hands in front of her. The man takes Veronica's arm and drags her back into the bedroom, where Keith is waiting, pacing nervously.

Keith says, "That's her stuff. I packed what they said." He notices the handcuffs and says nervously, "Are handcuffs really necessary?" but Joe and Carmen ignore him.

Seeing the smallness of the bag, Veronica cries out, "That can't be all my stuff! What about my laptop, my books, my phone? Ninety days, that's three months. There can't be enough clothes in there."

"Connie, honey, they're going to provide you with clothing and everything else you need. There's no internet and no phone privileges there, so you won't be able to contact your friends."

"I'll run away! You can't make me stay there!" Veronica shouts. She tries to pull free from the man's grasp, but Joe just tightens his grip on her arm. Veronica is certain that he's leaving a bruise mark, and she reminds herself to try to find a way to get Kavner or Logan to document it when they get to the school.

"Connie, no! Don't struggle! You're going to hurt yourself," Keith pleads. He sighs and continues, "Please, Connie, it's not that I want to do this. You've left me no choice. I'm afraid you're going to kill yourself or end up in prison if you keep going the way you have been."

Veronica changes tactics and says in a wheedling tone, "Please, Daddy, don't do this. I'll be good. I promise. I'll do whatever you say. _Please_ don't send me away."

"No, Connie," he says sadly.

She screams at him again, "You fucker! Goddamn you!" Joe shakes her by the arm, and she tries to strike him with her manacled hands.

The man and woman take Veronica, still struggling and cursing, out of the bedroom and walk her down the hallway to the front door. Joe opens the door, and Keith calls out, "I love you, Connie. Please, try to behave so you can come home to me as soon as possible."

Carmen pushes Veronica toward the front stoop, and Veronica makes a break for it. The man and woman pursue her as she runs across the neighbor's lawn, her speed hindered by her hands cuffed in front of her. Joe catches her and tackles her to the ground. Veronica continues to struggle against him; he finally controls her, and the woman unlocks one cuff and pulls Veronica's arms behind her back, snapping the cuff in place again. Carmen says, "So you think you're tough, huh, Connie? We haven't lost a girl yet, and you're not going to be our first."

Joe pulls Veronica to her feet and walks her to a van parked in front of the house. He opens the sliding side door and pushes her in front of him. He follows her into the van and says, "Sit. Stop pissing me off, you little bitch." Veronica awkwardly sits down on a meager cushion he indicates. He kneels down and attaches another pair of cuffs to her ankles. Quietly, so Keith observing from the sidewalk won't hear, he says, "Enjoy the next four hours trussed up like a hog, you stupid cunt. If you keep your mouth shut, I won't put a gag on you. Right? Do you understand, Connie? Nod if you understand," Joe says.

Veronica nods. She lies down on her side, trying to get comfortable. Joe exits the van, sliding the door shut, and gets in the driver's seat. Carmen gets in the passenger side. She looks back at Veronica, meeting her eyes. Carmen says, "Behave yourself, Connie, and you'll get through this just fine. You need to accept that your life's going to be a lot different now, and the sooner that you do, the easier it will be for you."

Joe starts the van and pulls out into traffic. Carmen turns to Joe, and they start conversing about the other pickups scheduled for that week. Then the conversation absurdly turns to a discussion of the last round of "America's Next Top Model".

Veronica tries to relax. She knows that her dad is listening to the bug they had sewn into her jeans. After talking to several previous students from the school, Keith surmised that they could take the chance of bugging her that way since the students' outer clothes are taken from them as soon as they are admitted. Just in case, the bug has been disguised as one of the buttons on the button fly, with the transmitting wire sewn into the waistband.

Veronica reviews the different code words they have settled on during their preparation: 'Lianne', 'Lamb', and 'California'. Each indicates a different level of warning: 'Lianne' indicates that Veronica is nervous about being discovered and needs to be monitored more closely; 'Lamb' means send the cops in immediately; and 'California' means that the undercover operation urgently needs to be terminated–Logan and Kavner will go to Veronica's rescue and get her out of there immediately. They also have agreed that if Veronica uses the phrase, 'I want to call my dad', that will signify that she's okay and that they shouldn't worry. Similarly, if Logan or Kavner say the words "cutie-pie" to her, she will know that Keith has decided to terminate the operation and will be extracting her as soon as possible. Veronica tries to clear her head of her worries, and, despite her uncomfortable position, she attempts to get some rest.

Fri. 3/6/09 late: Boston, MA to Manchester Center, VT

About ten miles behind the van, Keith listens to the conversation between Carmen and Joe on his laptop monitoring program. _So far, so good,_ he thinks as he drives down the highway. _Veronica knocked that out of the park._ Kavner texted him earlier that day that he had managed to switch shifts so he could be present at Veronica's intake and hand off the bug for her bra after the strip search.

Fri. 3/6/09 late: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Logan lies sleeplessly in his small room in the employees' housing. Today, his first full day working at the school, he had to drag a girl to an isolation room. What shocked him the most was the silence at the school. The girls don't chat; they move like zombies from their chores to the group therapy to the classroom where they silently fill out worksheets. The social structure here is obvious; the girls who have been here the longest seem almost to be in charge, and each newcomer's movement is completely restricted by the oldcomer assigned to them. The employees such as himself rarely have to intercede if someone misbehaves; the oldcomers mete out punishment on the newcomers without being urged. He is taking Keith's advice to mimic the words and actions of the other employees. Each time he hears an interaction, he takes note of the wording for later.

At his employee training yesterday, the manager of the school went over the use of the taser and mace that was supplied to Logan, and then reviewed the school's policies, glossing over the specifics. When Logan asked if there was a proper way to restrain the girls when necessary, the manager, Tony, looked at him blankly, then finally said, "Don't you get it? These girls are liars and drug addicts. They're going to try to manipulate you. You're going to restrain them however you can, because if you don't, they're going to hurt you or themselves."

Logan laughed weakly, saying, "Yeah, you're right. I guess they wouldn't be here if they didn't need to be. I really need this job, you know? I don't want to screw up."

"Don't worry so much about the girls. For most of them, their only choice is the school or the streets, and they're lucky their parents care enough to send them here. You got to realize: most of them need to be broken before we can put them back together again. I know, because I was a kid like this. I spent five years in STRAIT trying to get clean. I think Peter Klein, the headmaster here, saved my life. It was brutal in the program, but it was what I needed," Tony explained.

"Sounds like you really admire him," Logan commented.

"Not many people have the guts to do what he does. He got sued, you know, but he still wanted to help kids, so he started all over again with a new program. He puts his own life on the line every day to help these girls. You know, every girl here ends up thanking him at the end."

_Yeah, because they have to, in order to graduate. That's if they aren't already brainwashed by the program,_ Logan thought. Aloud he said, "I didn't know that."

Tony nodded vigorously, clapping Logan on the back in a friendly manner.

Lying on his bed, trying hopelessly to sleep, Logan realizes that already he's started to be influenced by the subtle mental programming at the school. He has been taken into the guard's social circle and advised that all the girls have severe problems and deserve to be there. _If I hadn't known ahead of time about the program, I might have believed what this guy was saying._ After dinner, one of the other guards, Ron, was repeating one of the student's testimony in group; all the guards laughed at her tales of debauched sexual antics in return for free crack cocaine.

Then Logan's thoughts turn again to Veronica. He glances at his watch, realizing that by now, she's been picked up and is on her way to the school. At first, he wanted to be present at her intake, but Kavner forcefully told him, 'no, you're not ready for that.' Kavner's serious expression scared Logan more than anything he had heard during the preparation for the operation. Kavner promised that he would trade shifts with another guard so he could be there to hand off the bug to Veronica and to watch over her to make sure she was okay. Logan reluctantly agreed.

He vows again that he will somehow find a way to protect her during the operation, even if it means that she'll be mad at him later. Logan pulls his compact cell phone from its hiding place in his pack of cigarettes and compulsively checks to see if there are any text messages. He wills the words 'Operation Canceled' to appear on the screen, but, as in the last twenty times he checked, there are no messages.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**E-M-E-T-I-B**  
Veronica is delivered to Briar Hill;  
Wallace and Weevil head out to Chino;  
Duncan witnesses something.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico  
Colantoni. Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
Weevil: Francis Capra. Peter Klein:  
Clancy Brown. Maria: Gina Mantegna.  
Kavner: Eric Bana. Joe: Tom Sizemore.  
Carmen: Callie Thorne. Duncan 2.0:  
Chris Carmack. Mrs. Dominguez: Shelley  
Morrison. Kendall 2.0: Katherine Heigl.  
Tara: Kirsten Prout.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER FIFTY-NINE: "E-M-E-T-I-B"

Sat. 3/7/09 very early: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica is jolted awake from her fitful dozing by the sound of the sliding door opening on the van. Joe shines a flashlight in her eyes and says, "Remember, I don't want to hurt you, Connie, but I will if I have to." He moves the flashlight slightly so that Veronica can see his taser held at the ready.

Veronica swallows and nods.

Joe watches as Carmen enters the van and unlocks the cuffs around Veronica's ankles. Carmen grabs Veronica's arm and helps her to her feet. Joe steps aside, allowing them to pass, and Carmen escorts Veronica out of the van, holding firmly onto her upper arm. Veronica says quietly, "Wait, my legs are asleep. Please..." and Carmen stops and gives Veronica a second to shake her legs out.

"Ready?" Carmen says, and Veronica nods. Carmen pulls Veronica along a sidewalk toward the front door of a large imposing building. It looks more like a hotel than a school, but there a few details that strike Veronica as odd. There are no lights showing in any windows, and Veronica realizes that all the windows are blocked by heavy shades or perhaps are boarded up on the inside, preventing anyone from looking out. _Or seeing in,_ she muses. The front door opens. It's Kavner along with several adults and five girls. Veronica makes sure to avoid looking at Kavner.

One man is tall and distinguished-looking, and Veronica realizes this is the famous Peter Klein, headmaster of the school and CEO. To her surprise, he comes up to her and hugs her. He steps back and says in a sonorous voice, "Welcome to Briar Hill Academy, Connie. I just want you to know that we love you here. Your life is going to change now, and it may seem difficult at times. But if you trust us, with our love and understanding, you can reinvent yourself as a productive member of society."

As he pauses, as if on cue, the five girls say quickly in unison, "Love you, Connie."

Klein smiles graciously. "Connie, since you are a newcomer to our school, you will be assigned to an oldcomer who will help you with your transition. This is Maria."

Maria steps forward out of the line and hugs Veronica. Maria whispers into Veronica's ear, "You're going to do exactly as I say, bitch." Then Maria steps back and says aloud, "Love you, Connie."

Klein continues, "For the first ninety days, you will not be farther than six feet away from Maria. If you want to talk, you will tap her on the shoulder; if she agrees, you may speak only to her at that point. The only time this rule is not in effect is during group therapy or if you are addressed directly by a counselor or guard. If you stray farther than six feet away from Maria, there will be consequences. Maria is responsible for you; any mistake you make will be corrected by her. If she fails in her responsibilities, she will have time added to her own program. Maria is one of our success stories; she'll be graduating soon if all goes as planned."

Veronica blurts out, "The _first_ ninety days? My dad said I was only going to be here for ninety days."

Maria reaches out and slaps Veronica, not hard, but enough to sting, and puts a warning finger in Veronica's face. "I didn't give you permission to speak." Veronica flinches.

Ignoring Maria's actions, Klein says, "I've read your file, Connie. I think you're in serious trouble. Your life is a mess; _you_ are a mess, and it's going to take a lot of work to get you right. We love you, Connie, we're going to help you here if you're willing to help yourself by following the rules and working your program."

Klein nods at Carmen, who unlocks the handcuffs securing Veronica's hands behind her back. Joe hands the bag that Keith packed to one of the girls. Maria takes Veronica's arm and escorts her to a room at the back of the building. The other four girls and Kavner go with them. Klein watches their progress, smiling benevolently.

Maria drags Veronica into a well-lit room, followed by the other girls and Kavner. Once they are all in the room, Kavner locks the door behind him with a key on his ring and nods to Maria. Maria releases Veronica and says harshly, "Take off your clothes; we're going to search you."

Veronica looks from one blank face to the next. It's very clear that there will be no help from the other girls. She looks to her left and sees a doctor's examining table, with stirrups like a gynecologist's.

"Let's go, I don't have all day," Maria says. When Veronica doesn't begin to undress, Maria nods at the other girls, who grab Veronica and start to take off her top.

Veronica shakes them off, commenting bitterly, "All right, all right." She slowly takes off her clothes. Her legs begins to shake, and Veronica thinks, _I'm not acting._ She stops when she is wearing just her panties and a bra; she tries to cover herself and says, "Okay, I'm undressed. See? I'm not hiding anything." There is no response from Maria, and Veronica repeats, "I'm not hiding anything."

"All of it," Maria commands. Veronica shakes her head 'no', and the other girls rush her and drag her down to the floor; Veronica kicks and screams while the girls pull off the rest of her clothes. Kavner watches, looking uninterested, and Veronica realizes that he's seen this happen more than once already and is maintaining a poker face; if Veronica didn't know his true purpose here, his uncaring indifference would have been the most frightening part of this. Finally, Veronica is completely nude; she begins to sob and cries, "If my dad knew about this, he'd kick your ass. Goddamn it! I want to call my dad...You fuckers!" She struggles violently against the girls trying to hold her down.

The girls finally subdue Veronica, and one girl manages to get her hand over Veronica's mouth. Maria leans down and says, "You want to call your dad, huh?"

Veronica nods, the girl's hand still on her mouth.

"I'll tell you what: if you sign these papers voluntarily committing yourself to the Academy, I'll arrange for a phone call with your dad," Maria say solemnly. She gets some stapled pages from a counter and shows them to Veronica. "Okay? You want to sign these?"

Maria nods to the girl holding her hand over Veronica's mouth, and the girl removes her hand. Veronica spits out, "I'm not signing anything! I have the right to call my dad! I want to talk to him on the phone right now! I know if he knew about this, he'd have me out of here in a second."

Maria laughs. "Your dad signed the same contract my dad signed. Briar Hill is your guardian now. He agreed to the use of physical force to restrict your movements; he agreed to no contact with anyone outside the school, even your family, for ninety days. At that time, if you've earned the privilege, you can have a supervised phone call with a family member. But, Connie, if you're a good girl, sign this document, and let us complete this search without an argument, I'll bend the rules a little and see if I can get you a phone call to your dad."

Veronica stays silent, apparently processing the Orwellian nature of her situation. Finally, she says, "You promise? You'll let me talk to my dad?"

Maria nods and hands Veronica a pen to sign the voluntary commitment papers(9). Veronica, staring at Maria, thinks long and hard; she finally pretends to put the pen to paper, then she suddenly reverses the pen, stabbing Maria in the arm, and tries to run to the door.

"Fuck!" Maria screams. She and the other girls scramble to grab Veronica, who has reached the locked door and is struggling futilely to open it. Veronica gives up on the door and begins fighting with the other girls. She aims a punch at Maria and hits her nose; Maria begins to bleed profusely and mutters under her breath, "Fuck fuck fuck! Goddamn it!"

Veronica manages to land a few punches while the girls struggle to get control of the situation. One girl knocks Veronica in the mouth with her elbow, and Veronica's lip begins to bleed. Another girl shoves Veronica hard, and she lands on her shoulder on the floor, wincing at the pain. The girls jump on her, holding her down and controlling her movements. Maria walks over, stares down at Veronica, and slaps her face with all her strength, knocking Veronica's head back onto the concrete floor again. Kavner doesn't interfere; he lets the other girls subdue Veronica and appears unconcerned when Maria strikes Veronica.

The girls drag Veronica to the examining table and maneuver her on top of it, laying on her back. Maria holds her head back, with a paper towel held to her face, trying to get the nosebleed to stop. Breathing heavily through her mouth, she walks over to the table and mutters, "Her feet."

One girl is reluctant, and Veronica kicks at her. Maria says sharply, "Tara! Grab her foot. You know the rules." Tara winces at her tone and grabs Veronica's foot, preventing her from kicking. The girls working together manage to get Veronica's feet in the stirrups and hold her in place. Tara looks nauseous, but reluctantly works with the other girls to restrain Veronica; the other girls display no reservation in their expressions.

Veronica fights against them the entire time, screaming and cursing. Maria discards the paper towel on her nose and gets a pair of surgical gloves. She dons the gloves and forces Veronica's mouth open. She runs a finger along Veronica's teeth and gums, thoroughly searching for contraband, then moves to the end of the table and examines Veronica's vagina and rectum forcefully. Veronica jumps in response to the painful intrusions and begins to cry.

Maria discards the gloves and leans over Veronica. She whispers, "You're going to be my bitch." She touches Veronica's cheek in a parody of softness, then reaches and squeezes Veronica's breast viciously.

Veronica's sobs increase, and she yells, "Fuck you, I'm not your bitch."

Maria laughs. "We'll see about that." She turns to Kavner and says, "I think 'Observation Placement' for her...at least twenty-four hours. You know Klein will agree."

Kavner nods his response.

One of the girls gets the bag with Veronica's underwear and sets out a pair of underwear and panties, along with gray sweats, t-shirt, and sweatshirt similar to what all the girls are wearing. Veronica is crying and moans, "I think you gave me a concussion."

Maria replies, "Get dressed. It's time for you to quit your stinkin' thinkin'. You and only you are responsible for being here. You're the cause of all your problems. You are a damaged person, Connie. You can't function in society. You need to accept that we know what's right for you." She nods to the girls, indicating that they can let Veronica go.

Veronica curls up in a ball, sobbing; she jumps when a girl prods her, and she slowly sits up. "My head really hurts. I want to see a doctor." She rubs the back of her head where it hit the floor.

Maria scoffs. "Bullshit. Your manipulative ways aren't going to work here."

"No, I'm not bullshitting you," Veronica protests. "I think I should see a doctor. I want to call my dad."

Maria replies, "You're just faking it. The only thing wrong with you is your attitude. Get dressed!"

Veronica gets off the table, turning her back to everyone, and slowly puts on the clothes. Maria says, "Good girl. I love you, Connie." To Kavner, she says, "I'll tell Klein."

Maria grabs Veronica's arm as Kavner unlocks the door; the girls file out, then Kavner takes Veronica's arm from Maria and escorts her down the hallway in the opposite direction.

As soon as possible, Kavner eases his grip on Veronica's arm; to the casual observer, it still looks as if he is controlling her. He whispers, "What the fuck was that? You're going to really get hurt if you keep that up."

Veronica sighs, rubbing her lip. "I just hate her; I couldn't help it. I didn't plan on doing that...I just lost control for a moment," she replies, sotto voce. "Besides, we got them on tape now, denying me medical attention. And now you can give me the bug without worrying about anyone noticing."

"You know, it won't kill you to go along a little bit," Kavner mutters. He digs the bug out of his pocket and looks around surreptitiously before handing it to her. "Okay, go for it." She reaches under her sweatshirt and attaches the bug without looking, having practiced this maneuver with her eyes closed numerous times.

"You did get it all on video, right?" she whispers. He nods, shushing her. They keep walking, Kavner appearing to be manhandling her all the while. At a set of stairs, he motions up, and they climb the stairs slowly. When they pass another guard, Kavner nods, and Veronica pretends to struggle against his grip. On the third floor landing, Kavner says, "Left," and they turn down the hallway. At the end of the hall, they come to a reinforced door with several locks. Kavner uses several keys to unlock the door. Veronica looks around the dark room and sighs. The room contains only a very thin mattress and a blanket. The window is completely blocked, and the only light fixture doesn't have any light bulbs.

"What about a bathroom?" Veronica whispers.

Kavner quietly replies, shaking his head, "Someone will come and take you in a few hours. I can't take the chance they'll see us. It's part of their milieu control; they control your body functions too. I'm sorry. Are you okay? You didn't really get hurt, did you?"

"No, I'm all right. I'm just going to try to get some sleep," Veronica answers. "It's been a long week."

"I know you have to provoke them, but Veronica, you have to be more careful," Kavner warns. "The oldcomer who's assigned to you–Maria? That was unlucky. She was in charge of another girl who escaped, and Maria had six months added to her own program to punish her for being lax. She's going to be extremely tough on you. Don't push her, Veronica."

Veronica ruefully nods her agreement as Kavner leaves. When the door shuts behind him, the room becomes very dark. She listens as the multiple locks are engaged and imagines how frightening this would feel to a girl who wasn't being watched over as she is. She tries to find a comfortable position on the mattress and pulls the blanket over her. She whispers, "Dad, I'm okay. Really...I'm okay. We're going to get these bastards."

Sat. 3/7/09 early: Navarro Residence, Neptune, CA

Wallace pulls up to the curb in front of Eli Navarro's house, located in the less desirable section of Neptune. Weevil's house is modest but well-kept; it's obvious that the owner is proud of his home.

The front door opens, and Weevil walks out, locking the door behind him. Weevil walks to the car and gets in the passenger seat. "This is fucking embarrassing," he comments. "Even soccer moms would be ashamed of this car. Some of my old crew is still in Chino, you know. I have a rep to keep up."

"I'll tell Veronica that's what you think about her Saturn," Wallace replies.

"She knows."

"Besides, the other option–me on the back of your motorcycle for the two hour ride to Chino–was completely unacceptable," Wallace says drily.

Weevil doesn't reply, just checks out Wallace's clothing. "Good, you paid attention to what I told you. No blue jeans, no fatigues, so you don't look like a prisoner or a guard."

"Yeah, and no spaghetti straps or mini-skirts either. I read the visitors' rules too. Somehow I held back. But you know how hard it is not to show off my fine Nubian body."

Weevil snorts. "Let's get going; we gotta get there early before the visitors' line is too long. How'd you get the visitor permission expedited anyways? It's usually a thirty-day wait to approve a new visitor for an inmate."

"It helps to have connections in law enforcement. Keith knows the warden up there," Wallace replies.

Wallace pulls out into traffic, and they ride for a while in silence. Weevil begins to play with the radio, changing all of Veronica's presets to new ones that he prefers. He notices that Wallace is looking at him surreptitiously. "What the fuck now?" he says in irritation.

"Uh...I've never seen eyelashes that long on a guy before," Wallace says.

"Dreamy, I know. Fuck! I can't help it. But...you know what? The girls love 'em." Weevil smirks. "They just line up for a taste of my chorizo caliente." He glances over at Wallace and adds, "Just drive, motherfucker, stop looking at my eyelashes."

Wallace rolls his eyes and keeps his attention on the road.

Sat. 3/7/09: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

Keith is drumming his fingers on the table, worrying about what's going on with Veronica at the school. The last thing the bug in her jeans picked up was '_Okay, I'm undressed. See? I'm not hiding anything._' There was a short pause, then Veronica repeated, '_I'm not hiding anything._' Then another voice said sharply, '_All of it._' There was sounds of a scuffle; then indistinguishable noises were all that could be heard. The wait seems interminable as he pictures possible scenarios similar to the horror stories he has been collecting from past students.

Finally, the audio monitor program indicates that Veronica's bug has been activated, and Keith turns up the gain. He listens carefully to Veronica's muted conversation with Kavner. When Veronica says, '_Dad, I'm okay. Really...I'm okay. We're going to get these bastards_,' he sighs in relief.

Sat. 3/7/09: Playground, Neptune, CA

With Mrs. Dominguez, the court-appointed social worker, tagging along behind them, Duncan and Lilly walk hand-in-hand in the playground. Lilly tugs her hand free and skips ahead. Duncan calls, "Don't go too far."

Lilly replies, "Okay, Daddy." She makes for the slide and quickly clambers up the step ladder. "Catch me!" she yells, before she hurtles herself down the slide toward Duncan. He catches her in his arms at the bottom, and she laughs happily.

Lilly amuses herself at the slide for a while before she tires of it and asks to go to the swings. She grabs Duncan's hand as they walk over to that area of the playground. Duncan pushes her on the swing, and she screams in delight as she soars high above the ground.

As he pushes her, he notices a blonde woman on the other side of the park. _Kendall?_ he thinks. He stops pushing and looks again.

"Daddy! Why aren't you pushing?" Lilly complains as the swing loses momentum.

He pushes her again, watching the woman. _It is Kendall._ She's pacing, looking around nervously. _Waiting for someone?_ Duncan notices a man walking toward Kendall. Kendall appears relieved when she sees him. They start to talk; the discussion appears to become heated, with Kendall angrily pointing at the man. He grabs her and shakes her viciously. Duncan does not recognize the man; he is certain that it's not Liam Fitzpatrick, whose picture has been in the papers recently due to the dismissal of his charges.

Duncan says to Lilly, "Let's take a little break. Just for a minute, honey." He catches the swing and slows it to a stop.

"Daddy, please."

"Just a moment, Lilly." Duncan pulls out his cell phone and takes a few pictures of Kendall and the man. The man shakes Kendall hard one final time and turns to walk away. Kendall appears frightened and uncertain; as the man walks away from her, Duncan is able to get a good shot of his face. The man gets in a car and speeds off. Kendall stares after him, then she quickly exits the park in the opposite direction.

_What the hell is going on? I thought for sure Kendall would leave town after we figured out who she was._ Duncan continues to stare into space long after Kendall has disappeared from view.

Mrs. Dominguez approaches. "Duncan? Is everything okay?"

He shakes himself. "Yes...just someone I didn't expect to see." Duncan turns to Mrs. Dominguez and smiles. "Can you watch Lilly for one minute? I need to make a very quick phone call." She nods, and Duncan steps away.

He tries Veronica's cell phone; there's no answer, and he leaves a brief message asking her to call him. He thinks a moment and then forwards the pictures he took to vmarsATaol•com.

Sat. 3/7/09: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Veronica's cell phone vibrates in its charger on the desk in her bedroom. The screen reads 'CALL FROM DANIEL' and then changes to '7 missed calls'.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Incarceration**  
The monitoring team in place;  
Wallace and Weevil in Chino;  
Veronica in Observation Placement.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Epstein: Scott  
Grimes. Dr. Kinny: Dan Castellaneta.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Weevil: Francis  
Capra. Emilio Vargas: Vincent Laresca  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SIXTY: "INCARCERATION"

Sat. 3/7/09: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

Keith is watching the computer screen as the video file sent by Kavner finishes downloading when the doorbell rings. Checking the peephole on the door, he lets Dr. Kinny and the attorney, James Epstein, into the house.

"I'm glad you guys are here finally. So this is our observation post," Keith says. He shows them around the house and summarizes what has happened so far.

"I'd really like to see the video of her intake," Kinny remarks.

The three men gather around the computer screen to watch. Keith is both proud of and horrified by his daughter's actions. At one point, Epstein turns to him and says, "This is all great for the case, but she's pushing it a little, don't you think?"

Keith replies, "Yeah, Kavner told her to cool it. This Maria girl is dangerous; from what Kavner told me, she's got a lot to lose if Veronica gets out of control."

"It's actually not that surprising. Veronica thinks of herself as a strong person. She _is _a strong person, in fact. And she reacts when she's bullied," Kinny says. "Did you notice the one girl who didn't join in as quickly as the others? I think Maria called her Tara or Terry. We should find out more about her."

Keith sighs wearily. "I could really use some sleep. Can I show you guys how to monitor the audio and video feeds? Everything is recorded, pretty much automatically, but I think we should take four hour shifts monitoring to keep alert. That way, nobody's staring at the screen for too long."

The other men agree; Keith demonstrates the Sonic Snoop Audio/Video Surveillance program and reviews the code words that he has worked out with Veronica. He leaves his cell phone by the monitor, explaining that Kavner is speed-dial two and Logan is speed-dial three if they need to make contact. Kinny offers to take the first shift, and Keith gratefully goes off to take a nap.

Sat. 3/7/09: California Institution for Men, Chino, CA

Wallace reads the sign on the wall while they wait in line.

'Visiting in California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation institutions/facilities must be conducted in as accommodating a manner as possible in keeping with the need to maintain order, the safety of persons, the security of the institution/facility, and the requirements of prison activities and operations. Failure to comply with the established regulations and policies may result in warning, termination, suspension, or revocation of visiting privileges. These rules will help ensure the continued safety and security of the institution, staff, visitors, and inmates.

'We hope you will assist us in making the visiting experience a pleasant one for you, your family, friends, and the person you are visiting.'(10)

_A pleasant visiting experience? We're not in Disneyland here, _Wallace thinks. He looks over at Weevil standing in line beside him.

Weevil seems to read his mind. "Yeah, you probably never thought about what it would be like to be in prison. 'Course, I have a cousin who's serving a life sentence. I've been visiting him for years, so..." he shrugs. "I knew the consequences when I joined up with the PCHers."

"It's not just that," Wallace replies. "This case Veronica's working on...where she is is worse than a prison. The girls there can't even get visitors or mail."

Weevil looks at him solemnly. "That's fucked up. Even in juvie hall, you can see visitors every weekend."

Wallace assisted with a lot of the research Keith and Veronica did while they were preparing for the operation. He typed up the notes on the interviews and organized all the research. Here in Chino, he's realizing just how sheltered a life he's actually lived. All the cases he's worked for Mars Investigations seem trivial compared to the experiences of the discouraged and toughened people around him here. And what Veronica is doing at Briar Hill–she's volunteered to put herself in this very situation or worse.

"It's the lack of control over your life," Weevil says, intruding on his thoughts about Veronica. "You can't do what you want, and someone else is in charge of your existence. It's impossible not to change in prison. People don't get it when they bitch about cons getting to watch TV and work out while they're doing time."

Finally, they reach the head of the line. They present their identification, and Weevil shows his proof of discharge from parole along with the written permission of the Warden of the prison. They submit to a search conducted by a businesslike corrections officer, and both open their wallets to show that they have less than thirty dollars each on their person. They prove that they are not carrying any contraband such as cigarettes, weapons, or cell phones, and they are allowed to proceed through the metal detector and into the visiting area.

Weevil points at the sign, '«––Visiting Room Non-contact Booths––»', and leads Wallace to the right. They enter the visiting area, and they follow a corrections officer to a booth to wait for Emilio.

A Hispanic man about thirty years old, wearing blue jeans and a faded blue work shirt with a stenciled number on the chest pocket, approaches and sits on the other side of the glass. Weevil smiles broadly and picks up the phone. "Yo, Emilio."

Emilio looks at Wallace suspiciously and says to Weevil, "¿Qué onda con el negro, ese?"

Weevil replies, "He's okay. He works with that girl Veronica I told you about, the one that helped me find out who took out Felix."

Emilio regards Wallace and finally says to Weevil, "Órale, pelonito."

Weevil nods to Wallace, who clears his throat and says, "I'm trying to get some information about Ciaran Fitzpatrick. My girlfriend's brother...well, we think Ciaran had him murdered. This guy Shawn Blake was dealing a drug called Meth-X and turned up dead in Washington State."

Emilio looks from Wallace to Weevil and back. "Yeah, I heard something about that...This kid Shawn, he had a connection for this new drug, but the supplier would only deal in a large quantity. Shawn asked around and figured out that the Fitzpatricks were the most likely partners for that kind of a deal. Shawn had the connection, and the Fitzpatricks had the money to set it up."

"So what happened?" Weevil asks.

"I don't know. The story was that Ciaran was going to cut out the middleman, try to deal with the supplier himself. But then I heard that the kid tried to do an end run around him and cut out the Fitzpatricks."

"Pissing off Ciaran and getting himself killed," Weevil comments.

Emilio nods and leans toward the glass. "But there's more to it. Around that time, one of Fitzpatrick's boys was bragging that he would never get convicted because the Fitzpatricks had someone in the cops who would destroy the evidence in his case. The C.O.'s found him with a shiv in his back the next day."

Wallace echoes, "Someone in the cops?"

"You know Liam's racketeering charges got dismissed...este pinche puto pendejo baboso," Emilio comments bitterly. "The prison was buzzing with the news that Liam was finally going to go down. I was looking forward to giving him a little midnight justice. And then, ¡chingaos!, the evidence is excluded because of a fucked-up warrant, and Liam's back on the streets," he concludes sarcastically. "Got to be a dirty cop helping him."

"But why would they kill Shawn in Washington?" Wallace asks curiously.

"The Fitzpatricks always used a Mexican contact for their meth in the past. But there's a rumor that the Mexican border's too tight now, and some people are trying to get stuff in across the Canadian border...especially in Montana and Washington where the Border Patrol is stretched thin. It's all fucking trees and mountains up there, and a million places that aren't being watched," Emilio says.

"I'm pretty sure it wasn't actually Ciaran that shot Shawn," Wallace explains. "He and his brother Padraig were arrested on a drunk and disorderly charge around the time Shawn disappeared, and then they had to make a court appearance a few days later. Because of all their previous convictions, they had to surrender their driver's licenses and passports when they made bail. So they couldn't have flown up to Washington on a commercial flight, and I don't think they had enough time to drive up to Washington and back during that time."

"What about Liam? Was he around?" Weevil asks.

"I haven't made any progress on his alibi yet," Wallace replies. "It's not like I can go up to the guy and ask him where he was."

A corrections officer approaches and taps Weevil on the shoulder. "Two minutes."

Weevil nods and speaks quietly into the phone. "Emilio, maybe you could ask around about this? You know, see if we can find a way to make the fucking micks pay for what they did to the Reaper? And for Angel too. He says he's going to sell the junkyard rather than pay protection to the Fitzpatricks."

Emilio nods and says to Wallace, "Find out who the dirty cop is, güey."

Sat. 3/7/09 afternoon: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica wakes with a start and is disoriented in the dark room. Then she remembers where she is. After Maria finally took her to the bathroom and returned her without comment to 'Observation Placement', Veronica fell asleep fitfully, all the while wishing they would bring her something to eat or drink. She woke up several times; each time she was surrounded by deafening silence and unrelenting darkness.

She automatically looks at her wrist and realizes: of course...she doesn't have a watch anymore. _It's got to be morning...maybe late Saturday night. I probably slept straight through the night. I can't believe they haven't brought me anything to eat or drink._

For a moment, she begins to mentally relive the brutal search that Maria performed on her;_ I knew it was...I knew it would be... Not a rape, NOT a rape, I knew it would be like that..._ Then Veronica deliberately refuses to think about the search anymore, putting it out of her mind, trying to deny the emotions she's feeling. _I'm no one's bitch._

Veronica decides to try to explore the room in the dark. She feels her way around the room, remembering its dimensions from her brief view of it when Kavner brought her here. The room is bare of furniture or decorations other than the thin mattress and blanket. She finds her way to the window and tries to determine how it has been blocked. _Boarded up? No...maybe painted black. _She experimentally tries to scrape a fingernail on the window, but it appears to be typical window glass. _Probably painted on the outside._ She pushes on the double-hung window to see if it will budge; even using all her strength, the window refuses to give way. She feels her way around the sash and discovers several screws permanently fastening the window; she tries to unscrew one and realizes it is the type used in public bathrooms that can't be unscrewed without a special tool. She only succeeds in breaking a fingernail for her efforts.

She remembers reading in Logan's book about the Stanford Prison Experiment that one of the "prisoners" in the famous experiment used a fingernail to pry loose an electrical faceplate and then used that to unscrew the hinges on their "cell" door. She spends fifteen minutes futilely searching along the baseboards for an electrical outlet before she remembers that the door of the isolation room opens out. Veronica slides down the wall and sits on the floor, thinking absurdly of the scene in "The Big Lebowski" when the Dude braces the door shut by nailing a piece of wood into the floor only to realize, when the door flies open, that the door actually opens outward. She giggles, then starts to shake with laughter, and unaccountably a quiet sob.

_What the hell is wrong with me? _She takes a couple deep breaths. _This is what they meant by milieu control. I don't know what time it is. I'm at their mercy for food and bathroom breaks._ Veronica starts doing the breathing exercises that Dr. Kinny showed her and regains a little of her control. She focuses on everything that she can control in this room. She can control her breathing; she can walk around for a little activity; she can practice yoga poses or stretches; she can focus on the happy moments in her life. No one can take her memories away from her. She stands up and, holding her arms out in front of her, measures how many paces she can take before she runs into the opposite wall. _Okay, five steps, and then I have to turn around._ She starts to pace, _one, two, three, four, five, turn around, one, two, three, four, five, turn around..._ She begins to feel calm as she performs the ritual over and over. It feels good to be able to move around a little and work out the kinks from the long trip handcuffed in the van and the vicious fight at her intake.

Feeling much more relaxed, she sits down on the mattress again. Suddenly she hears the locks being unlocked and the door opens; Veronica is blinded by the light from the hallway. She shades her eyes trying to see who it is; the door shuts quietly, and she hears someone whisper, "Veronica?"

She recognizes Logan's voice and stands up quickly. As they move toward each other in the dark, she bumps into his outstretched arm. He folds her into a hug. "I can't stay long, they'll notice I'm not where I'm supposed to be," he whispers.

"It's okay, I'm glad you came," she breathes. "What time is it?"

"Four o'clock."

"Four o'clock a.m.?" she asks.

"No, four o'clock in the afternoon, Saturday," he says, mystified. "You've been in here for about ten hours."

Veronica is completely dumbfounded. "I thought it was...I don't know, middle of the night at least."

Logan strokes her forehead. "You're okay? Kavner said you really made a ruckus when you came in."

"A ruckus?" she echoes.

"His word, not mine," Logan explains. "That girl Maria, your oldcomer, she's a real bitch, always running to tattle on someone to try to get some brownie points." He presses a granola bar into her hand. "Veronica, I wish I could have brought something a little more substantial, but I can't take the chance. Give me the wrapper back."

Veronica unwraps the granola bar and gives him the wrapper. "Get out of here now." She kisses him quickly, and he leaves the room, locking the door behind him. She catches just a glimpse of his worried face as he leaves.

* * *

"DON'T LET THE EASY ENTRANCE FOOL YOU"  
from Dante's Inferno, Canto V 16-20: "O you who come to this abode of pain,...beware how you come in and whom you trust. Don't let the easy entrance fool you." -Robert Hollander and Jean Hollander, trans.  
etcweb•princeton•edu/dante/pdp/  
A more traditional translation:  
"O thou, that to this dolorous hostelry,...Look how thou enterest, and in whom thou trustest; Let not the portal's amplitude deceive thee." -Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, trans.  
www•divinecomedy•org/divinecomedy•html

If you're a nerd like me: for fun, check out this site (a purity test based on Dante's Inferno)  
www•4degreez•com/misc/dante-inferno-test•mv

* * *

"E-M-E-T-I-B"  
The title is an 'Alias' reference from the pilot, it's "Bite Me" backwards, the scene in 'Alias' is not too far off from what's going on with Veronica in the intake scene.  
en•wikiquote•org/wiki/Alias#TruthBeTold

* * *

(9) Apparently the concept is that if the student 'willingly' signs these papers, the school can legally keep them there against their wishes after their eighteenth birthday.

* * *

"chorizo caliente" - "hot and spicy sausage"

Apparently Francis Capra took a lot of ribbing from the rest of the cast in season one, because the fangirls on TWOP, etc., kept talking about how dreamy he was, "and those eyelashes!", etc.

www•neptunesite•com/dohringinterview•htm

* * *

(10) www•cdcr•ca•gov/Visitors/docs/InmateVisitingGuidelines•pdf

* * *

"¿Qué onda con el negro, ese?" - "What's with the black dude, homeboy?"

"Órale, pelonito." - "All right, go ahead, little baldy."

"este pinche puto pendejo baboso" - Literally means "that fucking faggot pubic hair slug" but understood by Mexicans as "that fucking stupid-ass asshole."

"¡chingaos!" - "what a fucking surprise" or "those fuckers"

"güey" - "dude"

* * *

If you never saw "The Big Lebowski", you can see the scene I'm referencing at

www•youtube•com/watch?v**EQUALS**pKnDP0cr2h4

Replace "•" with "." and the word **EQUALS** with the appropriate mathematical symbol. Sigh at the inane rules of Fanfiction•net.

* * *

_Thanks very much to everyone who left a review. I really appreciate everyone who reads this story, and your reviews make my day a lot better._

* * *


	20. Chapters 61 to 63

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. All opinions regarding real-life organizations expressed in this fic are the opinions of the characters only. You may or may not agree with the conclusions of the characters, and no harm or insult is intended to these real-life organizations, or to any participant, past, present, or future, in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall, who is also my assistant casting director, and Kazy. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

* * *

Previously on Veronica Mars: The Year of Living Dangerously Part Two:

vanessagalore•livejournal•com/48284•html

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Briar Patch**  
Veronica ponders Maria's possible  
involvement; Briar Hill classes;  
Weevil's plan.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Eli: Francis Capra.  
Candice Pauling: Toy Connor. Maria: Gina  
Mantegna. Tara: Kirsten Prout.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SIXTY-ONE: "BRIAR PATCH"

Sat. 3/7/09 early evening: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica sits cross-legged in the dark. When Logan told her that she had only been here for ten hours, she was confused and upset that her sense of time had already been distorted. Then she considers how much more frightened the average student would be: pulled out of bed in the middle of the night without warning, transported in shackles to an unknown location, and brutally strip-searched by strangers. Veronica changes her position, hugging her knees to her chest, unconsciously adopting a protective pose.

_What was that Kavner said about Maria? 'She was in charge of another girl who escaped, and Maria had six months added to her own program to punish her for being lax.' Could Maria have been Hannah's oldcomer, and Hannah was the girl who escaped under her charge? Could Maria have been involved in Hannah's death?_ Veronica considers for a moment. _Hannah was here in spring 2006. Most girls are here for several years before they are advanced to oldcomer status. Maria looks to be seventeen or eighteen now. She would have been fourteen or fifteen in 2006...which means she would have had to have been twelve or thirteen when she came to the school in order to advance..._ Veronica shakes her head ruefully. _The school only takes students fourteen and older. That would have been too easy...and it doesn't even matter if she was Hannah's oldcomer. Whoever killed Hannah was in Los Angeles in January, not trapped in a residential program in Vermont. But...it's likely that Maria was here when Hannah was here. If Hannah saw something she shouldn't have seen, Maria might have seen it too._

Veronica sighs, realizing that Maria seems too damaged by the school to be receptive to questions about another student three years earlier. In fact, Veronica decides that Maria might have been mentally unstable even before she came to the school. _There's not a shred of humanity in those eyes._

She remembers what Dr. Friedman said. _ 'Although there haven't been any studies using control groups, the data seems to indicate that students with mental disorders actually get worse at schools like this, and students who are just going through normal teenaged rebellion are permanently traumatized. So the schools are completely ineffective for the worst students and damaging to the best students. They actually make every child worse.' Mental disorder...I think that describes Maria perfectly._

Veronica thinks, _I hope Logan can get into the files._ Logan had solemnly promised he would try his best without compromising the operation to obtain a list of students and employees from the time when Hannah was a student...and more importantly, Hannah's personal file. _It took a bit of convincing to get Dad to agree to it, but he finally okay'ed it._ Veronica winces, remembering that her dad had muttered under his breath that she was completely impossible to deal with. Then she remembers that her dad might be listening to her at this very moment. Quietly, Veronica says, "Dad...see if Logan can get a copy of Maria's personal file. See if she was here when Hannah was here. I'm all right. Please don't worry about me too much...I promise, I'm being careful. I won't provoke them more than I have to." She has another idea. "And Dad, see if Klein was here in January, when Hannah was killed." Veronica hopes that Kavner had thought to install a repeater device up here in Observation Placement and that her audio bug is sufficiently powerful to carry her voice to her dad.

Suddenly, Veronica hears the locks turning in the door. Her heart begins to pound, worrying that someone heard her talking to her dad.

Maria says from the doorway, "Get up. We're going to the bathroom again." Veronica notices that she sports a large bandage covering her arm where Veronica stabbed her with the pen.

Veronica stands up uncertainly, still nervous that she had been overheard. She walks cautiously to the door.

"Come on, I don't have all day. What the hell is your problem?" Maria says crossly. "Were you talking to your imaginary friend just now?" she adds jeeringly. "Already cracking under the stress...and you thought you were a tough girl, attacking me when all I was doing was trying to help you start your program. Typical druggie, lashing out at the people trying to help you keep straight."

"I'm not a druggie," Veronica replies defensively. "What do you know about me, anyways?"

Maria grabs her by the arms and screams in her face. "I know you're here because you're fucked up, and you need this program. You have a mental disease–you're an addict, and you don't know how to control your behavior. You have to accept that this program is your life now. You're going to have to work the program for the rest of your life if you don't want to end up in prison or dead. Those are your choices, Connie: the program, prison, or death. The sooner that you admit you have a problem, the sooner you'll start to get better. Your belief that you're smarter than everyone around you is what's causing the problems in your life. Stop choosing out, and let us help you!" Maria takes Veronica's arm and begins to walk her down the hallway, holding onto her bicep tightly.

Veronica knows exactly what her dad told the educational consultant about her because she watched the video of the meeting. _'Connie's mixed up with a bad crowd. I think they're drinking, maybe even doing drugs; she was arrested for shoplifting six weeks ago.' So now I've been promoted from 'maybe doing drugs' to 'druggie'._ She doesn't argue the point as Maria propels her along the corridor to the bathroom.

They enter the bathroom; the door to the hallway has been removed as well as the stall door. Maria hands Veronica three squares of toilet tissue. Hesitantly, Veronica asks, "Please, can I have–"

Maria shuts her down, "No, you don't deserve more than that. Hurry up, or you won't have time for dinner before I have to go to class."

Veronica tries to hurry, but she keeps catching Maria's eyes accidentally, and her stare is unnerving. She does the best she can with the limited tissue and flushes. Veronica keeps her eyes averted from Maria as she pulls up her sweat pants. She quickly washes her hands; Maria grabs her arm again and takes her back to the isolation room.

Veronica is pushed into the room again; Maria hands her a paper plate with a sandwich and a paper cup that Maria had previously left on a small table in the hallway. Veronica expects Maria to leave her to eat her meager dinner, but Maria just stands there, waiting. Veronica awkwardly tries to balance the plate and cup with one hand as she eats the white bread and peanut butter sandwich. Maria stares at her as she eats and then drains the paper cup of its contents, a weak fruity drink made from a mix that Veronica remembers a former student calling 'bug juice'. Maria holds out her hand, and Veronica silently returns the paper plate and cup. "That's better," Maria says approvingly. "Maybe you'll make it through here after all."

Maria slams the door shut, locking it, and Veronica is once again alone in the dark.

Sat. 3/7/09 early evening: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Logan has been assigned to the classroom this evening. He lounges against the wall as the girls file into the room. Many of the girls are paired with an oldcomer, who restricts their movements physically, sometimes pushing the girls forcefully down onto a chair. Logan assumes that the girls without an oldcomer have been here at Briar Hill long enough to have advanced in their program past the newcomer level. The teacher hands out worksheets to the girls, who begin to work on them silently. There is no instruction, no lecture, no discussion of the material being worked on. Each girl has a small flag on the right side of their desk. If they want to ask the teacher a question or if they have finished the worksheet, they move the flag to the left side. The girls work separately on their assigned worksheets; as they finish, they call the teacher over, and the work is corrected by the teacher. If the student gets 90 of the worksheet correct, they are given a new one; if not, they are given the same sheet again to try once more.

One girl seems to struggle more than most. When she finally completes the first worksheet, after most girls have done two or three, the teacher shakes her head and says, "You have to try harder, Tara." The girl nods and takes the new worksheet. Logan moves to the other side of the room so he can observe her; she closes one eye and looks closely at the worksheet before finally checking a box on the multiple choice question. Tara gets more and more frustrated as she works; at one point, she seems close to tears. Finally she seems to give up and begins to randomly check boxes. She signals that she's ready to hand in the worksheet and waits for her grade. The teacher says, "A little better," and Tara looks at her in disbelief. She takes another copy of the worksheet and tries again.

Logan hears someone quietly saying "Psst."

He turns around in time to see an oldcomer jump up from her seat and grasp the face of her newcomer. The oldcomer forces the other girl's head to the front. The oldcomer says sharply, "You don't talk to another newcomer. You know the rules."

The newcomer girl protests, "I dropped my pencil–"

The oldcomer stands up and hauls the other girl out of her seat. Four other girls join in quickly; they take the newcomer down to the floor. Logan steps toward them reluctantly, knowing that his job requires him to assist them in holding the girl on the floor if necessary.

The girl pleads, "No, please don't, I'm sorry..." but the other girls ignore her. Each girl takes a limb of the offending girl; she is held down and immobilized by the weight of the other girls pressing on her.

Her oldcomer grabs her chin again and says, "You know the rules. You know the consequences." She stares into the eyes of her charge and adds, "Do you understand why we have to do this?"

The girl nods, and the other girls let her up from the floor. Logan steps back, the bile rising in his throat. _'Logan!...Do you understand why I have to do this?'_ Aaron's words ring in his ears, and Logan realizes that he's almost flinching in a subconscious reaction to the phrase. He closes his eyes for a moment, reminding himself that he has to be here for Veronica, and somehow regains his composure.

Sat. 3/7/09 early evening: Olympia Diner, Neptune, CA

After their visit to Chino, Wallace and Weevil hit hours of traffic on the I-5. When they enter the diner, Weevil is still berating Wallace for not taking the I-15 as he had suggested. "I told you we'd get slammed if we took the I-5," he says smugly.

"You know as well as I do, there's no guarantee you can avoid traffic on any highway in California," Wallace retorts in irritation. "Will you drop it already? Hey, there she is." He sees Candice in the back of the restaurant and waves to her.

Candice smiles as the two men approach. "Wallace, how'd it go?"

Wallace slides into the booth next to her and kisses her in greeting. "Lots of traffic on the way back. But...Emilio did have some ideas. Candice, this is Eli, also known as Weevil. He's a maintenance supervisor at Hearst now and went to Neptune High with Veronica and me."

"Nice to meet you, Eli," Candice says.

As they peruse the menus, Wallace tells Candice about Emilio's information about the suspected dirty cop. After they order, there's an awkward silence.

Candice finally tries to make conversation, "Eli, how did you get your nickname?"

"When I was little, I liked a cartoon character called El Gorgojito," Weevil mumbles.

"What was that?" Wallace says.

"It was a cartoon, all right? My grandmother gave me that name," Weevil replies defensively.

"Chill, dude! We all know you're a tough guy," Wallace responds, laughing.

"Yeah, well, you don't make fun of my abuela, okay?" Weevil retorts. "Maybe I should tell your girlfriend about how we met, huh?"

"That's okay," Wallace says quickly, putting up a hand in protest.

"No, come on, tell me," Candice pleads, laughing a little at Wallace's expression.

Ignoring Wallace's discomfort, Weevil leans forward and explains, "See, back then, I was the head of the PCHers, you know, the motorcycle gang?"

Candice nods that she's familiar with the name.

Weevil continues. "So our boy Wallace here was working the late shift at the Sac'n'Pac when a few of my boys decided to get a few items at the five-finger discount rate."

Wallace explains, "They stuffed a bunch of forties in their pockets and gave me a dollar. So I hit the silent alarm."

"Yeah, Mr. Law-and-Order here called the cops. But then he chickened out, said it was an accident that he hit the silent alarm."

"I was so thoroughly impressed with the competence of our local sheriff's department that I realized I must have been in error," Wallace tries to explain to Candice.

"Okay, if that's how you want to spin it," Weevil laughs. "Anyways, the security tape caught the whole thing; Hector and Phuong were arrested. Needless to say, I wasn't too happy to have my number two in jail," he shrugs, "so the next day, we duct-taped your boy to the flagpole at school. Buck-naked, except for his shorts."

"Yeah, thanks for that small bit of kindness. I was pretty happy not to get a bikini wax from the duct-tape," Wallace butts in.

Weevil snorts. "Yeah, when Logan did it to me, he wasn't as nice as we were. ¡Ay cabrón, mis ayotes!" He makes a face, remembering his own time on the flagpole. "Anyways, after we taped Wallace to the flagpole, we wrote 'SNICH' on him with a magic marker."  
holy shit, my balls (literally, my pumpkins)

Wallace is fuming, but Candace laughs and smiles at him. Wallace adds, "Yeah, but they misspelled 'SNITCH': S-N-I-C-H...the Neptune High English Department at its finest."

"Bootsy never could spell for shit, in English or Spanish," Weevil muses. "Anyways, so Veronica...you've met her, right?"

Candice nods. "Yeah, we met when she dumped my lunch tray so Wallace could play the hero."

"Oh, that's so romantic," Weevil comments sarcastically, with a mock swoon. He puts his hands together and leans his cheek against them with a wounded puppy-dog expression, fluttering his eyelids. "And then you swept her off her feet." Once again ignoring Wallace's glare, he continues, shaking his head in commentary, "Now, Veronica...that chica is a total bad-ass. Everyone else was too chicken-shit to do anything, but she whipped out a knife and cut Wallace down. Then she made a deal with me, got the charges dropped against my boys in exchange for promising to leave your favorite sack-packer alone."

"Yeah, Veronica and her favors," Wallace concurs. "For some reason, we all let her talk us into doing whatever she wants."

"Yeah, because she's got your back when you need her," Weevil says firmly. "If she hadn't come along, you'd still be duct-taped to that flagpole, and a bikini wax would be the least of your worries."

Candice is still giggling at the image of Wallace taped to the pole. Wallace thinks, _Hey...if it got her mind off Shawn for five minutes, it's worth the humiliation. _Candice excuses herself and heads for the ladies' room. Wallace hunches over the table and says to Weevil, "So, have you thought anymore about how we can find out who the dirty cop is?"

"Yeah, actually I do have an idea. I say we drop a dime on Liam, set him up for something. What the hell, the guy's a crook all day long...all we have to do is catch him in the act of doing something illegal, rat him out, and see who he calls for help."

Wallace, thinking out loud, says, "We'd have to have a way into the Sheriff's Department to see who he calls."

"Nah, he's not that stupid. He'll call one of his brothers, and then they'll make contact."

Wallace nods, "I guess you're right. But there's only two of us...there's like twenty Fitzpatrick brothers."

"The only ones that are smart enough for Liam to trust are Ciaran, Padraig, and Father Patrick. So...let's try to implicate Ciaran and Padraig as well. Then he'll have to call on the mick priest for help," Weevil muses. He pauses, then says suddenly, "You know, I helped Keith with something a few weeks ago, something that was going on with the Fitzpatricks."

"What? What did you do?" Wallace asks curiously.

Weevil fidgets, trying to decide how to proceed. Finally, he says, cautiously, "Keith won't like it that I'm telling you this."

Wallace nods. "Okay. So we won't tell him you told me."

"Keith and I dressed up like we were from the coroner's office and paid a visit to the St. Mary's cemetery. He had all sorts of paperwork authorizing him to exhume a body," Weevil explains.

"You're kidding."

Weevil shakes his head. "Really fucking nasty work. He didn't let me see what he did, but he took something from one of the graves."

Wallace ponders this information. "Whose grave was it? Was it a guy named Matt Dannon?"

"No. It was in the Fitzpatrick family plot. There's a huge fucking tombstone on the grave of Liam's grandfather, Seamus Fitzpatrick. When I was a kid, we used to bust beer bottles on the monument to piss off the micks," Weevil comments.

"And we know Keith also burned down a shed on one of Liam's properties right around that time," Wallace adds. "So he was doing something related to the Fitzpatricks." He thinks a moment and continues. "I bet Keith was spying on the Fitzpatricks. He never told me exactly what was going on, but I'm sure of it. I saw him monitoring the Sonic Snoop program he uses with his surveillance gear right around that time. So maybe he hid some bugs in St. Mary's. Liam was still in prison at that point. Right after that went down, Keith was arrested for the arson. And then he was working on the undercover op. He wouldn't have had time to get the bugs out of there."

"Do you know how to listen to those bugs?" Weevil queries.

Wallace nods. "Veronica's laptop has the Sonic Snoop program on it too. And she didn't take her laptop with her; it's still in the apartment...and I have a key. I've seen her do it enough times, I think I can figure it out."

As Candice approaches, Weevil nods his understanding. "Sounds like a plan."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Observer Effect**  
Logan scouts Klein's office; Dick is  
targeted; Veronica's night in OP.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Dick: Ryan Hansen. Peter Klein: Clancy  
Brown. Tony: Romany Malco. Maria: Gina  
Mantegna. Hallie: Keri Lynn Pratt. Shania:  
Robyn Richards. Brittany: Adrianne Palicki.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SIXTY-TWO: "OBSERVER EFFECT"

Sat. 3/7/09 late evening: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Once Logan's shift is over, he decides to try to scout Peter Klein's office to determine how best to get in there to look at the files. Cautiously checking to make sure he's unobserved, he makes his way to the end of the hallway. He checks the door; the office securely locked. Logan hears voices; he looks around. The only exit nearby is "baby-locked"; the door, operated by a panic bar, is rigged to stay locked for two minutes, sounding an alarm, before finally opening in case of an emergency. He sees a closet and ducks in just in time before Peter Klein and Tony turn the corner. He listens as they talk.

Tony says, "Yeah, Maria handled it. She said the new girl is behaving herself now, but we'll have to watch her closely. She's too smart for her own good."

"Aren't they always," comments Klein.

"You ain't kidding. Maria's watching her like a hawk; she thinks Connie's her ticket out of here," Tony replies.

Klein says, "Well, it's okay for Maria to think that. It's useful for us. She'll be at Serenity Bay soon enough."

Logan, hiding in the closet, thinks, _Serenity Bay?_

"I feel kind of bad about that. She's worked hard on her program here, really helps a lot with the newcomers," Tony protests.

"Her father is insistent. It's Serenity Bay for Maria when she turns eighteen," Klein says firmly.

"I guess so. See you later," Tony replies.

Logan listens carefully; when there is only silence for the next five minutes, he takes a chance and opens the door a crack. Seeing no one, he opens the door a little further, noticing a light burning inside Klein's office through the frosted glass window on the office door. He exits the closet, closing the door quietly, and walks down the hall. He uses his card key on the locked front door to exit the building and runs straight into Tony.

Tony says, "Hey, what's up, Rog? Weren't you off shift half an hour ago?"

"Yeah. But I thought I might have dropped my lighter during the class session tonight when one of the girls was taken down...I wouldn't want one of the girls to get a hold of it," Logan explains lightly.

"Christ, that would be a disaster. Did you find it?" Tony asks.

Logan nods. "Right where I dropped it. I'll be more careful in the future."

"Everything's going okay? Did you have any more questions?"

"Yeah, it's going okay. You're right about the girls. They're pretty messed up. They're lucky to have a place like this to go to," Logan replies.

"The STRAIT program I was at saved my life," Tony comments.

"That's what you told me. And you turned out okay."

"Because I worked hard. I still work hard. Every day I want to get high again, but I fight it. Helping these girls helps me keep straight," Tony says.

Logan nods again. "Listen, see you tomorrow, Tony. I'm going to hit the sack."

Tony waves goodbye. He watches Logan walk toward the employees' quarters.

Sat. 3/7/09 very late: Zeta Theta Beta, Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Dick, dressed only in skin-tight jeans and a bow-tie, has volunteered his services as a bartender at a blowout hosted by the Zeta Theta Beta sorority. "Ladies...panty-droppers all round?" He extends a tray toward two girls.

Hallie and Shania exclaim, "Whoo!" and take the shot glasses proferred by Dick, quickly downing the drinks.

"It's all part of the full-service package...and when I say package, you know what I mean," Dick says, thrusting his pelvis at the girls.

Hallie puts her arm around Dick's naked torso and does a bump and grind against him. "Next week, we're thinking about hosting a pole-dancing contest."

"I am so there," Dick pledges. "Can I be a judge? I promise to be completely impartial and fair. But of course, I'll expect the winner to grease my pole." He rubs his crotch against Hallie, who giggles and wanders off.

Dick notices a beautiful girl dancing with one of his Pi Sig brothers. "Shania, who's the fresh meat over there? She looks too old to be a freshman."

Shania glances at the girl and replies, "She's from an east coast Zeta chapter...said she was thinking about transferring to Hearst."

The girl notices Dick looking at her and comes over. "Hi, I'm Brittany."

"Hello, I'm Dick, nice to eat you," Dick answers.

"Love your outfit, Dick. Why don't you put your tray down and dance with me?" Brittany suggests, laughing.

"I'd be delighted to do you." He puts down the tray and allows Brittany to drag him to middle of the dance floor.

Brittany puts her arms around his neck and presses her body against him. As the song progresses, Dick thinks, _Whoa, she is totally sexing me up._ "So, Brittany, Shania said you're thinking of transferring to Hearst? There's always enough room for one more hot chick here."

"Either Hearst or UCLA. What do you think of UCLA? Do you know anyone who goes there?" Brittany asks.

"It's not a party school like Hearst," he replies. "Of course, whatever school I'm at is automatically a party school."

"How do you know UCLA isn't a party school? Do you know anyone who goes there?" she repeats, continuing to rub her body against him.

"Yeah, a couple people," Dick answers cautiously, suddenly remembering what Veronica said about the paparazzi probably having a tap on his phone. He decides to set a trap. "My best friend in fact. He transferred there a couple years ago, but now he's decided to drop out."

"Really?" Brittany asks. "What's he doing?"

"He's just bumming around Europe, getting into trouble, spending his trust fund on booze and babes," Dick says. "Last I heard, he was in Paris. Somehow he hooked up with Mischa Barton. It's not fair; he's got looks and bucks. All the girls fall in love with him."

"What's his name? Would I have heard of him?" Brittany asks breathlessly.

"Ah, who cares? Tell me more about me, baby," he replies, looking at her lasciviously. "How do you see this evening ending? I'm thinking we take this to a more private location." He points upstairs.

"Ooh, I totally want to hit that. Just let me get something from my car first, okay? See you in a minute."

Brittany kisses Dick. _Nice use of the tongue,_ he notes. She smiles at him and pushes through the crowd to the front door of the sorority. He follows her and pushes the curtain aside to watch through the window as she runs up to a car driven by a blonde woman. _Fuck! Carrie,_ he thinks, recognizing the driver of the car. Brittany walks quickly back to the front door of the sorority house; just as she reaches for the door knob, Dick opens the door and says, "Got what you need? We've actually reached our limit on skanky reporters. See ya." He slams the door in her face and returns to the party.

Sat. 3/7/09 very late: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

_Veronica is running down the hallway of the school, pursued by Mercer. Panicked, she thinks, 'Where the hell is Logan?' But he is nowhere to be found. She runs up the stairs, stopping on the second floor landing to look for him. Veronica repeatedly whispers the code words, "California! I wish I was in California!" 'Why isn't anyone responding?' she thinks frantically. In desperation, she finally says, "Abort! We have to abort now! Please, Dad...somebody...help!"_

_It's been two days since she was caught by Maria, talking to her dad over the bug in her bra. Since then she was released, but she sees the guards scrutinizing her, and Kavner and Logan seem to have disappeared. 'Taken away? Killed? Would they really kill to keep the school open?' Then Mercer showed up at the school. When Veronica saw him talking to Klein, pointing at her, she ran. He followed her deliberately, knowing that all the doors and windows were secured._

_Veronica hesitates on the third floor landing, looking behind her anxiously. Somehow, she knows this is a dead end; this last set of stairs leads to the roof, where the only escape is to jump off the edge. She turns in the opposite direction and runs straight into the arms of Peter Klein._

_Klein says in his magnificent and sonorous voice, "Connie, or should I say, Veronica, why are you running? Don't you know we love you here?"_

_Veronica sees Maria further down the hall; Maria smiles and says, "Love you, Veronica. Let us help you, then we'll let you call your father." Maria approaches purposefully._

_Klein chuckles and says, "Keith isn't available for calls right now anyways– something about taking the rap for arson to keep his daughter out of prison. That's a heavy weight to bear, Veronica; it's time for you to admit you need help. Your actions are affecting all the people who love you. We're going to help you get right."_

_Maria approaches and grabs Veronica's arm. Maria says, "Veronica, c'mon, you know we need to search you. We know you have a listening device hidden on you. Let's make this easy; just give us the bug so we can start our real work."_

_Veronica jumps when Mercer speaks directly into her ear from behind her. "I'm so looking forward to group therapy with you, Veronica; I really want to hear about everything you've been through. You've been such a bad, bad girl. And don't you worry about Logan; when I recognized him, I took care of him."_

_She whirls around and cries, "What did you do to Logan?"_

_Mercer shakes his head. "Just another one of your victims, Veronica. We had him arrested for trespassing...and, what a surprise, he had forged identification. I think that's a federal offense under the Patriot Act." He touches her shoulder in a parody of a caress, gripping her tightly and drawing her to him. "Relax, baby, I know what I'm doing. You're in good hands now. But I can't say I like the red hair; it doesn't suit you. 'Course it doesn't matter, you're going to lose it anyways." He slips his hand into her hair, grabbing a chunk of it and pulling her head back. "Time for you to work your program. Love you, Veronica."_

_As one, Klein and Maria echo, "Love you, Veronica." They drag Veronica down to the floor; Veronica struggles and screams as they relentlessly begin to strip her, determined to find the listening device._

Veronica wakes up suddenly, terrified and disoriented in the dark "Observation Placement" room. She's freezing; she realizes that it must be nighttime, and the late winter chill in Vermont has permeated the room now that the sun has set.

She pulls the thin blanket tighter around her and tries to put her nightmare out of her mind. Now that she's actually seen the school, the dream is filled with real-life details and the faces of the actual people at the school. Veronica tries to reassure herself that Maria couldn't possibly have heard her speaking to her dad. Then she starts to worry that she really did screw up by provoking Maria during the strip-search; she obsessively goes over her memories, ruthlessly trying to dissect how she should have handled the situation. Her anxieties torment her despite her best efforts to dismiss them.

_How many girls spent cold and lonely nights in this room before me? I can get through this, _she thinks, trying to talk herself into being courageous. She shivers again, uncontrollably, and she accidentally knocks her bruised shoulder against the wall, wincing from the unexpected pain. Remembering the vicious fight with Maria at intake, she wiggles her loose tooth with her tongue, hoping it will eventually tighten in its socket again; she smiles grimly, thinking that at least her opponent got the worst of it. Veronica finally gives up on getting back to sleep; she stands up and paces back and forth, flailing her arms to try to keep warm. _One, two, three, four, five, turn around, one, two, three, four, five, turn around..._

She realizes that she wants to use the bathroom again; now that she is denied routine access, her bladder seems to have a mind of its own and continually urges her to relieve herself. _Damn it!_ She reminds herself that she's had less than eight ounces of fluid and doesn't really need a bathroom, but her bladder refuses to be convinced.

Veronica sits down again, carefully favoring her painful shoulder as she leans against the wall. She takes a shaky breath, closes her eyes tightly, and begins to perform the breathing exercises that had helped her earlier that day. Each time her mind starts to worry again, she quickly tries to block the thought by focusing on the counts of the exercise. It takes longer than it did that afternoon before she feels a measure of control over her situation.

She lies down again on the uncomfortable thin mattress. Veronica curls up in a fetal position and huddles under the blanket. She whispers, "I'm going to make these bastards pay. I'm not giving up." Determined to keep herself calm and focused, she conjures up a memory of the last time she and Logan were together; she remembers his deliberate lovemaking and his tenderness toward her. She tries to imagine his caress on her skin; she brushes the back of her own hand against her cheek to relive the sensation of his touch. Veronica knows that the employees' quarters are just a short distance away on the grounds of the academy. She knows that he is thinking of her, worrying about her; she wraps the idea of his love and care for her around her like a second blanket. Veronica lies awake through the night, calming herself with the knowledge that he will protect her.

Sun. 3/8/09 morning: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

The door to Observation Placement is unlocked and opened. Veronica shades her eyes and sits up on the mattress. It's Maria. Veronica stands up, trying to look obedient. Wordlessly, Maria takes her to the bathroom again, then takes a short length of rope and ties it first to Veronica's right wrist, then loops it around Maria's left wrist. "Let's go," she barks. Maria urges Connie to the stairs, and they begin to descend.

It's not so much the actual restraint of the rope, but rather the embarrassment of it that strikes Veronica. It's a badge of shame–this is a girl who cannot be trusted. As they enter the cafeteria, Veronica sees all the girls stare at her. One girl drops her eyes, and Veronica realizes that she too is tied to her oldcomer. The cafeteria is eerily silent; there are no conversations, no rude noises or the laughter that she would expect from a group of girls this age. Veronica and Maria stand in line and receive their portion of oatmeal. Due to Maria's more advanced status, she is also granted an orange. Veronica knows she somehow has to document this meal for the monitoring team. She taps Maria on the shoulder, and Maria looks at her questioningly. Veronica says, "Please...I'm so hungry. Just oatmeal? Can I have something else too?"

Maria replies sharply, "You haven't earned more than oatmeal. Work hard on your program, and you'll get more."

"Is that why–" Veronica starts.

"Yes, I've worked hard. That's why I get the extra food," Maria says smugly.

Veronica nods her comprehension. They sit down at a table and eat their meal in silence.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Back Doors**  
Mac has a break-through; Veronica is  
interviewed by Klein; group therapy begins.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Peter Klein: Clancy  
Brown. Maria: Gina Mantegna. Megan: Anna  
Lynn McCord. Alyssa: Christina Hendricks.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SIXTY-THREE: "BACK DOORS"

Sun. 3/8/09 morning: Hotel, San Diego, CA

Mac lies on the hotel bed, flipping through channels on the television. _Sundays are the worst._ The rest of the week she goes to the computer forensics lab to work on reconstructing Rick Picket's efforts to track the Russian Mafia; at the lab, Mac is in her element with a great computer and people to talk to when she needs a break. But Alan won't let her have a computer in the hotel, saying that the risk that she'll be found is too great if she accesses a Wi-Fi network. When she suggested a computer without Wi-Fi, he still shook his head, saying he thought she was smart enough to rig up a way to connect to the wired hi-speed internet in her room. Mac promised that she wouldn't try, but Alan still said no. _Who'm I kidding? Of course I would have gotten online somehow._

Mac has noticed a change in the way Alan treats her lately. His early enthusiasm for her work on the project has turned into half-hearted compliments for her very small successes. Yesterday, Alan casually mentioned that there would be a meeting with the U.S. Marshals next week in order to discuss long-term witness protection. She surmises that if she is unable to make any more progress, she will be taken into WitSec, her identity changed, doomed to live the rest of her life in Albuquerque or Peoria, hiding under the bed everytime she hears a car backfire or receives a spam email from an unidentified source. Unless she can pinpoint the perpetrators of the identify theft program, she'll always be in danger.

_Try not to think about it. They're saving your life._ She changes the channel a few more times and stops when she sees Sandra Bullock peering at a computer screen on the television. Mac remembers being eight years old, begging her parents to take her to see 'The Net', which was PG13 as she remembers. Her mom and dad finally agreed, and Mac remembers enjoying the movie more than anything she had ever seen previously. Even as an eight-year-old, she thought some of the plot was far-fetched, but she loved seeing a woman outsmart the bad guys with her computer skills. For months, she insisted on being called 'Sandy' instead of 'Cindy'. Her dad still teases her with that name when he thinks she's spending too much time on the 'internets', as he terms it. Mac puts down the remote and watches the movie. She chuckles as Sandra Bullock's character, Angela Bennett, learns that the cyberterrorist group called "The Praetorians" has wiped her identity, replacing it with that of a prostitute wanted on several drug charges.

As Angela Bennett learns about the backdoor to Gatekeeper security program used by the cyberterrorists, Mac's thoughts drift to the problems she's having tracing the origins of the Russian Mafia's identity theft program. _Backdoor. The backdoor to the Gatekeeper security protocols._ Mac sits up suddenly and turns off the television. _Backdoor...Back Orifice. Back Orifice is the Cult of the Dead Cow's program to hack into Microsoft Windows._ For a second, she forgets to breathe. _That's what Rick did. He used that same method combined with the known flaws in encryption methods to trace the originating server. He used a backdoor on the server._

Mac goes to the door of the hotel room and asks the agent stationed outside to call Alan and tell him she wants to go into the computer lab as soon as possible.

Sun. 3/8/09: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Maria escorts Veronica into Peter Klein's office. He sits behind the desk, tapping a pencil and regarding her curiously without speaking. After several minutes, Veronica says nervously, "I'd really like to call my dad." She fidgets a little, playing with the sleeve of her sweatshirt.

"I bet," Klein comments. "But you know, Connie, the thing is that your dad did the best thing he could possibly do for you by sending you here." He opens a file on the desk. "It looks like you have a substance abuse problem. Drinking, out all night, hanging out with bad kids who don't have your best interests at heart. And I see that your dad thinks you're abusing drugs as well. Ecstasy, maybe even crack or meth. I'd be willing to lay odds that you've raided your father's medicine cabinet, too. Pain pills, tranquilizers."

"I never did that," Veronica says defensively. "And I'm not doing drugs. Maybe a little pot now and then..."

"You see? You're lying to yourself. You don't do drugs, but you smoke pot."

"That's ridiculous. Nobody thinks pot is that bad," Veronica responds.

"I do. I know that I started by smoking pot. And then it was cocaine, and then speedballs, and then the next thing you know, I was burglarizing houses to pay for my habit."

"I'm not you," Veronica replies. "I'm not–"

"YOU'VE ALREADY BEEN CAUGHT SHOPLIFTING!!" Klein thunders at her, pounding his palm on the desk. He visibly calms himself. "Connie, you're wearing your denial like a cheap jacket. Everyone can see that you're fucked up except for you. I have to tell you, I'm very concerned that this program's going to be difficult for you with your attitude."

"There's nothing wrong with my attitude. What do you expect when you lock somebody up in a dark room for a whole day?"

"Connie, the record for consecutive days spent in Observation Placement is 643 days."

Veronica swallows. _You need to cooperate a little, Veronica. You are not going to get the evidence you need if you are stuck in that room for a week. Or two weeks._

"I'd like you to tell me about your boyfriend," Klein suggests.

"There's nothing to tell," she says.

"His name?"

She hesitates.

"Connie, tell me his name. You see, what we've learned over the years is that it's important to identify our backdoors: the people who help us to be self-destructive, the habits we cling to in order to do the things we shouldn't, even the places where we hang out and slip into our old patterns of behavior. I need to know the name of your boyfriend."

"Scott Rennick," she says reluctantly.

Klein smiles. "Good girl." He pushes a composition book and a pencil across the desk. Veronica notes that the notebook is fabric bound, not spiral bound, and assumes that is to prevent the notebook from becoming a weapon.

Maria picks up the notebook and the pencil. She holds the pencil up in the air and looks at the bandage on her arm where Veronica stabbed her the night before. "Can we trust you with a pencil? Or do we need to give you a crayon to write with?"

Veronica nods and takes the pencil and the notebook.

Klein says quietly, "Write down his name and address. Then we're going to go on to all your other druggie friends."

Veronica looks up when he says 'druggie' and takes a breath to speak, then pretends to think better of it and begins writing. Maria watches closely, wary of Veronica. At one point, Veronica can't resist raising the pencil to her face and tapping the eraser against her lips, as if trying to remember. She feels perversely satisfied when Maria flinches. Klein prompts her to write down more names.

Despite her apparent confusion, Veronica knows exactly why they are asking for the names of 'Connie's' friends: the parents of these friends will be contacted with an intense sales pitch for the school. In addition, should 'Connie' manage to escape from the school, they now have a list of the people she would turn to for assistance. Knowing that the school would be asking for such a list, Keith prepared a list of fictitious names, addresses, and phone numbers that all lead back to him, and Veronica has memorized the contact info in advance.

Maria looks on as Veronica writes. Finally, Veronica says, "That's it. I'm trying here. Really...I'm trying. That's everybody."

Maria takes the composition book back along with the pencil and looks over the names. "This is good, Connie. You're making progress. This is the beginning of your moral inventory."

"My what?" Veronica asks.

"Your moral inventory. It's a listing of all the things you've ever done, all the things you wish you'd done different, all your character traits that cause your problems. Once we start making our moral inventory, then we can start fixing our problems. First, you have to admit that there's a problem, which means you have to be totally honest," Maria explains.

Klein adds, "The moral inventory is not something that you can ever finish. You must keep track of your failings and bad thoughts every day. Once you begin to get better, you'll need your inventory to help you keep on the right path."

"So...like, 'today I wanted to go partying with my boyfriend,' that kind of thing?" Veronica asks.

"Or just your feelings. 'Today I felt envious.' 'Today I was selfish.' 'I realize I am frightened by the thought that I can never have a drink or do drugs.'" Klein turns around to the shelf behind his desk and gets a sheet of paper. He pushes it across the desk to Veronica, who picks it up and looks at it. "Some people need to use a checklist. It helps them to organize their thoughts."

The chart has three columns. In each column, on the left side there are negative characteristics or behaviors, such as 'angry' or 'apathetic'; each characteristic is countered on the right side by its positive opposite, such as 'forgiving & calm' and 'interested & alert'. Veronica looks over the long list of moral failings. (11)

He stands up and begins to pace around the room. "You see, your current beliefs are what's causing the problems in your life. You need to let go of your beliefs and let us help you create a new system for yourself. You have to learn that you don't know everything. You aren't as smart as you think you are. In fact, you aren't smart at all. You're dumb; your actions that got you here prove it, and the sooner you accept that, the sooner you'll start to improve your life."

Veronica stares at him furiously; even acting the role of 'Connie', she's pissed as hell at Klein's assumptions.

"Right now, you're thinking, 'He doesn't know what he's talking about.'" Klein says, leaning against desk and looking down on Veronica. "Look on your list. 'Defiant and contemptuous'. And the opposite is 'Respectful'. Further down...'Resisting growing'. And the opposite is 'Willing to grow'. Connie, I think you'll find that you're going to identify with all the terms on the left side of the chart. I know I did."

He leans forward, emphasizing his point. "We have a disease. It's a moral disease, a disease of the soul. And society is unwilling to put up with people who have our disease. If you don't change the way you're behaving, you're going to end up dead or in prison. Those are your only choices. The program...death...or prison. And the truly sad thing about our disease is that it's not 100 percent curable. You're going to have to fight this disease for the rest of your life, the way that I'm fighting it every day of my life. Think about it. The program, death, or prison. I choose the program. Right now, you're choosing out. You're making the wrong choice, Connie. The first step is to admit you have a problem. I'd like to hear you say that."

"All right. I have a problem. Now...I'd _really_ like to call my dad. Please. What do I have to do to earn a phone call?" Veronica asks.

"Did you believe her?" Klein asks Maria. Maria shakes her head 'no'. "Yeah, I didn't believe her either."

Veronica says defensively, "Okay, I admit it, I have a problem, I'm fucked-up, I'm a total shit, what do you _want_ from me? And how the hell do I get rid of this tether?" She holds up her right wrist with the rope attaching her to Maria.

Klein stares at her silently. Finally, he says, "I can't say I'm surprised at your attitude."

"It reminds me of the way I was," Maria comments.

This statement chills Veronica to the bone, and she stares at Maria.

Maria says, "You think I'm a bitch, don't you? You're going to thank me one day. And then, if you work really hard, you might earn the privilege of helping another girl the way I'm helping you."

_Fat chance,_ Veronica thinks.

"You need to learn to go along, Connie. Accept that your life is going to be different now and work the program, so it can work for you," Klein adds. "I'll see you two in group later. Connie, you've got a lot to think about."

Sun. 3/8/09: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

When the girls file into the meeting room for group therapy, Logan watches for Veronica, hoping that she's been released from Observation Placement. She walks into the room and looks right past him. _Damn, she's good...no reaction at all._ He notes that she looks okay except for a small bruise on her mouth and a general air of fatigue. Then he notices the tether on her wrist that he has seen on a few other newcomers. Without looking at him directly, she deliberately scratches her cheek, and he lets out the breath that he didn't even realize he was holding. _Am I protecting her or is she protecting me?_

Maria leads Veronica to the front of the room as the other girls take their seats. The girls sit down; every one of them sits up straight with their hands carefully placed on their knees. Maria addresses the girls. As she speaks, Logan notices that Peter Klein enters the back of the room and sits down unobtrusively. "This is Connie. She's a druggie and an alkie, and she sleeps around. And she got arrested for shoplifting. So she's got a lot of work to do before she can get right."

The girls answer, "Love you, Connie." Veronica looks at the assembled girls, uncertain what her response is. Maria grabs her arm and leads Veronica to the chairs. She takes the tether off Veronica and pushes her into one of the blue plastic chairs. "Sit, and pay attention." Maria carefully places Veronica's hands on her knees. She takes Veronica's chin and roughly turns Veronica's head to the front. She yells in Veronica's ear, "Don't move, and LISTEN!" Veronica reacts by flinching; Maria shakes her shoulder roughly, and Veronica tries to imitate the attentive posture of the girls around her as Maria sits down beside her.

One of the counselors goes to the front of the room and writes 'Utilize, Don't Analyze' on the blackboard. She looks straight at Veronica and says, "For those of you who don't know me, I'm Alyssa, and I'm your counselor. I graduated from Briar Hill in 1996, and I know what you're thinking, because it's what I used to think. I'm a druggie, and I struggle with eating disorders. Briar Hill saved my life, and now I've dedicated my life to helping girls like me. I know if I hadn't come to Briar Hill, I'd be dead." Alyssa waits a moment for her point to sink in, then she points at the phrase on the blackboard and asks the girls, "'Utilize, don't analyze.' What does this mean?"

Most of the girls respond immediately; they begin to silently pump their arms in the air, alternating left and right in what looks like a perverse cheer. Some of the girls tap their feet as well. Veronica looks around, trying to make sense of it. Alyssa chooses one of the girls who is waving her arms energetically. The girl jumps to her feet and says, "It means don't question the program. The program works, you just have to work your program."

"Give me an example, Megan."

Megan begins to tell a long-winded story about trying to buy crack. Maria begins to pump her fists violently in the air, trying to get the counselor's attention. Finally, Alyssa points to Maria, who stands up and says to Megan, "That's bullshit, Megan." Maria addresses the counselor. "It has nothing to do with the topic, and it's bullshit besides. She's not digging deep enough."

"What do we think, girls?" the counselor asks.

"Bullshit!" "She's a liar." The girls join in on denouncing Megan, who sits down in frustration. Another girl is called upon to tell a story, and again the others attack her. Logan realizes that each girl is trying to top the last in creatively rewriting her history. No matter how debauched or immoral the story, the other girls jeer that it's not good enough, it's not real, the testifier is not working hard enough.

Alyssa finally stops the discussion and begins a lecture. "Now we're going to talk about retraining the way we think. The idea is that we need to change the way we experience life so that the situations that tend to get us into trouble are instead an opportunity to find a new way to deal with them. The reason why you're here, ladies, is because your lives don't work the way you've been living them. Your lives were shit before you got here. You didn't know what you were doing, and you were screw-ups. We need to change the way you think, get rid of your beliefs that are holding you back from being a functioning member of society." The counselor continues in this vein for an hour, telling the students they are assholes, subhuman, and worthless.

Logan begins to fidget; the long period standing aggravates his knee injury, and he finally has to walk around a little to relieve the sensation. Klein notices and stands up as well; he motions that Logan should join him outside the meeting room. Klein asks, "Everything okay? You're the new guy, right?"

Logan answers, "Yeah, it's fine. I just had surgery on my knee a few months ago; it locks up on me sometimes." He extends his hand and says, "Roger Oakley."

"Nice to meet you, Roger. So...what do you think of our program so far?"

"It's intense," Logan answers truthfully. "Tony explained a few things to me; I understand a little better now, I think."

"Tony's been working for me for a long time now. He's really earned my trust...We better get back in there," Klein suggests.

They reenter the room; the counselor's droning speech is still continuing. Logan notices that Veronica's head is drooping. _Shit! Don't fall asleep. Don't fall asleep!_ Her head bobs a little, and her eyes close. The girl sitting next to her pokes Veronica to wake her up, and Veronica wakes up with a start, accidentally hitting the girl who poked her.

Alyssa stops mid-sentence and focuses on Veronica. "You!!"

Veronica is obviously still half-asleep and looks up, confused. The counselor approaches and starts to scream at her. "Why aren't you paying attention? What the hell is wrong with you? Don't you know we're trying to help you here?"

Veronica tries to protest reflexively before realizing she should just take the abuse.

Alyssa motions with her hand towards the floor. "Take her down."

Maria takes the lead, grabbing Veronica and pulling her down to the floor. The other girls quickly gather around and help to secure Veronica's limbs. Veronica fights against the takedown, and, knowing that Klein is watching him, Logan joins in holding her down. He grabs her left arm and firmly holds it against the floor, praying that she'll stop resisting. Veronica still struggles against the confinement, and the counselor kneels down and puts her hand over Veronica's nose and mouth; now Veronica really kicks and writhes as Alyssa screams at her, "WHY CAN'T YOU ACCEPT THAT WE LOVE YOU AND KNOW WHAT'S BEST FOR YOU!" Veronica finally stops struggling, and the counselor releases her. Veronica is breathing heavily, the girls still holding her pinned to the floor.

Maria says contemptuously, "You're fucking up and making me look bad!" She aims a punch at Veronica's stomach, and Veronica tries to roll away.

Logan grabs Maria's arm and says, "Enough!" He feels something on the underside of Maria's arm, and he turns her arm to look at it. He sucks in his breath; it's a perfect match to the cigarette burn scar on his own shoulder. Logan's eyes meet Maria's; she knows that he knows exactly what the scar is, and she pulls her arm away violently.

Maria hisses at him, "You're new, aren't you? You don't get it. She's a newcomer. We have to teach her how to behave."

Logan just stares at her.

Veronica says tearfully, "You fuckers! I want to talk to my dad! Why won't you let me call him?" Logan meets her eyes for a split-second and realizes she's saying this to reassure him.

Maria says intensely, "Don't make it worse! Stop resisting. Let us help you, Connie...Are you going to behave? You're going to sit and listen quietly?"

Veronica finally nods, and the girls let her up. Maria and the other girls say in unison, "Love you, Connie."

Logan stands ups and walks to the rear of the room. He only dares to glance once over his shoulder at her as Veronica shakily stands up and retakes her seat, replacing her hands on her knees and staring straight ahead in imitation of the girls around her.

Klein walks over to him and says in a low voice, "It's hard in the beginning. Once you see some girls improve and graduate, it'll be easier for you. We have to tear them down before we can build them up again."

Logan nods, averting his eyes. He's not quite sure, but he thinks that Klein actually believes he's saving these girls. It scares him to realize that Klein isn't just a superlative con artist, but rather a true believer. If a man is willing to brutalize young girls to 'save' them, just how far would he go to the protect the cause?

* * *

(11) You can see a sample moral inventory here - www•royy•com/step4•pdf

"¡Ay cabrón, mis ayotes!" - holy shit, my balls (literally, my pumpkins)

abuela - grandmother


	21. Chapters 64 to 66

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. All opinions regarding real-life organizations expressed in this fic are the opinions of the characters only. You may or may not agree with the conclusions of the characters, and no harm or insult is intended to these real-life organizations, or to any participant, past, present, or future, in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall, who is also my assistant casting director, and Kazy. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

* * *

Previously on Veronica Mars: The Year of Living Dangerously Part Two:

vanessagalore•livejournal•com/50067•html

* * *

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VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Scars**  
Logan compares notes with  
Keith and the monitoring team.  
Logan: Jason Dohring. Keith: Enrico  
Dr. Kinny: Dan Castellaneta. Epstein:  
Scott Grimes.  
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CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR: "SCARS"

Sun. 3/8/09 late evening: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

Keith answers the knock at the door. "Hey, Logan, come on in." Dr. Kinny and Epstein look up from the computer screen and acknowledge Logan.

"The video from the group therapy?" Logan asks as he and Keith walk over to join the others.

"Yeah. We've watched the takedown several times," Keith replies.

Epstein adds, "It's obvious that they brutalized Veronica for what was an accidental reaction to the other girl poking her. It's completely out of line with an appropriate response."

Keith says, "I'm glad we were able to get video for the group therapy room. It's one thing to describe what's going on there, but the video makes it clear how insidious the therapy is. They're using all the classic brainwashing techniques."

Logan interrupts, "How can you be so calm about this? That's your daughter being hauled down to the floor. And that's me, helping to hold her down." He watches as Dr. Kinny rewinds and watches the scene again. _This is like a nightmare, where you have to watch yourself being tortured over and over again...or in my case, I get to be the instrument of evil._

Keith pulls Logan aside, and they go into the dining room as Dr. Kinny and Epstein continue to talk about today's group therapy session.

Keith sits at the table and motions for Logan to join him. "Logan, I know this is hard, having to watch and not be able to stop them from hurting her. It's hard for me too. I wish there was another way to do this, but Veronica was right. There's not a lot of girls her age who have the experience and know-how to pull this off. And my god, what they do to these girls is horrific, and these schools need to be closed, permanently. But don't think I'm not worried about her. I'm worried about her every minute, and every time the bug goes silent when she's not on camera, I'm torturing myself with pictures of her living through the stories we've heard."

Keith continues, "I know how you feel; it's how I'm feeling. But I'm counting on you to keep it together so you can help her if she really needs it. You know that Veronica is a great actor; she's been helping me for years now, and I'm always impressed with the way she can take on another persona at the drop of a hat."

"I know, but–"

"Logan, she's all right. She made certain to let you know that. She used the code words, 'I want to call my dad'. You know she's all right," Keith responds.

Logan sighs heavily, ruffling the hair on his head.

Keith thinks, _He's not saying anything that I haven't been thinking over and over again since I let Veronica talk me into this._ Aloud, he just says, "You gotta keep it together, Logan; I'm counting on you. Have you learned anything else?"

"I think we need to find out more about Maria."

"Veronica's oldcomer?" Keith asks.

"She has a cigarette burn scar on her arm," Logan explains. "I don't think she got it at the school. It's an old scar."

Keith studies Logan, wondering how he knows what the scar is, and finally realizes with a sudden burst of anger... "Aaron?" he asks tersely.

Logan says evasively, "It's not just that. I heard Tony and Klein talking about her. They said she was going to be transferred to something called "Serenity Bay" just before her eighteenth birthday. 'At her father's insistence', Klein said."

"Before she ages out?" Keith says sharply.

"They implied that Maria thinks that if she manages to break Veronica, Maria will be allowed to graduate and leave the school, but instead, no matter what happens, she's going to go to this Serenity Bay place," Logan adds.

"Serenity Bay, that sounds familiar. Hey, James, can you come in here for a minute?"

Epstein joins them at the dining room table, and Logan repeats what he said to Keith.

Keith says, "What can you tell us about Serenity Bay, where they're planning on transferring Maria?"

Epstein sucks in his breath. "Serenity Bay is in Jamaica. It's the worst of all the tough-love programs, and there's absolutely no government regulations or oversight there."

"It sounds like Maria's father is going to 'warehouse' her there. He's trying to keep her locked up even after she's an adult," Keith muses. (12)

Logan stares at him. "This is sick. I mean, I think Maria's a total bitch for the way she's treating Veronica. But if she has that scar, you know that means someone was abusing her. And then maybe they locked her away, to keep her from talking about it." _If Aaron had known that there were schools like this, he might've..._he tries to clear his mind of the black thoughts he's been inundated with since he saw Maria's scar. "I don't understand how this is legal. I know what you said, that parents have the right to educate their children the way they want, but this is abuse."

"We need to see Maria's file; maybe it will shed some light on what's going on," Keith responds.

Logan asks uneasily, "Is there any chance...is there any chance that Maria could have been punished with a cigarette at Briar Hill? I mean, if there's a chance that Veronica could get–"

Epstein interrupts, "No. Maybe in a different program, but not at Briar Hill. The worst physical abuse that I've heard of at the school was paddling or neglect–kids who didn't get medical attention soon enough. I don't think they'd take the chance of doing something like burning a kid which would be direct evidence of the problems at the school. They're too smart; they prefer psychological abuse. I think you're right, it must be an old scar on Maria."

"Have you made any progress on getting into Klein's office to look at the files?" Keith asks.

Logan replies, "Not really. Klein's office is locked with a magnetic card reader like every other door. I think only he and his secretary have access."

"Does she wear the card on a chain around her neck?"

"No, I think she keeps it in her purse, and she locks her purse in her desk while she's working," Logan answers.

"Klein's secretary doesn't live on the campus," Keith thinks out loud. He pauses, then says, "All right. Let's try this. Tonight I'll go to the secretary's house and put a slow leak in one of her tires. Tomorrow, James and I can follow her, using the same route she would take to the school. When she pulls off to change the tire, we'll stop and offer to help. James can distract her, and I'll get her card and use a magnetic card reader to copy the magnetic stripe. Then I'll dummy up a new card and get it to you. If it doesn't work, we'll have to try to break into her house or come up with something else."

"Tomorrow would be a good time to try to get into Klein's office. Tony mentioned that Klein's heading up to Montpelier for an important meeting at one o'clock. And they're taking all the girls on a day-long hike, so most of the staff will be involved with that," Logan explains.

"Day-long hike?" Keith queries.

Logan nods. "Tony said that they find it helpful to push the girls to their physical limits in order to help them 'progress'." He makes air-quotes around the word 'progress'."

"Break them down, you mean," Epstein clarifies.

"Yep," Logan replies succinctly. "I'm worried about Veronica on this hike. The bug on her isn't going to transmit audio very far without the repeaters that you installed in the building."

Keith says. "Are you supposed to go on this hike?"

"No. Tony said my knee would be a liability, so I'm excused from duty for the hike. What they do is, they split the employees into teams. When the girls reach a predetermined point, the employee team is replaced by another team that reached the point via the school jeep. Then they switch again at the next stopping point. That way the employees don't get tired, and they can really push the girls to physical exhaustion," Logan explains.

Epstein mutters, "I hope Veronica's in good shape."

"She is. She's been working out and running on the beach every day. She's a lot tougher than she looks," Keith replies. "Don't let her size fool you. That's my bad-ass action-figure daughter we're talking about."

_But she's not as tough as you think,_ Logan worries, thinking about Veronica's nightmares.

Keith thinks a moment, then says, "We have an audio recorder that can record up to twelve hours. It's small; Kavner can hand it off to Veronica at some point, and she can hide it in her sock so we can at least document what happens on the hike. Then she can get it back to him, or even drop it somewhere at the end of the hike. Veronica will know what to do when Kavner hands it to her."

Logan mutters, "It's killing me not to be able to talk to her or touch her."

"Logan, you're really helping Veronica just by being there," Keith says. "And you're helping me too. I know Veronica's a lot safer with you there."

Logan nods. "There's another girl I want to check out too. Tara."

Epstein says, "We noticed her in the intake video. She was reluctant to join in on holding Veronica down, and Maria had to yell at her."

"She's probably new. She's paired with an oldcomer, so she hasn't been there for long. What I noticed was during school; I think she's got a learning disorder or dyslexia. She was really struggling, and the school's not providing any extra help for her. And she seems frightened to death every time I see her," Logan remarks.

"See if you can look at her file too. You remember how to use the camera I gave you?" Keith asks.

Logan lifts up his wrist; the ordinary-looking wristwatch is actually a powerful digital camera. "Yeah, I remember."

Epstein interrupts their discussion. "You said Klein was going to Montpelier tomorrow?" Logan nods, and Epstein continues, "That's the state capital. If there's any kind of graft going on–anyone that Klein is paying off to keep the school open–this meeting might be evidence of that."

"You're right. There won't be much to do in terms of monitoring tomorrow because we won't be able to hear Veronica while she's on the hike. Maybe you and I could tail Klein and see what his business is in Montpelier," Keith suggests.

Epstein nods.

Logan stands up to leave. "So you'll let me know when you have the new magnetic card?"

Keith replies, thinking out loud, "Yeah, I can bring the encoder with me and do it right there in the car. I'll text you when it's ready. If Klein's meeting is at one, he'll have to leave around ten-thirty or eleven. I can get his license plate from the Vermont DMV, and we can pick him up once he leaves the school property...Logan, try not to worry. Except for Veronica pushing it a little at intake, she's doing a great job; she's gotten a lot of evidence already. We might be able to end the operation early."

Logan nods glumly and turns to leave. He stops and turns back, "Do you think it's worth the risk to plant a bug in Klein's office? I...I'm starting to think Veronica was right, that Hannah was killed because of something that happened at the school. Klein is a fanatic. He believes in what he's doing. He's not just a con man."

Keith studies Logan's worried expression. "You really think he would kill to protect his program? What could Hannah have done to him?"

"I don't know. Maybe she saw something and was going to go public with it," Logan offers.

"But there have been plenty of exposés on the schools. Former students have come forward and testified before Congress, but still the laws haven't changed and still the schools operate exactly as before. The public believes that these kids deserve to be put away and ignores the bad publicity. What could have Hannah have seen while she was at the school?"

"Maybe another student was murdered that we don't know about. Maybe a student suffocated while in restraints, or an infection was left untreated for too long...you read the same horror stories that I did. Maybe Hannah witnessed a payoff. Maybe Klein got an underage girl pregnant; maybe he even got Hannah pregnant. DNA doesn't lie," Logan theorizes._ I can see Klein justifying just about anything._

Keith is silent, momentarily panicked that he has put Veronica in jeopardy. "You really believe Klein is capable of something like that? What did he say exactly?"

"He said, 'It's hard in the beginning. Once you see some girls improve and graduate, it'll be easier for you. We have to tear them down before we can build them up again.' And it didn't sound like just a pep talk to a reluctant employee. He believes what he's doing is the right thing to do. He was completely sincere. He believes that he has to hurt the girls to help them. How do we know he wouldn't kill someone in order to save this program that he's devoted his life to?" Logan says passionately. Since his conversation with Klein, he has replayed the man's words over and over in his head, trying to decipher any hidden meaning; nothing about Klein's words or the research about the schools that he read back in Neptune has reassured him that Klein wouldn't murder to avoid prison or even a lawsuit. _And here we are, collecting evidence for a lawsuit, against someone who might be willing to kill to protect his cause._

Keith studies Logan, taking Logan's opinions seriously. "You're right. We should take the opportunity to bug Klein's office. And we're going to be more careful about provoking him until we can get Veronica out of there."

"But I think we should end this right now–"

Keith interrupts, "If Klein murdered Hannah, how did he get access to the FBI case files to make her murder look like another one of the serial killer's victims?"

Logan stares back, unable to come up with a plausible scenario. Finally, he replies, "What about that FBI guy, Mike Fields? Can you ask him to investigate a possible connection with Klein? Something that would show how Klein could know about the serial killer victims."

Keith nods. "It's a good idea. I'll ask him to check to see if Klein has any ties to the FBI." He pauses, then continues, "I am going to think about ending this sooner. Veronica's already managed to document the strip search and got a video of the school denying her request for medical attention. And she got assigned to Observation Placement very quickly. She's doing very well; I'm confident we're going to be able to end this after no more than a week, maybe less than that."

"A week? Keith, that's–"

"I _know_, Logan, but we have a responsibility to the other girls as well." Keith sighs. "I just can't see how Klein could possibly know the details of the Saturday Night Slasher murders; it's just too far-fetched that he would go to that much trouble to conceal something that happened three years ago. And how did he even know that Hannah was in Los Angeles? Her parents haven't heard from her since she ran away from the school, and it's my understanding that FBI hasn't been able to determine where she's been in that time. How would Klein have gotten this information?"

Keith continues, "Logan, this operation is too important to abandon. Too many young girls have been hurt, and Veronica's eyewitness testimony along with our surveillance is essential to doing something about these programs. Let's see if you can get the bug in Klein's office tomorrow. I promise you; I'll listen to every word he says and if anything indicates that he suspects Veronica of being a plant, I'll end this immediately." Keith rummages in a bag of surveillance supplies that he brought along with him from Neptune. "Okay. This one is easy. It's small enough you can put it in an electrical socket; just unscrew the cover, stick it in place with the double-stick tape, and replace the cover. It's voice activated; with the repeaters we have installed at the school boosting the signal, the battery supply should last for the whole operation." Keith demonstrates how to toggle the switch to 'voice-activate', 'on', and 'off'. Logan nods that he understands.

Epstein clears his throat. "You know, if you really want to find out what Hannah might have witnessed, you need to stir up a hornet's nest."

Keith looks at him questioningly, and Epstein continues, "Send a reporter in to interview him, asking about Hannah's time at the school. Maybe the reporter could say that Hannah kept a journal, and he's come into possession of it. And if we see something when we tail him to Montpelier, we can use that to try to get a reaction...see what he does."

Keith nods slowly, thinking about how to work this. "It's a great idea, but I'm not even going to consider doing that while Veronica is undercover. I want to make sure that we keep Veronica's safety our prime objective until she's out of there. And then, we can provoke Klein into a reaction, using the evidence that we've collected. Logan, I'm counting on you to help me with this. Get the bug into Klein's office, and keep watching Veronica and reporting to me," he concludes firmly.

Logan replies reluctantly, "Yeah. Okay. But I still wish we were...It's...well, this is even harder than what I thought it would be. I hope we can wrap this up and get Veronica out of there quickly." His voice cracks a little at the end.

Keith walks over to him and hugs him. He whispers in Logan's ear, "You're going to be okay. Veronica's going to be okay. We'll be back in California before you know it."

Logan holds on for a second before releasing Keith. _How can he forgive me, love me even, after everything that's happened over the years...I can't believe he thinks I'm worthy of being loved._ "Yeah. I better get going," he mutters aloud, heading for the door.

Keith watches out the window as Logan gets in his car and drives off. Epstein takes over for Dr. Kinny at the computer monitor, and Dr. Kinny comes over to Keith. He says, "So how's he doing?"

"Sorry?" Keith replies, lost in thought.

"It's not just Veronica you should be worrying about. In the Stanford Prison Experiment and in the short experiments I ran every year, the guards were affected psychologically as much as the prisoners," Kinny explains.

"Right, I remember, that was what set in motion the relationship between Mercer and Moe."

"I've berated myself since their arrest, trying to find some sign that I should have recognized, that they were damaged by my experiment. I've stopped running it. The ethics of the original Stanford experiment are still debated among my colleagues," Kinny says ruefully. "But I'm quite sure that I personally contributed to their psychosis."

"I'm sure they were already insane before they participated in your experiment," Keith protests.

"No. I don't think so. Something about the experiment triggered a change. I've requested permission to interview them. I'd like to write a book about the Hearst rapists, but they've denied every request for an interview...You know, I know a little of Logan's history from the ridiculous stories on tabloid news shows. But there's obviously more to Logan's history that I'm not privy to." Kinny puts up his hand to stop Keith from interrupting. "I don't want to know the details; you shouldn't tell me anything confidential without his permission. But...just in general, Logan's relationship with his father was...toxic, even harmful, yes?"

Keith nods.

Kinny continues, "I'm going to assume the worst. Keith, we need to be monitoring Logan as well as Veronica. For someone with that kind of history, playing the violent role of a strict prison guard can bring up long-buried memories. And if he has to act in a way that reminds him of his father...well, that might be very traumatic for him. We need to monitor him as well as Veronica, assessing his psychological state so that he too is not harmed by this."

Keith thinks, _If this is the only thing that Kinny contributes to the mission, he's already proven his worth._ Keith sits for a long time staring out the window, thinking about men who murder young girls and fathers who strike their sons. He remembers, a long time ago, noting with a police officer's suspicion that the new boyfriend of his daughter's best friend Lilly was wearing a long-sleeved shirt on the hottest day of the summer. Keith thinks about what he knows of Logan's youth and what he can guess happened behind the closed doors of the finest mansion in Neptune.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Breaking It Down**  
Mac has a break-through; the girls go  
on a hike; Logan breaks into Klein's  
office; Keith and Epstein tail Klein.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Alan: Ned Vaughn. Peter Klein: Clancy Brown.  
Maria: Gina Mantegna. Kavner: Eric Bana.  
Tony: Romany Malco. Epstein: Scott Grimes.  
Megan: Anna Lynn McCord. Alyssa: Christina  
Hendricks.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SIXTY-FIVE: "BREAKING IT DOWN"

Sun. 3/8/09 very late: RCFL, San Diego, CA

Mac types furiously on her computer. Alan asks, "So how close–"

Mac silences him by holding up a hand and closing her eyes. She says, "More coffee. Less talking."

Alan sighs and gets another cup. When he returns, Mac is leaning back in her chair with a satisfied smile. "You got it?" he asks.

"I think so. This is the ISP address," Mac says, pointing at the screen. "Forget the coffee, I want to go to bed."

Alan nods as he places a call to a federal judge for a warrant.

Mon. 3/9/09 early morning: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica is roused from a deep sleep. She is shaken roughly, and when she doesn't move fast enough, she is slapped twice on the face and hears, "Do you think you're special? Let's go. Get your shoes on right now, or you can hike without them."

_A hike? _Veronica remembers interviewing a former student who complained bitterly about hiking until the students were completely exhausted, then having to sit through lectures on working your program.

She sits up and jumps down off her top bunk. All the girls are jostling each other in order in a mad rush to get their shoes on and get to the bathroom. The girls have started lining up at the entrance to the room, and she hurries to do the same. It never fails to shock her how quiet it is without the usual teenager bickering and teasing. Maria ties the tether to Veronica's wrist again, and Veronica tries not to react. The group marches single-file to the common room, where they stand at attention until Peter Klein enters the room and walks to the front. He surveys the girls and finally begins to speak.

"We are all here because we're fighting. We're fighting the moral decay that we've allowed to creep into our souls. I feel sorry for anyone who doesn't have the opportunity to accept the love that the program instills in us. Those of us that have been through the program know that it never fails; people just fail the program. You girls are lucky that you've been given the chance to reform your life and to change your bad habits and screwed-up thinking. But in order to change, you have to beat your old habits. Remember your habits don't want to let go of you, and they're ready to take you over again the moment you let down your guard.

"Make no mistake; we're in a battle, a battle for your soul. And it's not an easy battle. Your character defects are waiting for you to slip again. You need to be tough to win this battle. So we're going to get tough. We're going to build up our body and our mind. We're not going to give our sins a chance to get hold of us again. We're going to beat them, body and soul.

"You need to decide that you are tough enough to refuse to let your flaws determine the rest of your life. You need to know this like you know you have to breathe to live. Choose life. Choose the program."

The girls quickly repeat, "Choose life. Choose the program."

Veronica tries to join in and manages to mumble "program" with the others.

Maria frowns at her and mutters, "Make sure you get it next time."

Out of the corner of her eye, Veronica sees Kavner with two other employees, a man and a woman. They sport down jackets and hiking boots, in contrast to the girls who have no jackets to protect them from the cold Vermont weather. Kavner meets her eyes briefly, and Veronica quickly looks back at the front of the room. _Something's up,_ she guesses. She decides to try to give him an opportunity to make contact as soon as possible.

The woman calls out, "Let's go," and she leads the girls to the front door of Briar Hill Academy. She uses her card key to unlock the door; Kavner holds the door open as the girls file outside.

Veronica tries to hold back a little; crossly, Maria says, "What is your problem?"

Kavner approaches from behind and says, "You need help with this one?"

Maria says, "I think she's trying to set a record for the most number of months added to her program."

"Tough girl, huh?" Kavner comment. He takes Veronica's arm and, with Maria tugging on the tether, forces Veronica to catch up with the other girls. When Maria head is turned, Kavner passes Veronica a small device and mouths, "_Sock_." Veronica keeps the device concealed in her hand. When they catch up to the other girls, Veronica bends over, pretending to retie her shoelace but actually putting the device inside her sock.

Kavner says to Maria, "You got her now?"

Maria nods and yanks on the tether; she and Veronica fall in with the other girls who have started hiking a clearly-marked path in the woods.

Veronica muses, _I didn't realize how much I missed the sun._ The contrast of the cloudy Vermont sky with the almost-constant mild weather in Neptune is vast; still Veronica breathes in the air, enjoying the illusion of freedom and the sheer joy of being outside after not even having a window to look out for forty-eight hours. The stifling atmosphere of the school is already having an effect on her, and she thinks dismally of the students who spend five or six years at the school. There are small patches of snow at intervals, and Veronica wonders if they make the students do this hike if there is substantial snow on the ground.

Kavner hangs back to be the "sweeper", preventing any girls from straggling behind; the other two leaders set a brisk pace. Veronica is glad that she's been working out on the treadmill for the past few weeks in preparation for the operation; when Epstein made it clear that students were pushed to physical exhaustion, she began to schedule extra workouts, trying to be in top physical condition to get through the operation. But when Maria looks at her, Veronica pretends to pant through her mouth and breathe heavily, as if the hike is taking a great toll on her. As she hikes, she feels the digital recording device Kavner handed off to her in her sock. _Not much to record so far,_ she thinks.

She tries to keep her mind off her hunger; no breakfast today, and last night's dinner was ridiculously small, oatmeal and an apple, along with the ever-present bug juice. Maria was granted a peanut-butter sandwich as well, and Veronica reflected that the food limitations were a powerful motivating device to make the girls compliant. Maria lorded it over Veronica, obviously masticating the sandwich and making sounds of contentment as she ate her extra ration.

They hike for about an hour before a short rest stop is called. After five minutes, they set off again, resuming the fast pace. After what Veronica estimates is five miles of strenuous hiking, the trail meets up with a rough forest road, where a jeep is waiting. The girls line up for a cup of water. Kavner and the other two leaders get in the jeep and three other employees take their place. Veronica realizes that the tradeoff means that the employees never get tired, but the girls are being pushed to their limit. Veronica sees that all the girls are tired and miserable, but no one says a word. After a short rest, they begin hiking again at a relentless pace.

She reflects that at least Hannah Griffith was on the track team; this was probably one activity that was not too difficult for her. Despite not knowing her well, Veronica is constantly trying to create a mental picture of what Hannah's experience had been at the school. Hannah seemed to be trusting; she apparently forgave and excused Logan's misbehaviors despite the bad publicity. _Someone like that would be more susceptible to the mental programming going on at the school._ But Veronica knows that Hannah was also on the dean's list, with consistent good grades despite her involvement in sports and spirit organizations. _Hannah wasn't dumb; she had to have known that the school's programs were based on fallacies._ _And it must have been particularly awful to be accused of being a druggie and a sex addict merely for the crime of falling for Logan, especially when her father was doing cocaine._ She imagines Hannah protesting in group therapy that she had done nothing wrong and being told that she was too screwed-up to see how bad she really was.

_Why did Hannah's father choose such an extreme school for his daughter? How did he even know about this school? Mrs. Denenberg implied that the school was chosen partially for its distance from California and the tight security. Did they really think Logan would mount a rescue to bring his beloved home?_ Of course, the irony of Logan's presence at the school now is not lost on Veronica.

_So, what happened that made Hannah decide to run away?_ Veronica remembers the tale that Epstein told her of a student who was tracked by dogs and caught hiding in the woods. The student was sentenced to public paddling and subsequent observation placement for 90 days, and twelve months were added to his program. The swift retribution for the smallest offense is such an ingrained feature of the school that Veronica finds it hard to believe that a student would take the chance of running away. _Something convinced her to run; and she obviously had a good plan, because it worked. Or she had help._  
_  
I keep coming back to Maria. She had to have been here when Hannah was here. She might have even been a newcomer at the same time. If only I could talk to her, get her to tell me what happened..._

Mon. 3/9/09 early afternoon: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

At 12:30, Klein's secretary leaves for lunch; Logan watches as she gets in her car and drives off, presumably to get her flat tire fixed on her lunch hour. He quickly enters the main building, fingering the new card key in his pocket. The building is deserted, with a large proportion of the employees working on the hike. Logan stealthily makes his way to Klein's office. He inserts the card in the reader, half-expecting a loud alarm to go off as the reader detects a forged card. The lock clicks quietly and the reader's LED signal changes to green. He turns the handle and enters the office.

Logan peruses the paperwork on Klein's desk. Most of it relates to the yearly budget; he uses the camera in his watch to quickly take a few photos of the papers, not wanting to spend time reading them. He looks around to find an electrical outlet; the nearest one has a fax machine plugged into it, and Logan hesitates, wondering if a power interruption will cause the time on the machine to be reset. He decides it's not worth the risk, and he looks for another outlet. Near one of the bookcases, he finds another that is unused, and he places the bug as Keith had instructed him.

He turns to the lateral file cabinets. He reads the brand name 'HON' and tries the file cabinet master keys with that label on the key ring. The third one fits perfectly and unlocks the first cabinet, labeled 'Current Students'. Logan makes note of the key, 'HON 600 series', and pockets the key ring. He pulls the file for Connie Morris and photographs its contents. He runs his finger over the tabs on the files, looking for the first names 'Maria' and 'Tara'. He sees 'Frazzino, Maria' and pulls a hefty file; he makes sure it's the correct one, checking the enrollment date, age, and other data, then photographs every page in the file. He carefully replaces all the pages as they were and looks for Tara's file. Logan photographs the entire file for 'Connolly, Tara', which is substantially thinner than Maria's. Despite his rush, he takes the time to notice that the file includes a police report, and Tara's date of enrollment is listed as 2/11/09. Logan replaces Tara's file and relocks the cabinet.

The next file cabinet is labeled 'Former Students, A-H', and Logan uses the key to open this cabinet. Logan locates Hannah's file and copies it. He checks the time, realizing he has a few minutes. He walks to the desk, thinking; he decides to scroll through the caller ID on the phone. He takes a small piece of paper from the wastebasket, and finds a pen, carefully noting its position on the desk. The phone saves the last 30 incoming calls, and Logan writes all of them down, pocketing the list. He checks the time again and decides to get out while he can.

Logan opens the door silently and checks that the hallway is clear. He hears voices and shuts the door, his heart pounding. He realizes it's Tony, going over a maintenance request with another employee. He listens to the voices, which gradually diminish in volume. With his allowed time quickly slipping away, he decides to chance it and open the door. He exits the office and shuts the door behind him; the LED stays red, and when he tries to door handle, it's firmly locked. He tries to appear confident and certain as he strolls to the front door.

"Hey, Roger!!" Tony calls.

Logan turns around and tries to keep his voice calm. "Tony, I was looking for you. Someone said they thought you might be here."

"Yeah, we have a plumbing problem I need to take care of. What's up?"

"I didn't know what I was supposed to do on my shift today since the girls are all on that hike."

"Right," Tony says, nodding. "You can run a couple errands for me. The girls should be back at four for group." He starts walking to the front door, inclining his head to indicate that Logan should follow.

Logan walks with Tony, realizing he is totally jazzed by the adrenaline rush from breaking into Klein's office. He remembers feeling the same way after rescuing Veronica from the River Stix–shaky and excited and scared all at once–and he reflects that this feeling could get addictive.

Mon. 3/9/09 afternoon: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT  
**  
**After a brief rest stop, Maria yanks at Veronica's tether harder than necessary to get her going, and Veronica suppresses a flash of anger. Then she reflects that a newcomer, especially a newcomer like herself, would probably act out a little, or at least complain about the rigors of the hike. _Let's have a little performance for the digital recorder._ She deliberately steps on a small rock; it causes her to lurch to the side. As she staggers sideways, she pulls on the tether, and Maria turns around crossly.

"What is your problem, Connie?"

"I'm sorry, my leg hurts," she replies piteously.

One of the leaders, Alyssa, the group therapy specialist, hears their talking and jogs back. She yells at Veronica, "Stop being so lazy! Keep up with the group."

"I have a cramp in my leg," Veronica protests, rubbing her calf. "Can't we rest a little bit longer?"

Alyssa blows her whistle, stopping the hike. "Fifty pushups. Let's go."

Veronica stares at her in apparent disbelief. Alyssa gets behind her and shoves her in the back. Veronica loses her balance and stumbles forward onto the ground. All the girls stare at Veronica. _No help there,_ she thinks.

Alyssa is furious at Veronica's disobedience. She looks at the other girls and proclaims, "If she doesn't do the pushups, no one will have dinner today. And five extra miles on the hike."

Every girl, even Tara, begins to scream at Veronica. "Do it!" "Goddamn it, do the pushups!" A few of the oldcomers are not satisfied with verbal taunts; they approach and look as though they are going to kick and punch Veronica.

Veronica gets on her hands and knees and begins to do pushups. Of course, in her training at the FBI, she managed to become quite proficient at the male version of pushups, but for right now, she acts the part of a typically out-of-shape teenaged girl perfectly. She deliberately slows down, trying to appear as if she's struggling as the count gets into the thirties, and Alyssa mocks her, "Come on, tough girl, let's go. You're never going to make it if you don't work harder than that." Veronica finally finishes, the last few pushups appearing to exhaust her. Maria yanks on her tether again, and Veronica gets up on her feet, pretentiously breathing hard and rubbing her supposedly aching arms.

Alyssa blows the whistle again, and the hike resumes.

Mon. 3/9/09 afternoon: Montpelier, VT

Keith and Epstein, following behind Klein's car, watch as he turns into a construction site. Keith drives past, circles the block, and finds a parking place with a good vantage point. The signs posted declare that building permits have been filed under the name of Brannigan and Sons. Keith hands Epstein his telephoto-equipped camera and instructs him to document Klein's activities. Keith opens his laptop, thinking, _thank god for wi-fi_, and looks up Brannigan on the business section of yellowbook•com. With a little more research, he finds that John Brannigan is listed as chief executive officer, and he locates an image of Brannigan via Google. Keith comments to Epstein, "What did we do before the internet?", and Epstein nods, taking a few photos. "What's happening?" Keith asks.

Epstein replies, "A guy just came out and shook hands with Klein."

"Let me see," Keith says. He takes the camera and confirms that it is Brannigan meeting with Klein. He watches as Klein hands Brannigan an envelope; they talk for a moment, then Klein turns to walk away. Keith starts up the car, waiting for Klein to get back to his car. They follow Klein long enough to determine that he's on his way back to Briar Hill; Keith takes the next exit and pulls off the road. He sends a text to Logan, 'K on way back', then turns to Epstein. "Let's check out Brannigan, see what the connection is to Briar Hill." He makes a U-turn and heads back to Montpelier. Upon Keith's instructions, Epstein gets the address of the Building Inspector's Office, located in the Fire Department central building on Main St. They park and enter the building.

A young woman is staffing a desk in the office. "Yes, may I help you?"

"Hi, I'm doing a report on Montpelier for the corporate headquarters of TransNational Enterprises." Keith selects a business card from his wallet that matches his statement and hands it to the woman. She holds the card by the edges, looking at it carefully. "We're doing a feasibility study on possible cities in the Northeast for our planned relocation. Is it possible to take a look at the building permits issued in the last year? We'll need to do extensive renovation on the possible site we've located, and I want to make sure that your local construction companies can handle the work. Of course, if we do decide to locate here, the positive impact on your commercial property taxes would be substantial, and we would be hiring local people to work for the company."

"Certainly, I can help you with that. I believe we had 112 permits issued last year." The woman stands up and walks to a filing cabinet. She removes several file folders and hands them to Keith, who has taken a seat next to the desk. He peruses the files, taking notes and carefully obscuring his true target by looking closely at several different construction companies. Brannigan and Sons has applied for five building permits. The permits only list the address of the sites without identifying the property owners.

"I think that'll do it," Keith says finally.

"Are there any questions I can help you with? If you want, I can set up a meeting with our building inspector or the mayor. I know Montpelier is aggressively seeking new commercial enterprises, and the mayor would certainly be willing to discuss a tax break," the secretary says hopefully.

"It's still very preliminary," Keith replies. He leans towards the woman and continues, "But between you and me, it's down to three different cities. The thing is...our CEO hates being courted by town officials. He's strictly a by-the-numbers guy, so let's just keep this between us."

"I'll keep my fingers crossed," she swears.

They leave the building, and Epstein comments, "Very smooth. So I assume we're heading to the assessor's office to look up the owners of these parcels?"

"You got it," Keith says.

At the assessor's office, Keith gets the names of the property owners of the five sites under construction by Brannigan and Sons. Back in the car, they run the names through Google search.

"Bingo. Carl Behr," Keith says.

Epstein looks over his shoulder at the laptop screen. He says, "Commissioner Carl Behr. Of the Vermont Department of Education."

"Let's drive by this address," Keith suggests.

They take a tour through what is obviously one of the wealthier sections of Montpelier. Behr's house shows signs of an extensive remodel that will double the square footage of the already large house.

Keith taps on the steering wheel. He turns to Epstein, "So how much you want to bet that Klein is financing this remodel in exchange for favorable reports on the school?"

"And probably a heads-up on surprise visits by inspectors," Epstein adds. "I'll take that bet."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Tip-Off**  
Weevil and Wallace; after the  
hike; Keith reviews the files.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Eli: Francis Capra.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Maria: Gina  
Mantegna. Alyssa: Christina Hendricks.  
Coach: Richard T. Jones.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SIXTY-SIX: "TIP-OFF"

Mon. 3/9/09 afternoon: Athletic Center, Hearst College, Neptune, CA

A whistle blows during the Rough Riders practice scrimmage. "Get your head in the game, Fennel!" the coach yells.

"Okay, okay," Wallace replies, nodding. He takes the ball and dribbles down the court looking for an opening. He passes the ball, and the throw is way high, resulting in a turnover.

The coach blows the whistle again and tells the team to hit the showers. "Unh-uh, not you, Fennel. Get over here."

Wallace trots over, knowing this isn't going to be pretty. He keeps his mouth shut; there really is no excuse for the way he's playing today. Sitting in a car with Eli Navarro until three a.m. is, not surprisingly, the worst way to prepare for a playoff game. _And nothing to show for it._ Liam Fitzpatrick sat in the River Stix downing beers until an hour past closing time; despite Weevil's assertion that Liam spent his whole day committing crimes, the man appears to be walking the straight and narrow path these days.

"You know what tomorrow is, right?" the coach asks. "Because I'm not sure you do, based on the way you're playing out there...C'mon, let's hear it, because I think you might be confused."

Wallace nods. "First round, Mountain West Conference Tournament, against Air Force."

"Oh, so you do know," the coach replies sarcastically. "What the hell's going on out there, Fennel?"

"Didn't get much sleep last night," Wallace mumbles evasively.

The coach turns away in disgust. He turns back around and yells, "Didn't get much sleep!! What the hell are you thinking?"

"Sorry, coach. It won't happen again," Wallace says.

The coach points his thumb at the locker room disgustedly, and Wallace quickly leaves the court before the coach can change his mind and really lay into him.

When Wallace exits the locker room, Weevil is waiting. "Yo."

Wallace bumps fists with Weevil and says, "What up?"

"I got a tip from my uncle that Liam is accepting delivery on some cars with shaky documentation," Weevil relates.

"When's this going down?" _Not tonight, not tonight,_ Wallace hopes.

"Wednesday," Weevil says. "Good thing it's not during your game tomorrow, right? I got some money on you. You better not screw up."

"Oh, hell no, we wouldn't want you to lose some money over this," Wallace retorts sarcastically. "What's the line?"

"They've got Hearst at -7 1/2."

"Great. So not just a win, a big win."

"Yeah, I'm counting on you to cover the spread," Weevil says, throwing his arm over Wallace's shoulders.

"Hey, anything for you, big guy," Wallace shoots back, shaking off Weevil's arm.

"You, uh, talk to Keith?" Weevil asks, trying to sound casual.

Wallace looks at him. "Yeah. I talked to him today. Veronica's kicking serious ass."

"Of course. I knew she'd do great. Girl's practically a superhero," Weevil says, relieved.

"True dat." Wallace adds quietly, "I'm worried too."

Mon. 3/9/09 late afternoon: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

When the girls finally return from the hike, Veronica sees Kavner working unobtrusively outside the building. He looks at her briefly then turns back to his work. She stumbles and stops for a moment, forcing Maria on the other end of her tether to stop as well. For once, Maria is too tired to bark at her and just waits while Veronica 'adjusts' her shoe. All the girls look exhausted, and no one notices when Veronica surreptitiously dumps the recording device as she straightens up. Kavner walks past the girls toward the employees' living quarters, and Veronica resists the temptation to look back.

The girls file into the common room, and Alyssa begins lecturing them on willpower and mental toughness. Each of the girls stands up in turn to talk about she has learned about herself that day on that hike.

When Veronica stands, she hesitates for a long moment, trying to gauge what the percentage play is here. _Provoke again? Submit?_ She finally stammers, "I don't really understand what you guys are talking about most of the time. But I'm trying." She sits back down, waiting for an explosion from Maria or Alyssa.

After a long pause, Alyssa says, "Well, Connie, I think you're trying to be honest. You've got a long way to go, but this may be a good first step. Keep paying attention."

Unaccountably, Veronica feels real relief. She stares into space for a moment, then realizes she should be focusing on what the other girls are saying. She tries to listen but keeps zoning out.

At last the girls are released from group therapy and head for the showers. The oldcomer girls go first, taking quick showers; by the time the newcomers are allowed to shower, there is no more hot water. Veronica undresses carefully, making sure to keep the bug in her bra obscured from Maria's constant supervision. She quickly soaps up and rinses in the freezing water; Maria waits for her impatiently, watching her closely for any signs of misbehavior. Again Veronica seethes at the complete lack of privacy. _What the hell am I going to do in the shower?_ She fantasizes briefly about stealing the bar of soap to make it into a weapon. _I suppose I could put it in a sock to make a crude sap. _She pictures swinging her improvised weapon at Maria's head. _Yeah, this school is doing a good job of rehabilitating me._

In the dining room, Veronica takes her peanut-butter sandwich and sits down with Maria. Everyone looks completely miserable and worn-out from the hike and the lectures. Even though she was in excellent physical condition before coming here, Veronica too is exhausted. The stress of the operation combined with the lack of sleep for the last several nights and now the added physical exertion have taken a toll on her. She stares at her sandwich on the plate, thinking, _I might be too tired to eat. Except...I'm starving._ She looks around at the other girls. The oldcomers, now easily recognizable to Veronica due to their added privileges, are relishing their dinner, taking tiny bites of their sandwiches. She realizes they are savoring the pathetic meal, enjoying every bite as if it's filet mignon. Veronica knows she has to eat; she picks up the sandwich and takes a bite, replacing it on her plate to rest while she chews. She forces down some of the bug juice, trying to replace the fluids she knows that she lost during the hike.

Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Logan entering the dining room, relieving another employee. Veronica steadfastly keeps her eyes away from him, worrying that he might inadvertently betray her. She notices Peter Klein walking up to him and engaging him in conversation. When Klein walks away, she takes a chance and looks directly at Logan, who nods just the slightest amount possible and immediately directs his gaze at Klein's back. _I bet he got into Klein's office._

Veronica starts to perk up at the thought of learning what Logan has found out, until she realizes that he can't take the chance of talking to her. _Goddammit, I want to know what's going on!_ She slumps again, depressed and tired, wishing this could just be over already. She closes her eyes for a minute, and she starts to dream about sleeping, not in the uncomfortable bunk bed here at Briar Hill, but in the waterbed her dad bought at a tag sale a few years ago.

The bed was awful, with the constant motion making her queasy at times; still, it took her months before she would admit to her dad that she hated it. Now, it makes her smile, thinking about her dad remembering that she wanted one and going to a lot of trouble to set it up as a surprise for her. She thinks about the special sheets she bought for the bed, picturing their lurid design. When she picked them out, she giggled at the leopard-skin print more appropriate for a 1970's swinging bachelor pad. She imagines slipping into those sheets now, smelling the familiar, wonderful, normal smells of the Mars' favorite laundry soap and fabric softener. And the best part? Knowing that her dad was sound asleep in the next room and Backup was sleeping next to the bed–one jump onto the waterbed was enough to convince Backup that the new bed was pure evil–and knowing that both her dad and her dog were ready to leap into action to protect her from anything that threatened her.

She starts awake with a jolt, realizing she was actually sleeping, her hand holding the sandwich now drooping toward the plate. Veronica shakes herself and forces herself to eat the last few bites of the sandwich. She pours herself another glass of the hated bug juice, knowing how important it is for her to avoid dehydration. _Got to stay sharp, got to stay on my game. No more wishful thinking, Veronica; you've got a school to take down and evil headmasters to expose._

Mon. 3/9/09 early evening: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

Keith surmises that Logan, after his obviously successful foray into Klein's office, somehow found a way during his 2:00 to 10:00 shift to sneak off and email the jpegs from the digital camera. The short text file that accompanies the pictures is brief.

'All is fine, exactly as discussed. This is a list of the last 30 phone calls from caller ID.'

Thirty phone numbers follow. Keith nods his head. _That was good thinking; I guess Veronica's rubbing off on him._ He decides to look at the pictures first before tackling the phone numbers. He prints hardcopies of all the photos that Logan took; the pictures of the files appear uniformly clear and legible to Keith's great satisfaction.

Tara Connolly's file is unremarkable: it contains a copy of her birth certificate, her immunization records, and her previous school transcript. Her parents admitted her to Briar Hill for ninety days in lieu of a felony conviction; when Tara completes the program at Briar Hills, her juvenile record will be expunged. Keith looks at the police report; sixteen year-old Tara and a seventeen year-old boy were arrested breaking into a vacation home in Bennington, Vermont. Both were legally drunk at the time of arrest; the boy additionally had a record of several misdemeanors and was on parole for felony car theft at the time. The boy was sentenced as an adult and is now serving a one-year sentence at St. Johnsbury Regional Correctional Facility.

He peruses Tara's school records. She was diagnosed as having Attention Deficit Disorder and dyslexia at the age of ten and is supposed to be taking Adderall, 20 mg two times per day. Keith looks up the dosage and finds that that amount appears to be the maximum allowable dosage; he assumes that Tara is significantly impaired by her ADD. Despite this diagnosis, Tara was a solid 'B' student at her previous school. She had had no previous trouble with the law before the break-in, and Keith assumes that her clean record led the court to recommend an alternate sentence. When Keith looks at Tara's intake records, Keith finds that Briar Hill's psychologist recommended the complete cessation of her medication; he notes the date when the psychologist supposedly saw Tara, reminding himself to try to check to see if Tara was actually seen by the doctor. He recognizes the name of the psychologist as the man who Epstein believes signs off on whatever diagnosis the school requests for a substantial fee. _Perhaps we can check the doctor's records to see if he was seeing other patients elsewhere at that same time._ Despite Tara's short term at the school, she has already had a month added to her treatment plan for the infraction of 'disobedience'.

Putting Tara's records aside, he finds Hannah's records and sighs. Most of the file is familiar to him; he has reviewed Ms. Denenberg's copies of these documents numerous times. But there are pages that are new to him that review Hannah's lack of progress in group therapy. Hannah was sentenced to Observation Placement for several days approximately two weeks before she ran away. The psychologist reiterates that Hannah had a 'cutting' disorder, a sexual addiction, and a drug addiction. Some of the staff have contributed reports that Keith suspects were completed after Hannah ran away. They tell tales of her defiant behavior and emotional outbursts during group therapy, and relate Hannah's unwillingness to work on her problems. The final page is a detailed police report filed by Briar Hill when Hannah ran away. Keith puts the file aside, intending to spend more time examining every detail of Hannah's time at the school, and picks up Maria's paperwork.

Maria Frazzino is listed as seventeen years old, with a birth date of 5/22/91. Keith frowns. The spaces next to 'parents' are blank. He checks through the files, looking for a reference to a guardian. On the last page of her file, there is a form that acknowledges that VF Inc. will be financially responsible for her charges at Briar Hill Academy. There is a signature scrawled at the bottom, which does not appear to be 'Frazzino'. Keith compares the file to Hannah's, Tara's, and Connie's, which all simply state the parents' names on the first page of the file. He goes back to Maria's files and finds a copy of a canceled check from VF, Inc. in the amount of 50,000. He makes a note of the bank's name and routing number. _Bank of America, 555 Capitol Mall, Sacramento._ Keith ponders various ruses to try to identify the owner of the account. He decides, _what's the point of having a contact in the FBI if you don't use them?_ He leaves a message on Mike Fields' cell phone, asking him to call as soon as possible.

Keith goes through the rest of Maria's file. The file also seems to be lacking the birth certificate and immunization records that Hannah's and Tara's contain, and Keith knows that he was asked to provide these items for 'Connie'. Maria was admitted on 6/3/05, soon after her fourteenth birthday. The file has no police reports, no school counselor assessments, no history of Maria's behavior prior to her admission to the school.

After her admission, the file documents violation after violation: assignment to Observation Placement numerous times, at one time for over 40 days consecutively; cryptic notations that indicate that Maria was resistant to group therapy and was punished in various ways; and psychologist's reports that diagnose her as having 'oppositional defiant disorder'. The same doctor who recommended that Tara stop her ADD medication also signed Maria's psych report. Maria's 'Plan of Treatment' was initially twelve months; she has had months added at various points along the way to reach her current total of forty-five months, or 3 3/4 years at Briar Hill. She is currently scheduled to graduate in June, soon after her eighteenth birthday. Keith finds a letter from Serenity Bay School in Jamaica, confirming that Maria will be transferred to the new school on June 1st.

Suddenly Keith realizes why the name Frazzino seems so familiar to him. He googles a list of state assemblymen from California; he clicks on the page listing the California Assembly leadership. 'Vincenzo Frazzino' is listed as Speaker, but Keith knows that Frazzino is also a rising star in Republican politics who is positioning himself for a U.S. Senate run in the fall. Recalling a particularly virulent battle over a proposition added to the ballot several years ago, Keith looks up Frazzino's webpage and finds a glowing report that states: 'Frazzino's leadership in the battle to pass Proposition 38 in 2004 resulted in California's being the first state in the nation to hold parents financially responsible for the crimes of their minor children. Since the passage of the Parental Responsibility Act, juvenile crime has declined by ten percent.'(13)

Keith sits back in his chair, stunned. If Frazzino's juvenile delinquent daughter was outed to the press, the Assemblyman's ambitious plans to run for U.S. Senate would be dashed. _No wonder the bastard wants to keep her locked away. He personally sponsored legislation intended to force parents to be liable for their children's actions, which only encourage parents to lock their children away until they are adults. In Maria's case, even after she's eighteen, any misbehavior on her part would reflect poorly on Frazzino._ Keith recalls the intense press scrutiny on the twin daughters of President George W. Bush before the relatively tame stories of underage drinking were crowded out of the press by the terrorist attacks on 9/11.

He searches for press stories on Frazzino's family. Prior to 2004, family portraits feature a carefully coifed brunette wife and two neatly dressed children, a boy and a girl. Keith peers at the photo, but it is impossible to determine if the somber young girl in the photo is in fact the Maria currently in charge of his daughter. A press release in July of 2005 mentions the wife and son on vacation in Martha's Vineyard, but makes no mention of Frazzino's daughter. In September of that year, the Assemblyman's bio was updated and mentions that his daughter is at a boarding school in Switzerland. Keith assumes that a new bio will be published in the fall, mentioning that Maria is 'traveling abroad' or 'enrolled in an exclusive Swiss university' or some other equally vague statement about her whereabouts.

Keith rubs his forehead, thinking about everything he has learned about Maria. _If someone threatened to expose Frazzino's secret juvenile delinquent daughter...now that's a solid motive for murder. And a state assemblyman could probably request to review an ongoing FBI investigation into a serial murderer._

He has another thought. _I wonder how much extra Klein charges Frazzino to keep his secret._

* * *

(12) Parks, Alexia. An American Gulag. Eldorado Springs, CO: Quality Books, Inc., 2000. p. 166.  
(13) _Please note that the 'Parental Responsibility Act' is completely fictional, but is based on current statutes in many states, including California._ Details below.  
Parks, Alexia. An American Gulag. Eldorado Springs, CO: Quality Books, Inc., 2000. p. 153.  
Author's note: For the purposes of this fic, I had the 'Parental Responsibility Act' passed in 2004, but in fact most of the parental responsibility statutes have been around a lot longer than that, and they are NOT known under that title. Also, I completely made up the statistic regarding the decline in juvenile crime after the passage of my completely fictional 'Act'. Here's a summary of the actual California law on parents' responsibilities:  
"CALIFORNIA: Parents are responsible if the parent has knowledge of the child's potential for misconduct and fails to take reasonable steps to prevent such misconduct; if the parent has signed the child's driver's license application or the child drives the parent's car with the parent's knowledge and permission; if the child is guilty of willful misconduct; or if the child is given ready access to a firearm."  
from: www•enotes•com/everyday-law-encyclopedia/parent-liability-child-s-act  
Also see this article on Wikipedia about U.S. parental responsibility laws in general and California law in particular, which has survived a challenge in the California State Supreme Court.  
en•wikipedia•org/wiki/ParentalUNDERSCOREresponsibilityUNDERSCOREPERCENT28criminalPERCENT29  
The point is that these laws create a powerful incentive for a parent to lock up their misbehaving child, and the tough-love schools have tapped into that market by exploiting parents' reasonable fears. (Okay, getting off my soapbox now.)


	22. Chapters 67 to 69

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. All opinions regarding real-life organizations expressed in this fic are the opinions of the characters only. You may or may not agree with the conclusions of the characters, and no harm or insult is intended to these real-life organizations, or to any participant, past, present, or future, in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall, who is also my assistant casting director, and Kazy. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility

* * *

Previously on Veronica Mars: The Year of Living Dangerously Part Two:

vanessagalore•livejournal•com/51276•html

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Night Terrors**  
Veronica manifests ill effects due to  
the operation; Mac's discovery has  
unexpected consequences.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Klein: Clancy Brown. Tony: Romany Malco.  
Maria: Gina Mantegna. Kavner: Eric Bana.  
Dr. Kinny: Dan Castellaneta. Epstein: Scott  
Grimes. Leo: Max Greenfield. Mac: Tina  
Majorino. Alan: Ned Vaughan.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SIXTY-SEVEN: "NIGHT TERRORS"

Mon. 3/9/09 late night: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica wakens to find a hand over her mouth. Panicked, she looks around to see Logan holding a finger to his lips. She nods, and he takes his hand away. He motions with his head toward the door and helps her to climb down quietly from the top bunk to avoid waking the other girls sleeping around them. He takes her hand and leads her out of the room silently.

She wonders, _How did he turn off the motion detectors that keep the girls in their beds at night?_ Already, Veronica has been awakened in the middle of the night several times when a girl inadvertently set off the alarm by her bed, causing a loud blaring siren to sound and turning on all the lights in the room. On her first night, she heard one of the younger girls sobbing because she had wet the bed after not being allowed to get up to use the bathroom.

Veronica looks at Logan questioningly, but he just puts his fingers to his lips again, cautioning her to keep quiet. He pulls her along down the hallway to Klein's office and takes out a card key, unlocking the door and escorting her inside. Once inside, he turns her to him and kisses her, taking her breath away.

She pulls away and whispers, "What..."

He shakes his head, saying, "Shhh..." and begins to kiss her again, stroking her hair. Logan guides her backward to the desk and lifts her up, positioning himself between her legs and insinuating his hand underneath her sweatshirt. He trails his hand lightly across her torso, and she closes her eyes, just enjoying the simple familiarity of his touch. She wraps her legs around his waist and gives in to his demanding kiss, opening her mouth to his tongue. He strokes her spine with his fingernails, making her shiver, and he unclasps the hated bra with its listening device. Logan pushes the bra up and takes her breasts in his hands, flicking her nipples with his thumbs.

She moans a little, and he breathes in her ear, "We have to be quiet...shhh." She nods and just breathes hard as he caresses her and begins to suck passionately at the junction of her neck and shoulder. He bites her gently, and she throws her head back, feeling her arousal taking charge of her whole body. Veronica starts to unbutton Logan's shirt, desperate for the feel of his skin. She tugs his shirttail free from his pants and runs her fingers across his chest. Logan presses against her, making clear his own arousal. She tries to pull down her sweatpants, but he takes over, lifting her slightly off the desk and hurriedly drawing down her pants and underwear. He touches her gently, and she hitches a little, trying to grant him easier access. Veronica presses her mouth into his chest, holding back a groan as he runs his fingers across her opening, slicking her wetness and finally plunging in.

She opens her eyes to look at Logan and sees a movement out of the corner of her eye. Klein is sitting in a chair, sipping a drink and watching them with interest. Veronica gasps; she tries to get Logan's attention, pointing at Klein and pulling away from Logan. Logan shakes his head and finds her mouth again, kissing her and stroking her relentlessly. She struggles against him, whispering, "We have to get out of here!"

The door opens behind them, and several male employees enter and grab Logan. They begin to take him down to floor as Logan struggles against them. Veronica tries to pull up her sweats quickly and goes to Logan. She manages to punch one of the men holding Logan before Klein comes up behind her and puts her in a hold. One of the men puts a pair of handcuffs on her as she struggles against Klein. When she feels Klein ease up on his grasp, she whips around and strikes him forcefully in the face with her bound hands. Klein is knocked off-balance by the unexpected attack, and Veronica wrestles free. She gets past the other men and runs into the hallway, screaming at the top of her lungs, "California! Help us!" She turns the corner and runs smack into the guard named Tony, who tackles her, forcing her to the ground. She struggles under him, still screaming, "Help us!"

One of the men comes to help Tony, and together the two men manhandle Veronica back to Klein's office. Logan has disappeared, and Klein has taken a seat behind his desk, pressing a tissue to his bleeding nose.

"What are you doing to Logan?!" Veronica yells.

Klein regards her impassively. He motions with his hand, and the men pull her down to the floor and brutally search her. They find the bug, removing it from her bra and handing it to Klein. Klein takes the bug and puts it on his desk; he smashes it with a paperweight, then leans back in his chair to look at her again. One of the men drags a chair over and forces her to sit in it.

She repeats, "What are you doing to him?! People know we're here; you can't get away with this! Let us go now, before they send in the cops."

"I don't think so," Klein says calmly. "We did a routine bug sweep this afternoon and found a few new items. 'Repeaters', I think they're called. Did you really think we wouldn't check for bugs? And then of course we realized that Kavner had to have been the one to put them in. He's been terminated, of course."

Veronica stares at him. _Terminated?_

Klein continues, "We're assuming you have people listening on the bugs. I promise you, if you tell us who's listening and where they are, we won't kill your friend– what did you call him...Logan? We won't hurt your friend Logan if you tell us who's monitoring you. We know you're not the cops or federal agents."

Veronica quickly backpedals, "There's no one monitoring us. It just goes to a recorder."

"I don't believe you. I heard you calling for help. And you just said 'People know we're here,' and I don't think you were making that up." Klein looks at her, allowing his words to sink in. "And Connie, or whatever your name is, don't think we haven't noticed that you've been intentionally provoking us. Getting evidence, I presume."

Tony adds, "And we also noticed your friend Roger, I mean Logan, was going easy on you. Do you think we're stupid?"

Veronica looks from Klein to Tony and back again. "I don't think you're stupid," she lies. "Just evil."

Klein picks up the phone and says quietly, "Bring him in."

The door to the office opens, and two men bring in Logan, whose face has been beaten. One eye is swollen shut, and his lip is split and bleeding.

A siren begins to sound, and Klein says, "The whole school's on lock-down because of you. Now tell us who's monitoring you and where they are, or we're going to keep hurting Logan."

"NO!!" she yells. _Got to protect Dad, got to help Logan..._ The siren continues to blare, and one of the men begins to punch Logan in the gut. Logan sags, held up only by the two men who grip his arms tightly. He lets out a moan as the man continues to hit him.

Veronica wakens to find Maria shaking her viciously. Maria shouts above the sound of the alarm, "Connie, shut the fuck up, you woke everyone up with your yelling, and now someone's set off the motion detectors!"

Veronica's heart is pounding; she's still in the dream in her head, still sees the men beating Logan and Klein's furious face demanding answers. "I'm sorry," she says, trying to will the dream away. "I'm sorry, I just had a really bad dream."

She sees Kavner at the doorway to the sleeping quarters. He shuts down the alarm and looks at her. In the sudden silence, Kavner says, "Everything okay here? Someone said there was a commotion in here." Veronica realizes he's checking on her._ Dad probably heard me on the bug and told him to check on me._

Maria replies, "Just my fucking newcomer having a bad dream." She turns back to Veronica and asks, "Who's Logan? You were screaming his name." She sneers, "Probably your druggie boyfriend."

Veronica thinks, _If you only knew,_ thinking about Logan's drunken exploits and over-the-top antics in high school. Then she panics, realizing someone might recognize him now after hearing his name. She feels the terror spreading through her body, an actual physical sensation of heat and pain. She says merely, "I'm sorry. Please, I'm really sorry," hoping to gloss over the incident and keep his identity safe.

"Don't let it happen again," Maria warns. "If you keep doing this, we can arrange to have you sleep in Observation Placement."

Kavner nods and leaves. Maria glares at Veronica one more time before getting back into her bunk below Veronica's.

Mon. 3/9/09 late night: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

It was Epstein's shift when Veronica was heard on the bug yelling, "What are you doing to Logan?" and then an alarm began to sound, obscuring all the voices. Epstein quickly woke up the other two men and texted Kavner that something was going on. The three men listen carefully to the bug; they can't make out any of Veronica's words over the loud blaring of the siren. Suddenly the alarm stops, and they can hear the conversation again.

MARIA: JUST MY FUCKING NEWCOMER HAVING A BAD DREAM. WHO'S LOGAN? YOU WERE SCREAMING HIS NAME...PROBABLY YOUR DRUGGIE BOYFRIEND.

VERONICA: I'M SORRY. PLEASE, I'M REALLY SORRY.

MARIA: DON'T LET IT HAPPEN AGAIN. IF YOU KEEP DOING THIS, WE CAN ARRANGE TO HAVE YOU SLEEP IN OBSERVATION PLACEMENT.

For a moment after the voices stop, the three men just stand in silence, waiting to hear if anything is going on. Keith thinks despondently, _We should have put video in the sleeping quarters too._

Epstein breaks the silence. "It sounds like Veronica was having a nightmare. It's...unfortunate...that she screamed out Logan's name."

Keith turns to Dr. Kinny. "What do you think? I'm getting worried about her. I really can't stay objective about this; should we pull the plug?"

Kinny purses his lips. "I really don't know. It's obvious she's under stress and worried about the operation."

Epstein interrupts, "We're so close. The only thing we absolutely need to document is the use of restraints. The school has always maintained that they don't use stress positions or restraints as punishments. They have said repeatedly that restraints are only used to defuse a violent situation even though my clients have witnessed their use as a long-term punishment. And you know that we could use some more evidence of the psychological abuse in the group therapy. It's really the most egregious violation by the school, the attack therapy that they practice. And it's the hardest charge to prove without documentary evidence. The school maintains that it only uses traditional therapeutic techniques with the girls."

Keith closes his eyes and thinks a moment.

Epstein adds, "She didn't use any of the code words. I think she's okay."

Kinny contradicts, "But she was shaken up. It sounded to me as if she wasn't fully in control there. She's being affected."

Epstein fires back, "Of course she's being affected. We expected that. It's why we're here trying to document the school's abuses. We're not just doing this for a court case; we're trying to shut down all these schools. If there's real, verifiable evidence, maybe we could finally get effective legislation."

"Jim, I'm afraid you don't understand the psychological factors at work here. Even if Veronica knows that she can be extracted at any time, she will still begin to unconsciously become stressed by the situational forces at the school. She may not be able to communicate her desire to terminate the operation."

"It's only been three days! She's an experienced professional, used to stressful situations and aware of the psychological effects," Epstein retorts.

Keith holds up his hand. "Let's see if Kavner can make contact with her, assess her condition, before we make up our mind. I don't think there's an immediate danger. We'll decide in the morning." He picks up the cell phone and sends a text to Kavner.

'NEED TO ASSESS V'S CONDITION. PLEASE MAKE CONTACT & ADVISE ASAP.'

Mon. 3/9/09 late night: Neptune, CA

On a quiet residential street in Neptune, the neighborhood is rocked by an explosion and subsequent fire. Two cars are parked in the driveway, and the neighbors gathered around assume that all the residents of the house have been killed. The fire chief thumbs the switch on the radio attached to the shoulder of his jacket and informs Chief D'Amato that Samuel, Natalie, and Ryan MacKenzie are presumed dead. The fire continues to rage out of control as the firefighters pump water onto the blaze.

Chief D'Amato sighs and puts the radio down on his nightstand. He thinks for a moment, then picks up the phone to dial the ADIC of the Los Angeles Federal Bureau of Investigation. He is put on hold for a few minutes, then is directed to proceed immediately to Mercy Hospital and speak to the agent there.

Mon. 3/9/09 late night: Hotel, San Diego, CA

Mac is awakened by loud and persistent knocking on her hotel room door. She checks the bedside clock, thinking, _Jeez, four a.m.,_ and goes to answer the door.

Her handler, Alan Sheffield, rushes into the room. He obviously dressed in a hurry; his shirt is buttoned wrong and he's not wearing a tie. Mac thinks, _I kind of thought he slept in that FBI dark suit and tie._

"Mac..." he starts hesitantly.

Mac realizes that something is very, very wrong. She sits down on the bed and looks at Alan.

"There's been an incident at your parents' house." At Mac's expression, Alan rushes to say, "Everyone's okay. Everything is going to be fine. Apparently, they were all at the hospital. Your brother Ryan had a ruptured appendix, and your parents went with him in the ambulance to the hospital. They performed emergency surgery, and he's doing all right. But, Mac, someone blew up your parents' house. Whoever triggered the explosion must have thought everyone was at home because both cars were in the driveway."

Mac sits stunned on the bed.

"We've had an agent assigned to your family. When they went to the hospital, he followed the ambulance. Luckily, the Neptune Sheriff contacted us right away, and we made contact with our agent in the hospital. Your family has been apprised of the situation, and we're making sure that no one in the hospital leaks the fact that your family survived. Mac, this changes everything. Apparently this is retaliation for the arrests we made this morning."

Mac blurts out, "I want to call my mom." _After all is said and done, Mom is "Mom", and Mrs. Sinclair is...Mrs. Sinclair._

"We're going to set that up, as soon as possible, I promise. But, Mac, this is an opportunity. We're going to take your whole family into witness protection and let the whole world think that your family was killed. We'll have an agent dress up like you and attend the funeral pretending to be you. Hopefully, they'll make an attempt to kill you as well."

"You mean...you're setting a trap?" Mac says shakily.

"Right. But that means we can't tell anybody what really happened. Anybody, Mac. Not your friend Veronica or that guy who keeps sending emails–"

"Dick sent more emails?" she asks. "You didn't say anything."

"Mac, it's for his own protection," Alan answers. "You can't tell anybody."

"What about after...after the funeral? I thought you said I might be able to leave Witness Protection if they were able to make the arrests."

"Everything's changed. Apparently, this is a much bigger deal than we thought. It looks like the Russian mafia was running a lot more than an identity theft scam from those servers. We've identified a plot to hack into the FBI's computers and sell various secrets to terrorist groups. You and your family are in grave danger. The Russian Mafia believes in revenge, and right now it looks like they've put out a contract on your whole family. I don't see any way around it; you're all going to have to be placed in WITSEC. For everyone's safety, you're going to be on your own and the rest of your family will be together. You'll be able to say goodbye to them before they are placed."

Mac protests, "What about my friends? Will I be able to see them?"

Alan replies, "It's not safe for you or for them." He sighs. "Mac, I know this is hard. Try to get a little sleep. The next few days will be difficult...a lot of meetings and discussions. But you need to remember that everyone just wants you to be safe." He starts to walk to the door, then turns around and says, "You did a brave thing by helping us. You probably saved a lot of lives identifying those servers for us."

Alan leaves, and Mac crawls back under the covers to lie awake for the rest of the night.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Pathological Reaction**  
Veronica gets a new punishment during  
group therapy; Wallace has some bad  
news for Keith.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Kavner: Eric Bana. Maria: Gina Mantegna.  
Tara: Kirsten Prout. Megan: Anna Lynn  
McCord. Alyssa: Christina Hendricks. Shari:  
Jessalyn Gilsig. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SIXTY-EIGHT: "PATHOLOGICAL REACTION"

Tues. 3/10/09 afternoon: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica sits in group therapy trying to pay attention as Alyssa gives another long lecture on working the steps. Her mind wanders to earlier that day; at breakfast, she observed that Kavner seemed to be watching her more than usual. Finally, during chores, when she and Maria were scrubbing the floor in the group therapy room, Kavner managed to get her alone by telling Maria that 'Connie' had done a bad job on one section. He untied Veronica's tether and grabbed her arm, dragging her over to the opposite end of the room that was supposedly already cleaned. Kavner pointed to a section of the floor and berated 'Connie' for doing such a lousy job. Veronica apologized and said she would try harder. Kavner then pretended to watch her re-do the floor, making sure to position his back to Maria. Under his breath, he asked if she was really okay. Veronica whispered, "Yes" while still continuing to mop. Kavner explained that Keith was worried and considering shutting down the operation. Veronica whispered emphatically that she was fine and there's no way she was going to stop now. She turned a little so that Kavner could see her eyes and said defiantly under her breath, "Don't you dare stop now. I want to shut these bastards down." Kavner nodded and said aloud, "That's better, Connie. I want to see you cooperating more." Veronica nodded, and Kavner motioned that she should go back to work with Maria.

Throughout the rest of the morning and through lunch, Veronica fretted that her dad was going to pull the plug on the operation just as she was beginning to really document what was happening at the school. _I keep saying the code words; why is he so worried?_ When Logan comes on shift at two o'clock, she catches him looking at her with concern. She tries to shake her head unobtrusively to make him stop; he looks away, but does seem to get the message and resumes his poker face. _Dammit...is Logan telling Dad that he's worried? He knew what it was going to be like, and he promised me that he was going to be able to keep it together._ After checking in with the previous shift, Logan disappears; once again, Veronica feels frustrated that she can't communicate with him whenever she wants.

Alyssa wraps up her talk on working the steps. She pauses for a moment and then asks Tara to come up front. Tara stands up reluctantly. Veronica watches closely, not only worried for her, but also curious as to what's going to happen. Alyssa sits down, saying, "Tara, turn around and tell everyone who you are and why you're here at Briar Hill."

Tara turns around to face the other girls. She swallows, obviously reluctant to begin. She glances at Alyssa, who says, "C'mon, Tara. Let's go."

Tara speaks in a quiet voice, barely audible to the other girls. "I'm Tara. I'm..." she pauses, looking again at Alyssa, "I'm an alcoholic and I'm here because I let my boyfriend talk me into doing something stupid," her voice begins to rush and get louder "and the judge said I had to come here if I didn't want to go to juvenile detention."

Alyssa sighs. "Come on, Tara. You know that's not all."

"We broke into somebody's home and drank all their booze," Tara continues dully. "I was a really bad girl. I was stupid. I let my boyfriend make all my decisions. We had sex in the people's bedroom and raided their medicine cabinet for prescription drugs."

Megan begins to pump her fists in the air. Alyssa points to her, and Megan jumps to her feet. "Tara, you're not being honest. You're blaming your bad behavior on your boyfriend. You know you're responsible."

Tears begin to stream down Tara's face. Tara protests, "I never did anything wrong before. I just did one stupid thing! Why can't you believe me?"

Now all the girls begin to pump their arms in the air, asking to be called on. Alyssa recognizes one girl, who stands up and says accusingly, "I think you went out with a bad boy because you wanted to be bad. You wanted to have sex and get high. Just because you never got caught before doesn't mean you never did anything wrong. I think you have a denial problem."

Maria is called on. She stands and adds, "I agree. You're a drunk and you're in denial, Tara. You can't get better until you tell us what's really going on."

"I am telling you!" Tara says, crying openly. "Why won't you believe me? I don't want to drink anymore, I just want to go back home as soon as possible."

Alyssa says, "I don't think that's going to be possible, Tara. You haven't made any progress here in group."

"I know that I shouldn't have gone out with him! He was really exciting, and I wasn't thinking straight. Please, I'm telling you the truth! I won't even date anymore. I promise," Tara says futilely.

"I'm very concerned about you, Tara," Alyssa says. "The whole incident was just a cry for help. I think there's a lot you haven't told us. Tell us about your drinking, Tara."

Tara looks around wildly. She takes a deep breath and says hesitantly, "I've been drinking my parents' liquor for years. I used to pour a little in another bottle and put water in to replace what I took. And then I would go out with my friends and get drunk." She stops talking, with a 'so-there' expression on her face.

"Finally, we're getting somewhere," Alyssa comments. "What else?"

Tara thinks for a minute, then adds, "I used to pay one of my neighbors to buy booze for me."

Alyssa asks, "What did you do to thank him?"

"I had sex with him. Yeah, I had sex with him, so he'd buy booze for me and my friends to party with," Tara says hurriedly.

Alyssa stands up and goes over to Tara. "Tell us about the sex."

"There's nothing to tell, it was just sex."

"Did he force you, or did you offer it?" Alyssa queries.

"No, I offered, because I really wanted to get drunk." Sensing Alyssa's impatience, Tara continues, "Yeah, I...uh, I gave him blowjobs because that's what he wanted. And, uh, I really enjoyed doing that for him."

Alyssa stares at Tara.

Tara says compulsively, "I swear, I'm telling you the truth." She begins to cry again and says in a quivering voice, "Why won't you believe me? I'm telling you the truth. I admit it, I'm a drunk, and I had sex with guys to get booze."

Alyssa shakes her head. "Tara, I feel so sorry for you. You can't make progress here in therapy until you dig deeper."

"What do you want me to say? I'll say whatever you want, just please, let me go home in ninety days," Tara says impulsively.

Veronica thinks, _Uh-oh, bad move._ She waits for the explosion.

Alyssa replies sternly, "You can't just make up stories. You have to tell us everything. You have to look at your flaws. Your moral inventory is a joke, Tara. There's no way you can get better until you adjust your thinking. You're in your head. You need to get right."

Tara stares at her, completely confused. "I'm in my head?"

"Sit back down. I'm afraid I'm going to have to let your parents know that you're still resisting treatment. We're going to have to add another month to your treatment plan."

"NO!!" Tara screams, sobbing. "I'm doing everything you're asking me to do. Please, don't do this!"

Several oldcomers stand up, ready to take Tara down if necessary. Tara sees them and says quickly, "I'm sorry. You're right...I still have a long way to go. The program is always right." She turns to Alyssa and says, "I'm sorry. I'm trying. I know I'm not doing it right, but I'm trying. Please, don't..." She looks at the other girls.

Alyssa sighs. "Sit down, Tara. We'll try again tomorrow."

Tara walks back to her seat next to Veronica, sobbing and shaking. For a moment, Veronica forgets where she is and what her mission is, and she impulsively hugs Tara, who is completely distraught. Tara shakes her head, 'no, don't', but Veronica ignores her and holds her tightly, patting her back.

Maria is furious. She yanks on Veronica's tether, pulling her out of her seat and away from Tara. "What the hell are you doing?"

Alyssa runs over and starts screaming at Veronica. "What are you doing? You're enabling her to stay in denial. You know the rules; you don't interfere with another girl's treatment." She pulls Veronica to her feet and yells at Maria, "Untie her now." Maria complies, and Alyssa drags Veronica out of the room.

Alyssa manhandles Veronica, shaking her violently as she maneuvers her down a hallway to the office of the school's teacher, Shari. Alyssa explains the situation as Shari stares at Veronica. Veronica glares back belligerently.

Shari says, "She actually hugged the other girl? Christ. You really think you're someone special, don't you?"

"What was so wrong about that?" Veronica replies defensively. "She was crying. Tara was upset! How the hell is she supposed to get better if you just yell at her all the time?"

Shari looks enraged. "You know the rules, Connie. You don't talk to anyone except your oldcomer. You especially don't talk to another newcomer."

"I didn't say anything!" Veronica protests. "You guys are fucking morons."

"It looks like you're going to be with us for quite a long time. You just earned an extra two months on your treatment plan," Shari says with a controlled fury.

Alyssa interrupts, "What about now? I don't want to let her get away with this. I think she's being intentionally disruptive. I heard she woke up all the girls last night; she pretended to have a nightmare."

Veronica starts to laugh bitterly. "Pretended to have a nightmare? Oh my god, you guys are insane. I had a nightmare, because this IS a nightmare. This school is a total fucking nightmare!"

Shari says angrily to Alyssa, "This one is unbelievable. I'll take care of it." She grabs Veronica's arm and drags her across the hall to a small room with a single desk and chair. She pushes Veronica down into the chair and puts a blank notebook and a few pens on the desk. "Write an essay. 100,000 words."

"On what topic?" Veronica replies combatively. "This is bull!"

"Okay. 150,000 words. Do you want to go for 200? You're a whiner and a complainer, Connie, and you think the rules don't apply to you. Each time you fight us we'll add another month to your treatment plan. When are you going to accept that you need this?" Shari shuts the door, locking Veronica inside the windowless room.  
**  
**_Shit. _Veronica writes a few sentences.

'This is total bullshit. How is anyone supposed to get better here? I hate this school.'

She stops writing and counts the words. _Fuck!! Sixteen words. At this rate, I'll be here for days. This is what happens when you don't follow the plan, Veronica._ She taps the pen against her lips, thinking. _Of course, maybe I could..._ She smiles. _That'll work._ She starts sloppily writing one sentence over and over again and waits for someone to check on her progress.

'Fuck you Briar Hill. Fuck you Briar Hill. Fuck you Briar Hill. Fuck you Briar Hill. Fuck you Briar Hill. Fuck you Briar Hill. Fuck you Briar Hill. Fuck you Briar Hill. Fuck you Briar Hill. Fuck you Briar Hill. Fuck you Briar Hill.'

Tues. 3/10/09 afternoon: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Wallace peruses the mail that has accumulated since he checked the office on Saturday. One envelope is marked registered mail, and he opens it first. He reads through it two times, not believing what his eyes are seeing, then he picks up the phone and calls Keith in Vermont.

"Hey, it's Wallace."

Keith says, "Hey, what's up?"

"It's been an interesting day so far." _Understatement of the year,_ he thinks. He sighs and plunges in. "Mac's house–her family's house–was blown up last night. Her whole family is presumed dead. They're not disclosing any more information than that, but we know she was working on the Russian mob identity theft thing and..." his voice trails off.

After a moment of shocked silence, Keith replies, "Oh my god. And we can't even talk to her. Poor Mac."

"Right. I thought you should know. You probably don't want to tell Veronica while she's undercover, right?"

"Right. She can't be distracted right now," Keith agrees.

"Uh, see, that's the other thing. There's a letter here. Rose Manning is suing Duncan Kane, and she's subpoenaed Veronica to testify in a hearing next week."

"Testify about what?" Keith asks brusquely.

"I'm assuming she's going to bring up the time that Duncan and Veronica broke into the Manning house."

Keith sighs. "And the statute of limitations hasn't run out for Duncan on that. He can still be prosecuted for burglary. It sounds like a legal maneuver to try to force Duncan to drop his custody battle. I have to say, this sounds more like Stewart Manning than Rose Manning."

"Yeah, I agree. Guy's a real lowlife."

Keith thinks a moment. "I'll call Cliff, see what he has to say. And Duncan." He sighs again. "Damn!"

"Exactly," Wallace says. "So, uh, how's Veronica doing? Weevil was asking about her too. Can you get her a message that everyone's thinking about her?"

"I don't think so. Wallace, I'm not gonna lie. This is a bad situation at the school. Veronica's doing great, but...I can't say I'm not worried about her every minute of the day. We just heard over her bug that she got assigned an essay as punishment. 150,000 words."

Wallace tries to suppress a snort, but finally gives up and laughs. "Go, Veronica! Way to be a bad girl!"

Keith laughs too. "It's a side of her I haven't really seen."

"But you know she's just a teenaged rebel," Wallace adds. "You only know the half of it. Now, don't be tellin' her I said that."

"Of course...Thanks for calling, Wallace, and watching the shop for me."

"Anytime, Keith." Wallace hangs up the phone. He notices a CD on the desk labeled 'Mac's Bluetooth finder'. Wallace vaguely remembers that Veronica had said _'Mac's helping Keith with something too, a program to hack into a computer using the wireless keyboard'_. He pops the CD into the desktop computer and clicks on its icon. One file is labeled 'READ ME'.

'Mr. Mars, The program will automatically seek out any Bluetooth devices in range. It will compute the PIN number and make a secure connection. All entries on the target computer will be mirrored to your computer. I suggest you test it on one of your own devices first. Mac.'

Wallace looks at the date modified information on the 'READ ME' file, February 1, 2009. He scans Keith's appointment book for that date; on January 29, Keith was in Lompoc with Vinnie. There are various appointments having to do with the trust attorney case Keith was working on at that time. He turns a few pages and looks at February 3. _That was the day that Keith was completely unreachable, the day after he had me look at the ground penetrating radar scans._ The page has a large 'X' drawn on it with no details listed. _I think that's the day he pulled off something with the Fitzpatricks._

Wallace decides to try to run the Bluetooth discovery program. He clicks on the button labeled 'SEEK ALL DEVICES' and a box opens listing four devices: Wallace's cell phone, his laptop in the other room, Keith's laptop, and the office printer. Wallace highlights the entry for his laptop. He gets his own computer and opens a new text file, typing a couple short phrases. On the office computer, he reads:

command N  
This is a test of the Bluetooth discovery program. Mac is a mo def computer genius. return

_Cool! _He laughs a little and types again.

Gonna bitch-slap those Fitzpatricks. return

Wallace ejects the disk and loads the program onto his own laptop. He shuts up the office and takes a drive to St. Mary's to test the program.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**I'll Destroy You Worse**  
Veronica's solution to her situation;  
and boy oh boy is Logan pissed; Logan  
confers with the monitoring team.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Klein: Clancy Brown.  
Tony: Romany Malco. Epstein: Scott Grimes.  
Shari: Jessalyn Gilsig. Dr. Kinny: Dan  
Castellaneta.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SIXTY-NINE: "I'LL DESTROY YOU WORSE"

Tues. 3/10/09 evening: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica has filled pages of the notebook with 'Fuck you Briar Hill' in the past few hours. Her hand is cramping, but she shakes it out and keeps going. She stopped once to count the words on a page. _534 words. 150,000 divided by 500 is...300 pages. I've filled...let's see...40 pages. _She smiles grimly and continues writing.

Finally, the door is unlocked and opened, and Shari, accompanied by Logan, enters the room. "Hello, Connie. Let's see what you've gotten done."

Veronica hands over the notebook, smiling sweetly. "I think I'm learning a lot from this exercise," she comments. She ignores Logan, though she wonders where he was during group therapy that afternoon.

Shari turns pages in the notebook, growing more and more infuriated as Veronica just smiles. "What the hell is this?" she demands.

"I asked you what topic, and you didn't reply, so I thought it might be appropriate to express my feelings," Veronica says smugly.

"Your feelings? Listen up, Connie; you seem to be intent on making your life difficult here at the school. Do you not understand that you're here to change your behavior?"

"I'm not changing anything! There's nothing wrong with me, I'm sick of hearing you guys tell me and everyone else that we're fucked up. All I did was hug another girl."

"Again with the attitude! Most of the girls see Briar Hill as an opportunity to change their lives for the better," Shari replies. "Connie, the sooner you start cooperating the easier it will be for you." Shari takes the notebook and rips out the pages that Veronica has filled with 'Fuck you Briar Hill.'

"What are you doing?!" Veronica screams.

"You're starting over. Since you obviously need more guidance, I want the essay to be on what you want to get out of your time here at the school. And I'll be checking on your content. If it's not on topic, you'll start over again. It's up to you...if you keep this up, you can write essays for the next month. Or the next year. And we'll restrict your food rations until we see you cooperating with us," Shari says.

"This is bullshit! You can't restrict my food! That's illegal! It's child-abuse!" Veronica fumes. She seems to make a decision, meeting Logan's eyes for a milli-second. She grabs the card key around Shari's neck, shoves her aside, and tries to make a run for it past Logan. Shari is caught off-balance and stumbles to the floor.

Even knowing she was planning something, Logan is caught by surprise. _Shit...I'm going to have to chase her!_ He's shocked to realize that he's furious with her for acting this way. He recovers quickly and follows her, running to the best of his ability on his still-uncertain leg. Veronica has sprinted down the hallway to the front door. She is fumbling with the card key in its reader as he catches up to her. He grabs her upper arms and restrains her as she struggles against him. He says angrily, "What the hell are you doing, Connie?"

"I'm getting the fuck out of here, asshole!" she spits at him, shoving him hard.

"You know, we have been pretty tolerant of your wiseass remarks, but you are pushing it! You're going to get hurt if you keep this up!" Logan tightens his grip on her arms, and she yelps in pain. _I've got to do this; fuck! why is she making me do this to her? Why can't she just behave?_

"You call this tolerant, you fucking nazi? God damn you! Let me out of here!" she cries. Twisting her body, she elbows Logan in the stomach and manages to get one arm free. She somehow manages to get the magnetic card in its slot, and the door lock clicks open.

Veronica has one foot out the door, with Logan holding on to her. Tony rushes up to help Logan. Tony gets Veronica's arm twisted behind her and pushes her down to the ground. Tony physically sits on her back, keeping her arm painfully twisted. Veronica begins to sob. "No...please...let me go!" Logan helps Tony to hold her in place by pressing his body's weight against her kicking legs. He grabs her legs tightly, forcing her to stop kicking. Veronica finally begins to quiet down with the two men holding her completely immobile.

Shari has joined them. She says to Tony, "Turn her head so she can see me." Tony forces Veronica's head around so she can see Shari.

Shari kneels down and says, "Connie, your behavior is completely unacceptable."

"Fuck you!" she replies tearfully.

Shari sighs and stands up. Klein has joined them, alerted by the commotion. Shari consults with the headmaster quietly.

Veronica screams, "I want to call my dad! If he knew what was going on here..."

Shari turns back to Veronica, kneeling down and getting right in her face. She yells, "Listen, princess, you don't deserve the right to make a phone call. Telephone privileges are earned. And you have resisted every step of the way. You received observation placement within the first twenty-four hours; I think that's a new record, Connie. You've given up your right to be with your family and to live free in society. Until you accept your treatment, you're going to find your behavior restricted."

"I know my rights! I want to call my dad. This is fucked up!" Veronica yells.

"That's it! Do you have some sort of auditory processing problem? You're expected to live by our rules here." Shari turns to Tony and says, "I want her in restraints until she learns how to respect the program." Tony nods that he understands.

Klein watches, not saying a word, as Tony and Logan haul Veronica up and take her away. She continues to struggle and scream obscenities at the school, at the guards, even at a fellow student they pass in the hallway. At one point, when Veronica is sure that Logan is looking at her and Tony can't possibly see her face, Veronica clearly winks at Logan, who stares at her angrily. She is stunned by his reaction and quickly looks away.

They lead her to the end of hallway to a locked room. Tony unlocks the door, and he and Logan push Veronica inside. When she sees the single chair, fitted with restraining straps for wrists and ankles, Veronica begins to struggle again.

"She's really a devil, isn't she?" Tony remarks.

"Yeah, I know, she sure is," Logan replies.

"Fuck you," Veronica spits at him.

Tony says, "Grab her hand." Logan takes Veronica's right hand and holds it while Tony cinches the strap around her wrist. Veronica manages to land a few good kicks on Tony while he works to attach the other restraints. One of her kicks lands on Logan, and he responds by holding her leg painfully hard, bruising her. She gasps and stares at him. He meets her eyes and looks away.

Tony points a finger in her face. "You better learn to behave, or you'll sit in your own filth. Remember that I don't have to take you to the bathroom if you act up." He grabs her chin. "You understand?"

Veronica stares back, quiet but defiant.

As Tony and Logan leave the room, Logan says quietly, "How long will you keep her here?"

"Well, that depends on her. At least twenty-four hours, based on the way she was behaving back there. We take escape attempts very seriously here," Tony explains.

As Tony shuts the door, Logan meets Veronica's eyes for a second. _She still looks determined and completely pissed. Dammit, Veronica, stop pushing them! Dammit to hell._ He clenches his fists in frustration as they walk down the hall.

When Logan has calmed down a little, he asks Tony, "Dammit, why do they have to do that? I mean, make us hurt them. Why can't they just behave?"

"Roger, they're not here because they're good girls. You'd better get used to it," Tony responds.

Logan exhales loudly, trying to release his tension. Knowing that this is a perfect opportunity that may never come again, he tries to calm himself. He cautiously asks, "Has anybody ever actually escaped?"

"Just twice that I know of–well, really only once. About three years, a girl disappeared. We think she convinced a new teacher to help her escape. The stupid teacher didn't get it, thought we were mistreating the girls or something; she was always running to Klein with her concerns and suggestions. So, with the teacher's help, the girl got away, and we were never able to track her down. We think she hid in the trunk of the teacher's car, and the teacher drove her off-campus. The teacher quit about a month later, but we didn't make a connection between them at first. The only way we found out about it was through another student, who admitted in group that the teacher had approached her about helping her to escape. By this time, it was six months later, and the teacher had disappeared–changed her name and dropped off the face of the earth."

Logan thinks angrily, _Why weren't Hannah's parents told about this? For that matter, why wasn't the FBI told this?_ Aloud, he says, "And you never found the student?"

"No. We sent detectives to all her back-doors, but she was too smart–she didn't go to anyone she had named to us. I think I heard a rumor that she turned up dead a while ago. She'd been hooking on the streets in Los Angeles. It didn't surprise me; most of the girls who drop out of the program start using again and end up dead or in prison. After Hannah–that was her name, Hannah–after Hannah escaped, we revamped our whole security. We got the guard dogs, beefed up the fence on the perimeter, and added more guards to our staff."

Tony continues, "I told you that Maria let a girl escape about a year ago." Logan nods, and Tony adds, "It was her first time supervising a newcomer, and Maria let the girl get the drop on her. The newcomer hit Maria over the head with a chair and knocked Maria out. That was before we had the card key system on all the doors. The girl got into the woods. We sent the dogs after her, and we finally caught her after a few hours. Both she and Maria were assigned to Observation Placement for forty days and had six months added to their program."

"Maria had the same punishment as the girl that ran?" Logan asks incredulously.

"Look, Roger, it might seem rough, but life is tough on the outside too," Tony says defensively. "I don't know, man, sometimes you really don't seem to get it. If you're a druggie, you'll do anything for a fix. You have to follow the rules if you want to get better."

Logan replies quickly, "No, I totally get it. This is the last resort for most of these girls. I understand what you're talking about. Just, you know, I hate the way we have to come down hard on them. It really pisses me off that they make us do this."

"Don't forget that these girls are dangerous for a second. These are not your average teenagers; they're girls in serious trouble that need serious help. That girl Connie could have really hurt you tonight."

"I know," Logan answers, rubbing his ribs where she nailed him with her elbow.

"You've got to trust me; the program works if you work the program. I'm proof of that. Do you know how many times I had to be taken down before I started to behave myself? I lost count at twenty. I thought I was really smart at that age, but really I was just dumb. Listen, Roger, you're doing really well. Just keep paying attention. You're off shift now, right?" Tony waves goodbye as Logan heads for the employee's quarters.

As Logan walks the path to the employee's quarters, he takes deep breaths, trying to relieve his stress and anger. He tries to focus on the operation, but keeps coming back to the tense confrontation with Veronica. The physicality of his reaction to her 'misbehavior' shocks him. Finally, he is calm enough to review what he learned from Tony. He thinks, _I think we know a little bit more about Hannah's escape now. We need to find out who the teacher was. _Ruefully, he realizes that another break-in to Klein's office will probably be necessary. As soon as he enters his room, he pulls out his cell phone and texts Keith: 'WE NEED TO MEET. I'M ON MY WAY.'

Tues. 3/10/09 late evening: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

Keith, Epstein, and Dr. Kinny are reviewing the transcript of the school committing Veronica into restraints when Logan shows up at the house.

"Hey Keith," he mumbles when Keith opens the door. Logan walks into the living room where the three men are gathered around the computer screen.

Epstein is ecstatic; he keeps pointing at various sections on the transcript and reading them out loud. "This is incredible. Shari says, 'We'll restrict your food rations until we see you cooperating with us;' then a little while later, she says, 'I want her in restraints until she learns how to respect the program.' and we have that guy Tony threatening to make Veronica 'sit in her own filth'. Keith, your daughter is unbelievable. It's almost like she hands them a script to read with everything we need them to say to win our case."

"That's one way to put it," Logan says. "You might also say reckless and foolhardy. She had the two of us, me and Tony, physically restraining her."

Dr. Kinny interrupts, "How does she seem? Is she all right?"

Logan grimaces. "Yeah, she's all right. She's better than I would be. But sometimes it seems like she's determined to get hurt. She's not cooperating at all."

Kinny watches Logan closely as he speaks, focusing on his non-verbal cues.

Logan continues, "She works in the code words all right. And she even winked at me once when Tony couldn't see her." He sighs deeply. "She tried to give me a heads up before she bolted, but she still caught me by surprise. She definitely could have made it out the front door before I got there, but I think she pretended to fumble with the card key and let me catch her." Logan fusses with his hair, and paces a little around the room. Kinny notes his stressed demeanor and tone and glances at Keith to see if he is paying attention.

Logan blurts out, "Listen, the reason I'm here...Tony told me a little about Hannah's escape from the school." Logan relates Tony's story: that Hannah was possibly helped by a teacher. "Do you think it's worth breaking into Klein's office again to get the name of the teacher?"

Keith thinks for a moment. "It's not really our prime objective," he finally says. "Maybe I could try to get some information from the Worker's Compensation database–try to match up the date the teacher left with the date we know Hannah escaped. I don't want you taking the chance of going into Klein's office again unless we know he's going to be off-campus."

"Right," Logan agrees.

"So we can hold off on that for a while. I've learned a lot since the last time we met. It turns out Maria's father is Vincenzo Frazzino, the speaker of the California Assembly. He's got a lot to lose politically if the world finds out he has a juvenile delinquent for a daughter."

"Do you think he was abusing her?" Logan asks hesitantly. "You know, the cigarette burns. Maybe she was," he drops his head, "you know, acting out, to pay him back for hurting her...maybe she was trying to ruin his career."

Kinny frowns at these words. He taps his chin thoughtfully, processing Logan's remarks.

Keith sighs, avoiding looking at Logan directly. "We can't know for sure, but it makes sense. Frazzino's put out the story that his daughter's studying abroad."

"If you sue the school, it's going to come out," Logan realizes. "It's going to be a political shitstorm."

"That's not all. In Montpelier, we saw Klein meeting with someone; we think it might be evidence that Klein is making payoffs to the Vermont Education Commissioner. Mike Fields' colleague, the FBI agent from Boston, is going to review our evidence tomorrow and see if there's enough evidence to open a federal probe."

"That's great, that means we can end this earlier," Logan says hopefully.

"Exactly. What's the situation with Veronica now? Can you get in to talk to her?"

"Maybe. I don't know. I have to be careful about volunteering too much. Kavner said the guys have been calling me an ass-kisser. That's why I wasn't at group today. What did Veronica do that she got assigned an essay? No one was talking about it," Logan wonders.

"It looked like Tara got very upset when Alyssa was prodding her, and Veronica hugged Tara when Tara sat back down. Alyssa accused Veronica of interfering with Tara's program."

"Jeez. She got in trouble for hugging another girl?" _Shit, I was manhandling her because she hugged Tara._

Keith says, "For hugging another newcomer. It's insanity, I know."

Epstein pipes up, "It was genius on Veronica's part. If we show that video to a jury, our case is won."

"What was in Tara's file by the way?" Logan asks distractedly.

"You were right. She has dyslexia and ADD, and the school has taken her off her meds. Logan, you know, you've really contributed a lot to this operation. I'm glad Veronica suggested you help out."

Logan nods and stands up to leave. Kinny follows and pulls Logan aside. Logan looks at him questioningly.

"How are you doing?" Dr. Kinny asks.

"What do you mean? I told you, I helped them put Veronica in restraints; you know, I'm just trying to act like the other guards. She's doing a great job. It's going well; now maybe we can wrap this up."

"I mean, how are you feeling? Did you have to hurt her while you were pretending to be a guard?"

Defensively, Logan says, "I don't know what you're talking about. I'm just trying to act like the other guards." He flushes and looks downward, avoiding Kinny's eyes.

"You know, I bet it's pretty intense to be in that situation...stressful."

Logan repeats, "I don't know what you're talking about. I have the easy job; Veronica's the one you should be worried about. She's the one suffering in restraints right now."

Kinny nods. "Yeah, that's true. But you know, she actually has some control over this situation."

Logan looks at him, puzzled.

Kinny continues, "She can provoke them however she wants. If she's feeling confident, she can act out and move the operation forward; but if she's feeling a little frightened, she can try to cooperate a little more and get a little respite. She's got code words to use to bring in the cavalry." He pauses, looking at Logan sympathetically. "Logan, you don't have any code words. You're on high alert at all times. You have to react in pretty horrible ways when Veronica screams at you or acts like a juvenile delinquent. You have to be a brute to do this job."

Logan stares back. He finds a chair and sits down heavily. He mumbles, "I was so angry at her when she tried to escape. I knew I'd have to hurt her to get her under control, and that the other guys would hurt her worse if I didn't control her. I don't understand why she has this death wish." He looks up at Kinny and adds, "She thinks she's doing this for me, trying to solve Hannah's murder. I don't want her to do this."

"What do you think about the school itself? About the tough-love discipline?"

"It's fucking horrible, all right? And I know, it's a good thing we're doing here." Logan lapses into silence again.

"You'd do anything for her, right?" Kinny prompts.

Logan nods. Kinny finds a chair, brings it over, and sits next to Logan.

"I don't think she's just doing it for you, Logan. I think she's the type of person who identifies with a victim and makes their cause her own. And she's strong and well-prepared. She's going to be all right. And you're doing a great job too."

Logan blurts out, "Keith told you...about my dad, didn't he? What he did."

"No, he didn't. But even an academic in their ivory tower is sometimes exposed to the wild rumors on 'The Tinseltown Diaries'. Don't you think I was curious about the boy who streaked through my classroom? Who also managed to get himself arrested a month later for taking a baseball bat to a police car? I followed your father's trial in the media, and I can read between the lines...Are you going to be all right? It's okay to be angry about the situation, you know."

"Is it all right to be furious with the woman I love?" Logan says spitefully, then sighs heavily, running his hand through his hair.

"It's all right to say that you can't do this anymore."

Logan turns to him furiously. "No! It's not all right. You don't know her! She never gives up. She'll stay in there for years if necessary, and if I'm not there, she'll get hurt even worse. I have to do this. And..." he glances over at Keith in the adjacent room, who has looked over at this angry outburst. In a quieter voice, he continues, "I could never disappoint Keith. He trusts me to keep her safe." Almost to himself, with a tone of disbelief, he repeats, "He trusts me."

"Listen to me. You won't do Veronica or Keith any good if you fall apart. And don't underestimate how difficult your job is. I want you to promise me that you'll let us know if the pressure becomes too intense."

"What are you, friends with my shrink or something?" Logan snipes.

"Don't deflect. I'd like you to promise me," Kinny repeats.

"Okay. I promise," Logan lies. _There's no way I'd quit if Veronica's still undercover._


	23. An explanation

Go straight to the next chapter for Chapter 70.

* * *

One of my readers here asked: Why did Veronica fake an escape? Was she trying to send a signal to Logan that she was ok; was she trying to see what they where going to do to her to give her some clue to what they did to Hannah; or was she hoping that someone would tell Logan about the last girl who escaped?

If I've confused you too, read the following explanation.

Here's why I had Veronica fake an escape in the story. Veronica has to provoke them at the school because she is gathering legal evidence of their abuses for the court case that is planned. So she needed to do something drastic enough for them to sentence her to restraints. Usually, the schools' damaging effects are primarily due to the long duration of constant psychological pressure rather than actual physical abuse (which occurs but is not the worst part of the experience for most of the students). Since Veronica can't go undercover indefinitely, she has to really act out in order to gather legal evidence in a timely fashion. Many students spend years in an institution like this, year-round, separated from their parents and friends, subjected to attack therapy and brain-washing techniques honed in cults like est, Landmark Education, Synanon, and cough, cough Scientology. They don't get a good education and are often seriously damaged psychologically when they are released. Many colleges do not accept credits earned at tough-love schools.

Veronica really has no opportunity to investigate Hannah's time at Briar Hill while she is there, since she is continually observed and/ or physically restrained or confined. Logan has to do the leg work of the investigation. Logan rightly took advantage of Veronica's successful escape ruse to question Tony about other escape attempts, in the hope that Tony might say something about Hannah, who we know escaped three years earlier.

If they are successful in shutting down the school and Klein is arrested, more information might be gained by questioning Klein and any students, including Maria, who might have been there when Hannah was. Since the students are supervised so closely and prohibited from having unobserved conversations, they cannot be questioned with any hope of accuracy while they are still at the school. There are things to be learned about Hannah's time at the school, but the school has to be shut down first.


	24. Chapters 70 to 73

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. All opinions regarding real-life organizations expressed in this fic are the opinions of the characters only. You may or may not agree with the conclusions of the characters, and no harm or insult is intended to these real-life organizations, or to any participant, past, present, or future, in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall, who is also my assistant casting director, and Kazy. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility. **_If you were confused in the last update as to why Veronica faked an escape attempt, please go back to the last chapter for an explanation._**

* * *

Previously on Veronica Mars: The Year of Living Dangerously Part Two:

vanessagalore•livejournal•com/53753•htm

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**You Mess With the Bull**  
Veronica in restraints; Logan tries to  
bond with his fellow employees.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Maria: Gina Mantegna. Tony: Romany Malco.  
Larry: Ed Quinn. Jim: Adrian Quinones.  
Dave: Jason Wiles.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SEVENTY: "YOU MESS WITH THE BULL"

Tues. 3/10/09 late evening: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

For the first two hours of her confinement, Veronica is elated by her successful ruse to document the egregious punishment. As the adrenaline from the excitement begins to wear off, she realizes that she's becoming very stiff from the forced positioning of the restraints. She stretches her neck and hears a sharp crack as she rotates her head.

_I can't imagine how scary it would be to be forced into this punishment without knowing about it ahead of time. _Her preparation for the operation was thorough; they talked to as many former students as they could find who were willing to discuss their experiences. Veronica recalls one girl who was plagued by a facial tic. The girl reluctantly admitted that she had attempted suicide three times since leaving the school and her drug addiction was worse than it had ever been before she was committed to Briar Hill. _How could a parent possibly think that removing a child from the family home would be a positive solution to a teen in crisis?_ she wonders over and over again. Some of the girls they talked to were still estranged from their parents, who continued to insist that the school was the best thing that had happened to their daughters.

The girls who claimed that the school had rehabilitated them frightened Veronica far more than the girls who admitted they had been damaged by their experience. One girl spoke glowingly about the hikes, waxing rhapsodic about the joys of marching with a heavy backpack and claiming that the school's withdrawal of her antidepressants and restriction of her food intake was the best thing that had happened to her. Veronica noted the poor grammar of the girl's email as well as the incorrect use of capitalization and was not surprised to learn that the girl had never received her high school diploma. Veronica emailed back, asking what the girl's education plans were, but received no response.

In an even more terrifying incident, another girl had even testified on behalf of the school when her parents tried to sue. The parents' lawsuit claimed a breach of contract on Briar Hill's part when the parents discovered that the credits from the school were not recognized by any college or even transferrable to a high school in their home state. The parents dropped their suit when Briar Hill countersued, claiming that the parents had violated the confidentiality agreement they had signed when admitting their daughter. When contacted by Keith, the parents regretfully declined to participate in any class action suit against the school and said they hadn't had any contact with their daughter in six years, but they had heard that she was now incarcerated in federal prison for dealing drugs.

_With all the stories that have been made public, it's hard to believe anyone would find the school's rehabilitation claims to be credible. _One of Epstein's constant themes was that the therapeutic boarding school industry had actually expanded, while the government regulations that might have curbed the worst abuses had been simultaneously relaxed. He noted that statistics were very clear that the boarding schools had less of a success rate than family counseling and that previous lawsuits had been largely unsuccessful due to the chilling effect of countersuits and, in at least one instance, a threat that the school would reveal potentially incriminating information admitted by a girl during group therapy. Ruefully straining against the leather restraints on her wrists and ankles, Veronica thinks again, _I'm not feeling all that rehabilitated right now._

She sighs. Without any kind of physical stimuli, the time distortion that plagued her in Observation Placement begins to affect her once again. Veronica is certain that only a few hours or less have passed, but she could easily be convinced that it was actually early the next day. Her stomach rumbles from missing dinner, and she wishes hopelessly that someone would take her to the bathroom and fidgets against the restraints.

_Dammit! Don't think about the bathroom!_ She tries to think about something else, anything else. _Logan is a pretty good actor. He really seemed mad at me for trying to escape. Wait...was he...could he have been actually mad at me?_ Veronica reviews the scene in her head. She had screamed at him, "I'm getting the fuck out of here, asshole!", and then she had shoved him hard. He was caught off-balance by her for the second time that night and had stumbled. He grabbed her tightly; she remembered thinking, _Too tight, Logan, come on–ease up a little._ Then he had looked at her, and for a moment she barely recognized the young man scowling at her.

Logan had yelled back, "You know, we have been pretty tolerant of your wiseass remarks, but you are pushing it! You're going to get hurt if you keep this up!" _Was he trying to send me a message? He's worried; I'm pushing them too hard, and he thinks I'm going to get hurt._ She shakes her head in disbelief. _I just told them this morning that I was okay and wanted to keep going. But then...when they were trying to put on the restraints, he...he really did hurt me. I know, I kicked him, but...No! I must have hurt him. I must have hurt him more than I thought. Maybe that's why he's mad. Maybe he's mad because...because I'm not listening to him...again._ She goes over the memory again, trying to reassure herself that he was just acting. But the little voice inside keeps nagging at her. _He's really pissed. He's...He's never going to forgive me if I get hurt...if...if I make him really hurt me._

She thinks back to their last big fight, when Logan told Keith that Veronica was planning to use the operation to investigate Hannah's murder. She remembers telling him spitefully, "You're such an ass. You think you can just touch me, and I'll melt and forgive you. It's not going to work...You're a bastard." _You're a bastard...you're a bastard...dammit, how could I have said that to him when all he did was worry about me?_ And then he had said, "Look, Veronica, I don't care if you hate me. All I care about is that you're okay," and she knows: he wasn't exaggerating. He would truly sacrifice her love to make sure she was okay. _Is he...has he decided...that it's the only way to get me out of here safely?_

He had said, "If you survive, I survive. Even if I have to give you up, or do something that makes you hate me forever. It's crazy, I know. But that's never going to change...You're killing me, Veronica. I can't live like this, worried about you all the time, and then I'm always apologizing for caring about you too much!...You're not going to ruin us. You're going to keep your promise to me. You're. Going. To. Be. Careful." She remembers him fucking her angrily, trying to get through to her, to make it clear that she had to stop doing this to him and to them._ And here I am, doing it again._ She closes her eyes, hearing his despairing words echoing over and over in her head.

_If it's the last thing I do, I'm going to make it up to him...for all the times I took his love for granted. Dammit! How could I have called him a bastard for worrying about me? And then I made him do this; I made him go undercover with me...made him HURT me for god's sake._ She begins to cry, for the moment completely unable to focus on the operation and what she's supposed to be doing.

The door opens, and Maria and Tony come in to the room. Maria flips on the light switch and smiles as she sees the tears running down Veronica's face. "Feeling sad?" she comments as she helps the guard undo Veronica's restraints. "You're going to behave, right, so you get to use the bathroom?"

Veronica stay silent, vowing not to let Maria get to her this time. She pushes aside her emotional thoughts and stares back at Maria, nodding her acquiescence.

Maria and Tony each take an arm and force Veronica to stand up. Her legs are asleep, and they give her a moment to recover before they walk Veronica toward the door. "You know, nobody gets out of here unless they accept the program. Nobody, Connie. If you're feeling sad, you have only yourself to blame," Maria says. "And it's completely up to you how long you stay here at Briar Hill."

_If you only knew, you bitch,_ Veronica thinks as they take her to the bathroom._ I'll be out of here long before you are._

Tues. 3/10/09 very late: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

After leaving the rented house, Logan sits in his car in the employee parking lot at the school, thinking about control. _I've been out of control for most of my life...my dad, my drinking, my...my love for Veronica when she wouldn't...But I've never felt like this. I've never felt so out of control. _The desire to punch someone has never been as strong as it is this moment, and Dr. Kinny's sympathy and understanding almost made it worse. _I don't think I like him understanding me that well._ During the drive back to the school, he felt worse and worse, and when he actually reentered the campus, the oppressive atmosphere of the school itself seemed too much to bear.

He pulls out his cell phone, quickly calculating that if it's midnight here in Vermont, it's nine o'clock in California. Logan begins to dial Dr. Friedman's home number, closing his eyes and praying that she's home.

Suddenly someone raps on the window of his car and Logan starts in surprise. He opens his eyes and sees Tony waving at him. He turns the key in the ignition and lowers the window.

Tony asks, "Everything okay, Roger? You jumped a mile high."

"Ah, yeah. I was just going to call someone I haven't talked to in a while," Logan replies. "Nothing important," he lies. _It's all lies,_ he thinks.

"Some of us from the afternoon shift are heading over to the rec room in the 'C' building–we're going to play some darts," Tony explains, pointing with his thumb over his shoulder. "Do you want to join us?"

It's the absolute last thing Logan wants to do, but he realizes this is another opportunity to bond with the other employees. _And, _he reflects, _maybe I could work on that reputation I have for being a kiss-ass. I can't take the chance that I won't be on the scene when she needs me._ He closes his eyes for a minute, trying to dredge up the courage to do this. "I'd like to," he finally says. "I'm just kind of...I don't know, I'm in a bad mood tonight." He steps out of the car and locks the door.

Logan falls in beside Tony as they walk toward the farthest building of the employee's quarters. Tony says shrewdly, "You're still upset about Connie."

Logan nods. "I guess so. I really need this job, but I'm finding it harder than I thought." On the plane ride from San Diego to Boston, Keith stressed several times that Logan should try to stick with the truth whenever possible, just to minimize the number of lies he had to keep straight, and Logan decides that this particular truth is pretty safe.

"Is there something about her in particular?" Tony asks.

Logan almost laughs out loud at Tony's unwitting perception. "I can't really figure it out," he mumbles.

"Maybe there's something about her story that reminds you of yourself. You said you don't drink anymore, right?"

Logan nods.

"Like most of us here," Tony comments. "Did you ever go to AA?"

_Careful._ "No...I had a medical crisis. It was pretty important that I stop drinking...and I decided that I wanted to live." _Only a slight exaggeration_, he thinks.

"You just quit without help?" Tony shakes his head in dismay. "You have to come to a meeting. There's one in Manchester Center on Saturday mornings. It'll change your life. I'll go with you."

_I hope to hell we're out of here by Saturday. _"Thanks. That sounds...well, okay," Logan replies. "Maybe there is something about Connie that reminds me of me. You know, the way she keeps resisting our help. I was a real asshole."

"Well, you know what the guys are calling her, right?"

Logan shakes his head 'no'.

"Connie McConArtist."

Logan is seized by panic. _Do they know?_ He shoots a glance at Tony.

Tony continues, "Typical user...uses drugs, uses the people around her, and uses her anger as a crutch. She's a real manipulator; you can't trust a word she says. We'll have to watch her like crazy. She's not done making trouble."

_You have no idea, _Logan thinks.

They enter the rec room where three other employees are warming up their dart throws. "Hey Tony," one of them calls. He nudges one of the other men, motioning towards Logan. Logan assumes that this is the guy who's been saying he's a kiss-ass.

"Hey, Jim. You remember Roger right? Roger, you remember Jim...Larry...Dave."

Logan strides over and clasps each hand in turn. Jim grips his hand a little too strongly, making a contest out of it. Logan smiles and allows Jim to try his macho posturing, but all his obsessive workouts while he was hiding in South Padre have left him with the best upper body strength of his life, and Jim fails to intimidate him. Larry barely grasps Logan's hand and seems intent on the imminent game. Dave smiles a little; he's been relatively friendly to Logan since his arrival five days ago.

Larry pulls the darts out of the board and steps back to the throwing line. He throws the three darts in quick succession, achieving a bullseye and two near misses.

"Pretty impressive," Logan comments.

"You played before?" Larry replies.

"A little. Back in my drinking days. I thought I was pretty good, but I actually can't remember much from that time," Logan cracks.

Larry hands the darts to Logan, who sets up and throws the darts carefully. Logan gets close to the bull on his first throw and then makes sure to throw the next two poorly, with one not even scoring a number.

"Ooh, off the island," Dave jeers. "We got a granny in the house."

"I'm just warming up," Logan says good-naturedly. "I got to get my throw back. How d'you guys play?"

"Cricket," Jim replies. "You know, you have to score three each of numbers 15 to 20 and three bulls. Doubles count for two, triples for three."

"Yeah, I've played that way," Logan says.

They throw for a while. At first, Logan makes sure to play no better than Jim, who is the worst player. At one point, he compliments Larry on a successful triple bull, and Larry offers some technique advice on Logan's next turn. Logan considers the advice and pretends to implement it, achieving slightly more success on his next round. He turns to Larry and high-fives him. As the game progresses, Logan begins to resume his natural form and ends up solidly in the middle at the end of match, won, naturally, by Larry, who preens slightly.

They start another round. At one point, when Logan is shooting, Jim asks, "So, how are liking the job?"

"It's okay. I really needed the work. But I'm still struggling," he replies, throwing an 18, a 5, and a double 20.

"Nice shot," Jim comments. "What do you mean, you're struggling?"

"Just, you know, I was raised not to hit girls ever. It's hard to be tough with them," Logan says carefully.

"Yeah, we heard," Larry comments, taking his place on the line.

"You heard?" Logan asks.

"Yeah, we heard that Connie almost got away from you," Dave pipes up.

Logan sighs. "Yeah, she's crazy. Tony said you called her Connie McConArtist."

The other men laugh. Larry says, "Yeah, Connie's a real piece of work. Just remember, she's an addict, and she'll do anything to get out of here and get back to using."

"Sounds like you know what you're talking about," Logan comments.

Larry assesses Logan. "Yeah. I do know. I used to do blow and a little heroin in the eighties. I was in a rehab with Tony. When he needed another guy here, he called me up and asked if I was interested."

Tony agrees, "Yeah, I knew Larry could do the work, no problem. We really went through the shit together at STRAIT. We went from whiny little fuckheads to graduates helping with the newcomers. That's was when Klein was first starting out helping addicts, before he moved here to Briar Hill."

"See, the reason we're asking how you're doing..." Jim says. "We're all depending on you. If you fuck up, one of us could get hurt."

Logan realizes that all four men are looking at him.

"And what we see is that you're not too eager to jump in when you should be," Jim adds. "And that's fucking wrong." Dave looks on, not disputing the others, but not joining in on the attack.

"You need to get over yourself about that fucking redhead Connie. Or we'll tell Klein that you're out of here," Larry says roughly. "You've been a real pussy, trying to get the easy work, saying you have a bad knee, and you can't do this, you can't do that. Getting your buddy Kavner to fight your battles for you."

"Listen," Logan says nervously, "If I screwed up, it's just 'cause I don't really understand how things work here. I'm happy to do whatever is needed, however you guys tell me to do it. I don't have a problem with that redheaded bitch. I really need this job."

Tony adds, "Listen, he did all right with Connie. Bitch kicked him hard, and Roger stepped up and helped me get her under control. Connie's a cunt and a half. I thought Roger handled the situation okay."

"Glad to hear it," Larry says. He turns back toward the dart board and fires off three shots, including a bull.

Logan realizes that he's sweating profusely. He excuses himself and hits the men's room. He dashes cold water on his face and looks at himself in the mirror, thinking, _I really didn't need this._

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Catalyst**  
The FBI gets involved; a surprise visitor  
to Briar Hill.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Kavner: Eric Bana.  
Tony: Romany Malco. Dave: Jason Wiles.  
Agent Lynley: James Badge Dale. Maria:  
Gina Mantegna. Guest star: ??  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SEVENTY-ONE: "CATALYST"

Wed. 3/11/09 morning: Rented House, Manchester Center, VT

As soon as the clock reads 9:00, Keith puts in a call to the Boston District Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. "This is Keith Mars, calling for Agent Lynley. I was referred by Mike Fields." He drums his fingers on the table while he waits several minutes on hold; finally Lynley picks up the extension, saying, "Agent Lynley."

"Mike Fields gave me your name. My name's Keith Mars; I'm a private detective working out of Neptune, California. I wondered if I could speak to you on a matter of some urgency, Agent Lynley."

"A little far afield, aren't you, Mr. Mars? Mike's one of my oldest friends. Call me Tom. What can I do for you?" Lynley responds.

"Thank you, Tom; you can call me Keith. I'm investigating a private school in Manchester Center, Vermont for an attorney gathering evidence for a civil class action suit. I've uncovered some evidence that the head of the school is making payoffs to the Vermont State Education Commissioner, and I'm hoping the FBI would be interesting in initiating a federal probe."

"A class action suit? What's the cause of action?" Lynley asks.

"Misrepresentation of the school's accreditation; medical neglect of the students; false advertising; and possibly physical and food-restriction punishments that rise to the level of child abuse, so violations of mandated child abuse reporting statutes. My daughter Veronica, who is also a licensed private investigator in California, is currently undercover at the school," Keith summarizes.

"Veronica?" Lynley asks. "As in the Veronica from the internship program that Mike fell in love with last summer?"

Keith pauses a moment before replying, "I believe that is correct. But they're no longer seeing each other."

"Mike mentioned that she had extensive experience in the private sector, an unusual amount for someone her age."

"She's been working cases with me for about five years now. She got her license two years ago," Keith says.

"What's this about payoffs?" Lynley asks.

Keith summarizes the information he has gathered: Klein is probably financing the construction on Commissioner Carl Behr's home in return for lax oversight of the school and early warnings for 'surprise' inspections. "I have some photographs and other supporting evidence that I can email you."

"Can you send that to TLynleyATboston•fbi•gov so I can look at it while we're talking?"

Keith sends his documentation to Lynley; they discuss what Keith witnessed in Montpelier for several minutes before Keith changes the subject. "It's not the only thing we've discovered at the school. There's some evidence that a California State Assemblyman is using the school to conceal his own abuse of his daughter. Assemblyman Frazzino is the sponsor of a Parental Responsibility Act in California and is planning to run for senate."

"Are you implying that Frazzino is paying off the school to protect his reputation?" Lynley queries.

"That's what appears to be happening."

"That's a pretty serious accusation. What's your proof?"

"We have two men on the inside. One was able to access the files of the headmaster, Peter Klein, and photographed the files of several students. Of course, any of the evidence we've gathered so far within the school might have admissibility problems in a criminal prosecution."

"You have three people undercover?" Lynley asks.

"My daughter is portraying a student, and two men are working as employees. We have an audio bug on my daughter, video surveillance in the group therapy room, and an additional audio bug in Klein's office...In addition to possible RICO violations, many of the students are from out of state and are transferred against their will..."

"...So there might even be Mann Act violations." Lynley is silent, thinking about the situation. "Would you be willing to meet me in Montpelier? I'd like to present this to the Vermont Attorney General and a federal district judge."

"Absolutely. We're eager to assist in a federal probe because it will strengthen any civil case we can bring against Klein and the school," Keith says.

"I'm very interested, Keith. You've managed to procure solid evidence so far. I'll give you a call back when I've set up something with the Attorney General." Lynley disconnects and calls his assistant into his office. "Can you find some information for me on a Keith Mars out of Neptune, California? And get Mike Fields in the Los Angeles office on the phone for me."

Wed. 3/11/09 morning: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

At breakfast in the employee cafeteria, Dave makes a point of sitting down next to Logan. He jokes, "Recovered from getting your ass handed to you last night?"

"Does the Pope shit in the woods?" Logan replies. He had made a point of coming in dead last in the final tally and had hit up Larry for more advice on his game, and after a couple of hours of play, the four employees seemed to be generally more accepting of him.

Dave chuckles under his breath. "Listen, I told Tony you and I would take care of Connie later. I'll show you the ropes. There's a few tricks to handling the girls when they're in restraints."

"Hey, I appreciate that," Logan replies. "To tell you the truth, she does scare me a little. You never know what crap she's going to pull on you. I don't want to let you guys down."

Dave nods and focuses on his scrambled eggs. Logan looks out the window toward the parking lot and notices a blonde woman walking with Tony. Dave follows his gaze and says, "Ten points if you can nail the hot chick."

Logan starts to laugh but loses his breath when the young woman turns around. _FUCK!! It's Carrie. Shit fuck damn!_ He recovers and mumbles, "Yeah, she's a babe. What's she doing here?"

"Think she's some kind of a reporter. She's doing an interview with Klein," Dave replies, completely disinterested.

Logan watches as Carrie, accompanied by Tony, disappears into the main building. He finishes his breakfast and stands up to bus his tray. Dave says, "What's your hurry?"

"I have some PT exercises to do, you know, for my knee," Logan explains weakly. "Like you guys said last night...I don't want to let you down. I got to focus on my rehab a little more when I'm not on shift. I've been slacking off since I started working here, and maybe it's making me a little tentative."

Dave scoffs. "Ah, come on. Don't take Larry and Jim so seriously. You're doing okay. Just, you know, keep it in mind that we all need to be tough with the girls."

"Yeah. All the same..." Logan comments, slightly distracted. "I'll catch you later."

When he leaves the building, he catches sight of Kavner. Logan hurries over and tries to act carefree, smiling and extending his fist for Kavner to bump. He makes sure to keep his back to Carrie. In a soft voice, he says to Kavner, "That blonde woman with Tony? That's a fucking paparazzo who's been targeting Veronica and me for months. She knows something."

Kavner glances quickly at the woman, who's walking around the grounds, escorted by Tony. Carrie appears to be looking around inquisitively and asking animated questions of Tony. "Are you sure? There's been a bunch of reporters interviewing Klein; there's been a lot of interest in the school since the story of Hannah Griffith's murder broke. And Klein talks to them all, stressing the tragedy that Hannah escaped before he could put her on the straight and narrow...it's a lot of free publicity for the school. Klein always get a fucking tear in his eye, saying how sad he is that he couldn't save Hannah from herself."

"Her name's Carrie Murray, and there's no way it's a coincidence. I'm going to call Keith, but if you could..." Logan nods toward the reporter across the way.

"Yeah, I'll try to stick close, see what I can find out. At least Veronica is locked away in restraints; there's no way Klein would show her to a reporter so that's one thing we don't have to worry about," Kavner replies. Logan begins to walk off, and Kavner changes his mind and stops him. "Actually...tell Keith...I'll follow her when she leaves the school. There's an errand I need to run for Tony. I can use it as an excuse and follow her. Keith can pick her up and decide what to do about her."

"Okay," Logan agrees. He heads for his room quickly. Once in the room, he turns on the taps on the bathroom to make sure he's not overheard and dials Keith to fill him in on the situation.

Wed. 3/11/09 morning: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica has realized that she can keep track of time by noting her bathroom breaks; it appears that they are taking her every six hours. _So it must be the middle of the morning, Wednesday._ Several hours ago, Maria and Kavner took her to the bathroom; they also gave her some food to eat before they locked her back up in the restraints. When Maria turned away, Kavner looked at Veronica questioningly. She said quietly, as if reassuring herself, "I'm okay, I'm okay."

Maria turned back around; Kavner replies, in character, "Shut up, Connie, this is punishment. If you don't straighten up, you're going to be doing this a lot." Maria stares at Connie for a long moment before turning again to leave. Veronica nods slightly at Kavner, who follows Maria out the door. They turn out the light, shut and lock the door, and Veronica is left alone again with her aching muscles and her thoughts. She assumes that Kavner was wearing a video recorder, and it has now been documented that the school uses restraints as a punishment. She should be rejoicing over yet another successful documentation of the school's abuses, but somehow it doesn't seem to matter.

She wasn't able to sleep much overnight; she was just too uncomfortable, and she kept thinking about Logan. Her only contact with him in the last two and a half days was her 'escape attempt' last night; somehow, she had imagined that she would have him around all the time and be able to communicate with him while she was undercover. But the reality of the situation means that he has only limited contact with her, and, when he does, he is usually unable to speak freely.

The more she thinks about his behavior last night, the more she is convinced that he is truly upset with her. She is hoping desperately that he somehow will find a way to get in to see her this afternoon when he comes on shift. _Can't he understand? If I don't provoke them, this will have to go on for a month. I'll go crazy if I don't get out of here soon._

She despondently thinks again about poor Hannah, who spent three months here before somehow managing to escape. _How the hell did she get through this? Tara reminds me of Hannah in a way: a girl who got in trouble because of her boyfriend and now is being told that she is flawed and addicted for hours on end._ Veronica shivers, imagining the tales that Hannah must have made up to satisfy her inquisitors in group therapy. _I suppose she told them stories about drinking and drugging with Logan...maybe even wild sex stories, although from what Logan said, she was a virgin when she came here. Maybe Hannah even told them about Logan's arrest for Felix's murder._ Veronica suddenly grins, realizing that Logan's bad behavior in high school is a perfect source for tales of debauchery. _You gotta love a bad boy._

She remembers that Dr. Kinny told her to focus on good memories when she needed mental courage, and Veronica thinks back to the day she met Logan. She was muddy, bruised and bloody from a skirmish on the soccer field, with her hair pulled back in a messy ponytail. Lilly dragged her over to meet her brother's new friend, declaring that he was really interesting.

Even at thirteen, Lilly was very precocious; she had just barely escaped getting into serious trouble with an older man who had convinced Lilly to join him in his motel room at the Camelot. Lilly pointed him out to Veronica several weeks later, and Veronica frowned at the man, in his late thirties with a beard and mustache and attractive in a low-class, dangerous way, who worked at the garage where the Kane vehicles were maintained.

"How could you go off with him? He's so old!" Veronica had asked.

"He was fun. He told me I was beautiful; we started drinking together in his car, and he invited me up to his room." Lilly was just barely virginal at that point, having done almost everything with her current boyfriend except actual intercourse. Veronica knew that Lilly was flattered by the man's attentions and chafing under Celeste's attempted restrictions.

A few weeks the man was arrested for statutory rape, and Lilly under pressure from Veronica admitted that she had run and locked herself in the bathroom when the man suddenly shoved his hand down her pants and tried to force her down onto the bed. The man managed to calm her down, and Lilly let him into the bathroom. He apologized and tried to kiss her again; she flinched and hit her head on the towel rack. Crying, she ran out of the motel room and got the man behind the front desk of the motel to call her a cab. Veronica saw the tears in Lilly's eyes, but she also saw that her best friend was excited by her narrow escape. "Lilly, you can't do that. Promise me you won't do that again!"

Lilly smiled and said, "Of course not."

But when Lilly met Logan that day on the soccer field, Veronica noted that same excitement in Lilly's eyes and recognized that here was the danger Lilly had been looking for–just safe enough, but thrilling in a way that Lilly seemed to crave. Veronica had stolen a glance at the new interesting boy, good-looking and tall for his age, and wished for a moment that she had Lilly's courage.

Lilly had flirted shamelessly with Logan that day on the soccer field. A few days later, the four of them were hanging out on the beach, drinking booze that Logan had stolen from his father, and Logan had admitted that he had 'gone all the way' more than once; he had even hinted that he had been taught how to pleasure a woman orally by an older actress friend of his father's. Lilly never looked back; but Veronica never noticed that when Lilly wasn't watching, she was the one that Logan was eyeing.

Years later, he admitted that he had found her irresistible at the time, but he had finally given up on her when she appeared uninterested. He had settled for Lilly, who threw herself at him, making it clear that she wanted Logan, the exciting new boy in town, who was experienced and almost as rebellious as she was, to be the one to take her v-card. Somehow, Veronica and Duncan ended up together as the odd pair in the foursome; it seemed natural when Lilly and Logan were off screwing each other behind a sand dune that the two quieter kids would shyly experiment with soft kisses and fumbling caresses beneath their clothes. Once high school started, it was apparent that Veronica was the envy of every other freshman girl because of her relationship with Duncan. Sometimes she imagined that Logan was looking at her in a way that wasn't appropriate for the boyfriend of her best friend; when she realized junior year that it wasn't her imagination after all, her entire world view shifted, and those innocent memories became twisted, uncertain, and confused. She knew during the entirety of Lilly's and Logan's relationship that neither was capable of being faithful to the other; Lilly always wanted more–more excitement and more danger–and Logan wanted...at the time, she never could understand what it was that he wanted.

_What if...what if Lilly hadn't been there that day when I met Logan?_

Veronica suddenly realizes: she's just as much under the spell of Logan's dangerous and exciting side as Lilly was. She admits to herself that she can completely relate to Lilly's addiction to danger, despite their outward differences; she has merely managed to subsume her addiction into detective work. But Logan–Logan satisfies some unacknowledged need for her as well. She's completely enthralled by Logan's emotionality and unpredictability...and his dangerously thrilling passion for her and her alone. And if she is completely honest, she's felt that way since she met him.

She sighs, wishing he could somehow come in to see her. She wants him to reassure her that they're okay...because she's quite certain that they're not. She wriggles her fingers and toes, trying to prevent them from falling asleep. She moves her head in a circle, attempting to stretch her neck and to keep as relaxed as possible. The stress of her situation is overwhelming, and, even worse, she keeps obsessing over her worries about her relationship with Logan.

Wed. 3/11/09 midmorning: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

When Carrie Murray drives off the campus, Kavner follows her. He hits 'send' on his cell phone; when Keith picks up, Kavner says brusquely into his headset, "She's on the move. She's turning right on Route 30, heading for the center of town."

"Okay," Keith replies tersely. "Get in front of her as soon as you can. I'll pick her up when she passes Fox Lane."

Kavner guns it and passes Carrie's rental car as soon as possible. Once he's a mile ahead of her, he slows to her approximate speed.

Keith says, "Okay, I got her. I'm on her tail."

Kavner begins to slow down; in a heavily wooded area with no buildings, he stops the car and turns in the other direction. When he sees Carrie's vehicle, he aggressively drives toward her, forcing her to swerve to the side of the road. He pulls off the road directly in front of her as Keith stops behind her, effectively blocking her from driving off. Keith exits his car with his gun drawn and approaches Carrie's car. "Get out of the car with your hands up," he yells, pounding on the car window. "I'm not fucking around." He tries to open the locked car door.

"You're not a cop. And you definitely don't have jurisdiction in Vermont," Carrie screams back, trying to hide her nervousness.

"You're interfering with a federal investigation, Ms. Murray," Keith says, hoping that he's not exaggerating. "And as a former peace officer, I'm making a citizen's arrest."

"Bullshit. I'll say you forced me off the road and kidnapped me–it's your word against mine," she says sarcastically. "There's still freedom of the press in this country, you know."

"It's two against one; and I think the local police are going to listen to me when I refer them to the FBI. Get out of the car now." Keith waits while Carrie fidgets in the car. He sees that she's getting a cell phone out of her purse and adds, "Get out of the car, and I'll make sure you have an exclusive story on this. That's what you're looking for, right, a story?"

Carrie bites her lip, thinking. She puts the phone down and unlocks the car door. Keith opens the door, and Carrie steps out cautiously. Keith grabs her arm and escorts her to his car. With Kavner standing by to help if Carrie tries to run for it, Keith pushes her in the back seat and gets in the driver's seat; he engages the child-protective locks on the car as Carrie fumes. Keith holsters his gun and turns in the seat to stare at her. "What are you doing here, Carrie?" Outside the car, Kavner nods at Keith and gets in his own car, driving off.

"I've been watching your office. I think there's something going on with Logan Echolls; I think you're helping him cover up his involvement in Hannah Griffith's murder. I haven't seen anybody at Mars Investigations except that kid Wallace for a week. So I had a friend of mine at American Express run your latest charges. Seventeen hundred and fifty dollars charged to Continental Airlines and seven hundred dollars at Avis in Boston. Then some charges in Manchester Center, gas and groceries it looked like. I realized Manchester Center was the location of the school where Hannah Griffith was, and I decided to check it out," Carrie explains.

Keith stays silent, wondering what to do with her. Finally, he comments, "Pretty good detective work for a civilian."

"I'm an investigative reporter, and I'm good at my job," she shoots back.

"Funny, I thought you were just another paparazzo, digging up mud on my daughter's boyfriend."

"Where is Logan Echolls, anyways? I don't think he's in Madeira or Paris. That seemed like a set-up for the media's benefit. Did you and your daughter help him with that?" Carrie snipes.

"You know, you're in some trouble here. You're not a licensed investigator, and I don't think you obtained my credit information legally," Keith replies.

Carrie snorts. "You can't prove it."

Keith stares at her, wondering why the hell she's being so persistent. He comes to a conclusion and nods. "It's killing you that Logan got back together with my daughter, isn't it?"

"That has nothing to do with it," she denies. "But I don't like seeing a creepy guy like him get away with murder."

Keith sighs. "Logan's leg was in a cast when Hannah was murdered. He's been completely cleared of all charges. This vendetta has to stop. Each time you put out a ridiculous story to hurt him, you end up losing more of your credibility."

"I have a ten thousand dollar advance from 'The Instigator'," Carrie states flatly. "People want to know what Logan's connection is to the serial murders."

_She's not going to give this up. She's going to do something...something that could expose Veronica and put her in danger. Maybe I should just cancel this whole operation; maybe what we've got is enough...but that means–no criminal prosecution. Klein will just change his name again and start a new program, and he'll probably sue me and Veronica...goddammit._ He taps his fingers on the dash, trying to think of a solution to this new mess. _I want to get this bastard–put him behind bars for the rest of his life._

Keith comes to a decision. "I'm prepared to offer you an exclusive interview with my daughter, and I will guarantee you a story on a prominent politician that will make the Larry Craig sex-in-a-bathroom scandal (14) look like a walk in the park in comparison. There's no real story on Logan. But there is a big story here, and you can have it, if you agree to drop it until I give you the go-ahead. And my daughter's going to be big news as well when the story breaks, and you and only you will have access to her and her story." He looks at Carrie seriously. "Take it or leave it. But if you leave it, I am going to call the federal agent I'm working with and ask him to pick you up on suspicion of bribing an employee at American Express for confidential credit records." _A total bluff, but I need to use the carrot and the stick here. And if she doesn't go for it...I'm not going to let her put Veronica in danger.  
_

"I want more information on the politician," Carrie says impulsively.

"No way," Keith says. "Do we have a deal? This is a career-making opportunity for you, Carrie. You can get past the humiliation of being fired from _Dateline_. You'll be bigger than Geraldo."

Carrie flushes at the word 'Dateline'. She sputters, "I have a lawsuit against _Dateline_ for wrongful termination."

"Yeah, how's that going for you?" Keith asks.

She stares at him then blurts out, "I want more. I want to document your investigation as it happens. Exclusive access, on the scene."

Keith sighs and passes a hand over his forehead. _She'll be underfoot, but at least I don't have to worry she's nosing around somewhere putting Veronica in jeopardy._ "You'll still have to do what I say. There will be times you can't be on the scene because of your own personal safety. You will do as I say at all times," he repeats sternly.

"Absolutely," Carrie agrees. She smiles. "I always knew you were a reasonable man, Mr. Mars."

"There's two more things. We're working in conjunction with a civil lawsuit and a federal investigation. You will have to clear any story with the lead attorney on the civil case and the federal agent in charge, and I'm going to have to make sure that our deal is acceptable to them."

"I'm sure you can work out the details," Carrie replies. "What's the other thing?"

"My daughter's identity will be completely obscured in your reports. You will not use her name or her image. This is nonnegotiable."

Carrie hesitates, then reaches a hand forward, and Keith shakes it.

_I've made a deal with the devil,_ Keith thinks. He unlocks the child locks on the car doors and tells Carrie to follow him back to the rented house and the monitoring team. As he drives, he calls Kavner and apprises him of the situation. "You're going to have to let Veronica what's going on. She needs to know that we might have to extend the operation for a few days to let the feds gather what they need for their prosecution, and she should know everything we've learned about Klein and Maria. You or Logan need to go over all the details with her. Including this new development...she has to know that Carrie's involved now. Make sure she knows...we didn't have a choice, and I'm sorry."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**L.O.V.E.: Letting Go of Virtually Everything**  
Logan gets Veronica up to speed  
on the operation; Dave shows Logan  
the ropes.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Dave: Jason Wiles.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SEVENTY-TWO: "L.O.V.E.: LETTING GO OF VIRTUALLY EVERYTHING"

Wed. 3/11/09 early afternoon: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

It is just an hour after her last bathroom break by Veronica's estimation when she hears the locks on the door being opened. She catches a glimpse of Kavner keeping watch outside the door, and then Logan enters the room, quickly shutting the door behind him.

He doesn't turn on the light; she breathes, "Logan."

He turns on a small maglite flashlight, holding it in his teeth, while he works quickly to remove her restraints from her wrists. She massages her arms as he moves to her ankles. Once he releases her, he turns off the flashlight and sits on the floor. He begins to massage her feet and speaks quietly. "Veronica...we're taking a big chance to talk to you. We have about ten minutes. Neither Kavner nor I are supposed to be here, so...just let me tell you everything that's going on."

"Okay," she whispers back. She can't help adding, "I'm glad you're here."

"Right," he replies. "I got into Kavner's office and got photos of Maria's, Tara's, Hannah's, and your files. And I put an audio bug in there."

"That's great."

"Maria's father is Assemblyman Frazzino from California, the one who sponsored the Parental Responsibility Act. It looks like her father was abusing her and sent her here to prevent anyone from finding out about it. She probably was getting into trouble, trying to embarrass him."

Veronica knows what Logan is leaving out, 'just like me', and she frowns, worrying about him dredging up old vile memories of Aaron's abuse.

Logan continues, "Frazzino's using a secret account to fund Maria's fees here, and apparently she's going to be transferred to an offshore school, Serenity something, that's even worse than this one, to keep her locked up after she turns eighteen."

"Serenity Bay?" Veronica gasps. "That place makes this one look like a country club...Poor Maria." _No wonder she's such a bitch._

"Your dad followed Klein the other day. He's making payoffs to the Vermont Department of Education Commissioner, and Keith was able to photograph the transfer through a third party. He's asked the FBI to initiate a federal probe into the school."

Veronica is stunned into silence.

Logan adds, "He talked with Mike's FBI friend in Boston. Apparently, Keith's evidence is strong enough that Mike's friend thinks a judge will sign a warrant to authorize a phone tap..."

"And they'll use our surveillance devices as well. But they might not be able to use any evidence we've already collected," Veronica finishes for him.

Veronica feels Logan nod rather than sees him in the darkness. "It means we're going to try to keep the operation going for at least a day or two longer. Epstein said you've done great so far."

Veronica reaches for his hand massaging her foot and grabs it. "What about you? How do you think I'm doing?"

"Yeah, you're doing great," he replies briefly.

"Logan, are you okay? Are we okay? I'm sorry about last night. I didn't mean to–"

"Veronica, I get it. You have to provoke them. Epstein is ecstatic," he says, not answering her question.

"Logan, I should never have asked you to do this," she tries.

"No. Come on; it's good that I'm here to help," he answers brusquely.

"Logan, I love you so much. You've been right all along–"

"Veronica, will you listen? That's not everything."

She is shocked into silence by his harsh tone.

"Carrie Murray somehow found out that your dad was here in Manchester Center, and she figured out it was something to do with the school. I recognized her this morning; she was interviewing Klein, sticking her nose in where it doesn't belong as usual." He pauses. "Carrie didn't see me, and of course she didn't see you, because Klein would never show off a student being held in restraints. Your dad intercepted her. He got her to agree to leave it alone in exchange for an exclusive interview with you and first dibs on the Frazzino angle. She asked for complete access. Carrie's documenting the whole investigation from this point forward."

"So she's..." Veronica whispers.

"She's listening to us right now," Logan concludes.

"Shit," Veronica can't help commenting.

"Are you going to be okay to keep going for a couple more days?" Reluctantly, Logan adds, "Your dad said he hated to ask you to do it, but it would be rock-solid evidence if you could be forced to stay in restraints for at least another day, and then, you know, get some more evidence of the attack therapy in group. The federal warrants won't be signed until tomorrow morning at the earliest, and apparently there's a real concern that some of the evidence we've collected might not be admissible in a criminal case." (15)

Veronica stands up, a little shaky, and pulls him into her arms. She feels him tense against her. "I can do it. Of course I'm not happy about it, but I'm all right. And I'm pissed as hell about all the girls who had to suffer through this. The real question is, do you think you can do it? I see how upset you are with me."

"I'm not upset with you," he lies, resting his head against hers.

She strokes his cheek gently. "Liar," she whispers in his ear. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked you to do this. I shouldn't be doing this." He starts to protest again, and she places a finger against his lips to silence him. "Please forgive me," she breathes into his ear. "I want us to be okay."

She feels him nodding, but his reticence is disturbing. Finally he whispers back, "You're right. It's awful what they do to the students here. You were brave to want to do this for them and for Hannah." More loudly, he says, "Please be careful, Veronica. I can't always get assigned to be with you. Some of the guys were pissed at me; I have to try to go with the flow a little more, or they're going to get me tossed out of here. If that happens, I won't be able to protect you at all."

He starts to pull away, but she holds on tightly and whispers in his ear, "I love you."

Logan pulls away. "You better get back in the chair." She sits down. He clicks on his flashlight again and begins to strap her into place. He carefully tightens the restraints to exactly the way they were when he came in. Veronica closes her eyes, trying to send him a message of love and gratitude. She feels his lips on hers, pressing clumsily in the dark, and then he leaves, as quietly and quickly as he entered.

Veronica thinks morosely, _Since when am I the one saying 'I love you' without a response?_

Wed. 3/11/09 early evening: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Logan and Dave are in the cafeteria, watching the girls eat their dinner. Logan jokes, "You know, half of the girls would probably be on a diet anyways if they weren't here at the school."

Dave laughs. "Yeah, I know. And there's always some fucking liberal do-gooder hassling us that we're being too tough on the girls. Did you hear what Blondie said in group today?"

"No," Logan replies. _Blondie's what the guys call Tara._

"She finally admitted she's been stealing from her parents for years, sneaking out and getting high with some older guy who turned her on to ecstasy. And she said she was lying about the guy who got arrested with her; it was all her idea to break into the house–said she wanted to get high and have sex in the jacuzzi. Man, that girl is fucked up," Dave says, laughing. "She got here just in time."

_Every story she tells sounds less like the truth than the last one._ He thinks about the tales that Hannah must have made up to try to satisfy her inquisitors. Then he morosely thinks that a boyfriend accused of murder, wearing an ankle monitor and prone to fighting with gang members, would have been deliciously interesting to these fucks. _A boyfriend with a statutory rapist slash accused murderer father...they probably criticized her endlessly for pursuing a bad boy like Logan Echolls._ Logan tries to say offhandedly, "What's the craziest story you've ever heard here?"

"Oh, you should have heard the bullshit Maria used to spin when she got here. She used to claim that her father was a big deal politician who used to rape her and beat her when she threatened to tell about it. Can you believe it, she even said her father forced her to have an abortion when she got pregnant. Maria showed us some scar on her arm and claimed that he put out a cigarette on her when she tried to meet with a reporter to expose her father."

"Her dad's a politician?" Logan repeats.

"Yeah, that's what she said in the beginning, but after a few months in and out of Observation Placement, she finally admitted that her father wasn't a politician and she was making up the whole thing for attention. Maria confessed that the burn scar was just an accident with a hot crackpipe when she was high."

_Yeah, I bet._ "So you've been working here a long time? Maria's an oldcomer, that means..." Logan says leadingly.

"Yeah, I've been here about five years."

_I have to try to get him to talk about Hannah somehow. _"Don't you get burned out on this? I don't know, discouraged, because all these girls are so screwed up?"

"No, come on man, it's great when someone as fucked up as Maria was turns it around and begins to help a new girl like Connie McConArtist. Maria's totally taken responsibility for her life; she's going to graduate soon, and I think she's going to make it. She's embraced the program. ...Hey, speaking of our little con artist, we got to go let her out. Remember what I told you. Follow the procedure to the letter, and don't engage her verbally. Ignore her, and she'll shut her yap eventually." Dave walks out of the cafeteria with Logan close behind.

Logan begins to hyperventilate; _I'm really not ready for this._

Dave unlocks the door, and Veronica starts awake, obviously half-dozing although Logan sees that she looks very uncomfortable. "Hello, Connie," Dave says. "I'm expecting you to behave yourself. I know you want to get out of those restraints as soon as possible."

"I see you brought your pet nazi," Veronica replies. She smirks, "Going to try to cop a feel again, you pervert?"

Dave notices Logan's distress and warningly shakes his head 'no'. He says, "Okay, Roger, remember, we start with the feet."

"Oh my god, I get it now, you're the new guy. Is that why you roughed me up last night, you fucker?" Veronica spits. "You're twice my size, asshole. You didn't have to be such a douchebag."

"Connie. Keep your mouth shut, or we'll shut it for you," Dave says menacingly. "And don't forget, I have some input on how long you're in these restraints."

_So much for not engaging her verbally, Dave. _Logan huffs out a breath and thinks, _It's just a role I'm playing. This is just like back at UCLA in acting class, and this is just a role. And Veronica's playing a role too: she's just making sure she stays in restraints until the court order is in effect. It's got to be hard–it's got to be fucking impossible–to continually lash out at them knowing that... But she must be okay, or she would have stopped this before when I talked to her._

Dave points at Veronica's legs, and Logan unties one restraint; keeping his body weight pressed against the free leg, he unties the other and then holds it firmly in place as well. Dave checks that Logan is ready, then he unties her left arm. Logan takes the free arm, still maintaining his body weight on Veronica's legs.

"You're hurting me, you fucker," Veronica protests, struggling a little against Logan's weight on her legs. Dave stares at her; he suddenly puts his hand on Veronica's chest and pushes her viciously backward against the chair. Logan almost loses his grip on her arm by the violence of it.

Veronica is surprised by the maneuver, and the wind is knocked out of her. She starts to cry; Dave moves his grip to her neck and tightens his hand enough that Veronica feels some pressure on her windpipe. "Shut the fuck up, you little con artist. We know all your tricks here. We've seen 'em before, and we know how to handle them...Gonna control yourself, cunt?"

Logan flinches a little at the word, but keeps concentrating on _'it's just a role, it's just a role' _as he holds her in place during Dave's speech. Veronica, her eyes squeezed shut, nods her head slightly in response to Dave.

Dave keeps his hand on her neck and unties her remaining wrist one-handed. He nods to Logan, and Logan cautiously releases Veronica's legs. "Roger, the closet outside. Get the bucket." Dave holds Veronica tightly by her neck and wrist.

_Fuck! What's he doing now? _Logan gets the bucket from the closet and returns to the room. He looks at Veronica, whose eyes are still closed tightly; she appears to be breathing shallowly against the pressure on her neck from Dave's hand. Dave points at the floor with his chin, and Logan puts the bucket in front of Veronica. Dave lifts Veronica out of the chair; she stumbles on her numb limbs and falls. Dave catches her under her armpit and pulls her up to a standing position. Veronica is sobbing loudly.

"You act like an animal, you get treated like an animal." Dave releases Veronica's neck but maintains his intimidating stance. He points at the bucket, and Veronica shakes her head 'no'. "Let's go!" He roughly pushes her again, and Veronica stumbles to the floor.

Dave reaches for her neck again, but Veronica cowers, putting up her hands to try to protect herself. In a small voice, she whispers, "Please. I'll behave." She slowly gets up and looks from Dave to Logan and back. With the bleakest look Logan's ever seen on her face, she pulls down her sweatpants and squats over the bucket. Dave keeps his eyes trained on her; Veronica catches his glance and whispers, "Please...don't look." Her voice drops even lower, repeating, "Please."

Dave laughs. "You stupid cunt. Like I want to look at your snatch! You're filth, a fucking animal. You're not even worth looking at."

Veronica has desperately needed to pee for hours but is finding it difficult to release her bladder with the two of them staring at her. She can't even look at Logan. _I feel so ashamed. Why do I feel so ashamed?_ Finally, she manages to empty her bladder; she knows her face is blazing red with humiliation, and the sound of her pee hitting the bottom of the plastic bucket seems loud in the tensely silent room. After she finishes, she stays squatting for a moment, keeping her face lowered away from Dave's stare. She stands up slowly, trying futilely to pull up her sweats to cover herself as soon as possible. She looks at Dave's face and, without saying a word, goes back to the chair and puts her arms and legs in position for the restraints.

Logan is completely unable to look at her face. Dave's powerful control of the situation is palpable; the room reeks of testerone and fear. He desperately wishes that Dave will be the one to retie the restraints, but Dave just motions with his chin, and Logan moves to the chair and begins to tighten the straps around Veroinca's limbs. Dave checks the tension on the wrist straps and shakes his head disapprovingly; Logan reluctantly tightens the straps more than they had been before. Veronica's head droops, her eyes still tightly shut with tears streaming down her cheeks. Logan finishes tying her ankles and straightens up; he moves to take the bucket, but Dave shakes his head and mutters, "Leave it for her to smell all night long...so she remembers."

The two men shut off the light and leave the room. Dave doublechecks that the door is locked behind them. He says, "I see why she was getting to you. It's always the smart ones who are the toughest; they think they can manipulate us, but they just make it harder on themselves. You got to remember; the girls like Connie need the program the most. They're never going to accept that they're addicts without our help. What we did, what she _made_ us do to her...it's really the ultimate gift to help someone understand their flaws. When she accepts our love, she'll finally get on track." He claps Logan on the back. "You did great. The next time it'll be easier."

_That's what I'm afraid of, _Logan thinks.

When the door shuts, Veronica allows herself to react emotionally. She cries, sobbing and shaking. She tries not to let the smell of her urine bother her but fails completely.

Then she remembers that Carrie was listening to the whole scene, and in fact is listening right now to her mental breakdown. She takes several deep breaths; she remembers that she has an escape if it gets to be too much, and even more importantly, she remembers that another girl in this situation wouldn't have her escape options. Veronica knows that her dad is probably discussing her mental state with Dr. Kinny at this very moment, and her old nemesis is probably gloating at Veronica's humiliation and distress. She takes one more deep breath, shaking a little as she tries to calm her adrenaline-ravaged body, and then begins to perform the breathing exercises that have gotten her through this so far. With each long controlled breath in, she thinks, _I'm going to put every one of these fuckers in prison,_ and with each breath out, she thinks, _No girl will ever go through this again._

With each repetition of the breathing exercise, she regains a measure of control. Finally, when she knows her voice will be completely steady and unwavering, she announces, "I'm all right. I'm all right. Don't you dare stop this now. I'm going to nail these fuckers. Dad, I'm fine. There's not going to be a jury in the country who won't be able to see how fucked-up this is. They are messing with the wrong bitch this time."

_I'm only lying a little_, she thinks.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Black Hole**  
Weevil and Wallace on a stakeout; Veronica  
gets special attention; Duncan stands idly by.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Carrie: Amber Heard. Eli: Francis Capra.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Duncan 2.0: Chris  
Carmack. Klein: Clancy Brown. Epstein: Scott  
Grimes. Dr. Kinny: Dan Castellaneta. Agent  
Lynley: James Badge Dale. Dave: Jason Wiles.  
Father Patrick: James Joseph O'Neill.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SEVENTY-THREE: "THE BLACK HOLE"

Wed. 3/11/09 early evening: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

When the silence is broken by Veronica's speech declaring her intention to keep going, the entire room breathes a sigh of relief. Keith notes that Carrie, who originally chattered incessantly when she first joined them in the house, appears to be completely shocked by the audio drama that they are listening to.

Epstein for once has not been pushing Keith to continue the operation. It is the newest arrival, Agent Lynley, having arrived just in time from Boston to hear the sick scene, who is encouraging Keith to keep it going. "Keith, this is serious stuff. This is institutionalized child abuse. Some of these schools are being recommended by state juvenile authorities as alternatives to incarceration. Your daughter is doing an incredible job. The Bureau really screwed up, letting her get away."

_You got that right, _Keith thinks,_ but if I have anything to say about it, she's not going to have the FBI in her future._ He's incredibly proud of Veronica despite his concerns for her safety, and every distressing scene that plays out on their audio or video monitors makes him even more committed to gathering the evidence to put Klein and his employees behind bars.

Carrie watches the exchanges between the four men; she takes out a notebook and begins scribbling notes, documenting the emotional conflicts between the team. Lynley gave his conditional approval to her involvement when Keith explained the deal he had made with her. The agent called his assistant in Boston and asked for a legal agreement to be drafted between Carrie and the FBI, ensuring her cooperation and preventing her from publishing until arrests are made. It's obvious to everyone in the room that Carrie is completely convinced that this will be a career-making story; Keith hopes it's enough to keep her from causing more problems for Logan and his daughter.

Wed. 3/11/09 early evening: Paddy's Car Parts and Used Car Emporium, Neptune, CA

Weevil and Wallace sit in a nondescript vehicle borrowed from Weevil's Uncle Angel down the street. Wallace watches through binoculars while Weevil cracks open a forty.

"Amateur," Wallace comments.

"What?" Weevil says crossly.

"Any professional detective will tell you you don't want to drink a beer on a stakeout. It just means another bathroom break when you might miss something."

Weevil scoffs. "So I'll fill the bottle right back up if necessary."

Wallace makes a disgusted face, and Weevil continues, "How did you ever get a girlfriend anyways? Veronica's got you completely pussy-whipped, and you're not even sleeping together. I suppose you had to get Veronica's permission to even go out on a date."

Wallace flushes, remembering that he did get Veronica to check out Candice before he asked her out, and of course, Veronica had assisted him with a bump-and-dump to simulate a chance meeting. "I'm not ashamed of my friendship with Veronica. She's got my back, just like she's got yours. I seem to remember you running to her for help when you got accused of making forged campus ID cards."

Weevil wisely remains silent, not wanting to explore the topic and inadvertently reveal that he still has one of the card encryption devices. "Hey, uh, good job in the game last night. Nice dunk at the top of the half...pretty good for a hobbit like yourself."

"You know, the girls appreciate a guy who tries a little harder. You might keep that in mind, next time you wonder why the girls aren't coming back for more."

"There's nothing a 'little' hard about me, motherfucker, and if they don't come back for more, it's 'cause I wore it out." Weevil laughs and mimics a pelvic thrust.

Wallace chuckles and puts the binoculars up again to surveil the scene. "Tell me again what you heard."

"My uncle heard that Liam was taking delivery on three cherry Beemers...all totally tricked out and ready for 'repurposing'," Weevil says sarcastically.

"And your uncle heard this..." Wallace says leadingly.

"Okay, you got me; my bad, Wally. My uncle tried to get 'em, and Liam outbid him. It's not like you don't know that we got this from a chopshop," Weevil retorts, motioning to indicate their current ride. "I wish I could get Veronica to take one of his cars, something with a little more cojones than that vanilla Saturn."

Wallace snorts. "I think Logan's taking care of the cojones department."

"He likes to think so, but we all know who wears the pantalones in that relationship," Weevil replies, laughing.

Still chuckling, Wallace looks through the binoculars again and interrupts Weevil's mirth. "Hey, shut up. It's going down."

"What's happening? Give me the specs." Wallace passes over the binoculars. "Shit, I hate that fucking mick. I just want to pound him into the ground every time I see him. He's got that cock-sucking, shit-eating grin on his face like usual. I'm really looking forward to sending him to Chino, where Emilio and la Eme can give him the big picture. ¡Rifamos!"

Wallace isn't quite sure what 'rifamos' means, but the context is clear: revenge. He steals a look at Weevil's determined face and wonders just what the hell he's gotten himself into. _How did I get from finding Shawn's murderer to a Latino beatdown?_

Wed. 3/11/09 evening: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica hears the door being unlocked. She is a lot calmer now, having spent the last few hours doing mental arithmetic exercises and relaxation techniques. _I don't think six hours have gone by...Logan?_ she hopes.

Peter Klein walks into the room and flips on the light switch. He pulls in a chair from the hallway and, placing it squarely in front of Veronica, sits down and looks at her without speaking.

Veronica stares back. She knows that Klein probably heard about what happened during her last bathroom 'break' and assumes he will expect her to be upset. She thinks about how frustrated she is, how furious she is at Klein and the school, how sad and worried she is about Logan, and she lets her face exhibit her raging emotions. She thinks about poor Hannah, killed viciously after suffering through this nightmare, and Maria, probably warped for life by her experience here, and Veronica begins to cry.

"Feeling a little out of control, Connie?" Klein says abruptly.

Veronica drops her eyes, trying to appear upset. Her voice quivering, she spits out, "You decided to send in the big guns?"

Klein continues to stare at her without speaking. "It's probably the first time in your life you couldn't exploit the situation to your advantage. Right, Connie? How do like the smell of your urine? If you want, we can eliminate the bathroom breaks all together."

_Careful, Veronica!_ Then she thinks, _Fuck it!_ and she says calmly and spitefully, "Fuck you...When my dad hears about this, he's going to have you arrested."

"Now that's funny, Connie. I just called your dad. I told him your problems were more serious than we thought, and we're recommending no contact with family or friends for at least six months. He was pretty upset when I told him you've been physically assaulting the guards here and using foul language non-stop."

"You FUCKER! Six months!! SIX FUCKING MONTHS!!" she screams.

"You just proved my point about the foul language. Of course, if you'd like, you can spend the whole six months in that chair," Klein says calmly.

Veronica swallows. _He means it._

Klein watches her for five minutes, seemingly daring her to speak again. Finally, he says, "I'd like you to tell me what you're thinking, Connie."

Under her breath, she can't help but say, "I'm thinking this is fucked-up."

"Couldn't hear that, Connie. But I bet it was more bullshit," Klein replies. "Try again."

Veronica ponders her next move. _I need to stay in restraints for another twenty-four hours. But no longer...and I don't want...I can't do something that will make him...eliminate my breaks. _The thought of sitting in her own feces is too much for her, and she decides to take the chance that acting out before was enough to continue the restraints.

"I don't know," she says.

"First honest thing I've heard out of your mouth, Connie."

"Can you tell me," she says hesitantly, "How is this supposed to help me?" She flinches at Klein's angry expression and rushes to add, "Please don't!...I mean...I want to know how to do better. How is," she swallows again, "how is this going to help me?" _Come on, say it for the wire, fucker._

Klein leans toward her. "You're an addict, Connie. You're addicted to everything about using: the thrill of planning how you're going to get high, the excitement of shoplifting to get the money to buy your drugs, the orgasm you feel when you get away with it again. Every time you use someone, every time you lie to get high, it almost, but not quite, fills up the black hole inside of you...that gaping hole where most people have a conscience. But you don't have a conscience, do you? You just do whatever the fuck you want, whenever you want, and you expect everyone to just tolerate it. And it feels like something. You know it's not right, but it's the best you can do, so you hang onto it. You use again and you hurt everyone around you, because their hatred and disgust at your behavior feels better than that big hole inside of you. The hole gets a little bigger every time you get high, so it's even harder to fill it up. So you work harder to fuck up your world, so that the hole feels filled, just for a moment, before you have to start working again to find your next fix. And then you realize that no one loves you anymore, and you've made it worse. So you start all over again."

"My dad loves me," Veronica says tremulously. "I know my dad loves me."

"Not any more," Klein replies, shaking his head.

"What? I _know_ my dad loves me."

"No. He told me he can't love you anymore. All he can do is try to keep you from hurting other people. He's given up on stopping you from hurting yourself; he just doesn't want to see it. So he's locked you up here, sort of a last ditch effort, hoping maybe, just maybe, he's wrong about you...that there might be something worth saving after all."

Klein stands up and paces around the room. Even knowing he's lying, _lying through his motherfucking teeth_, Veronica begins to cry profusely at the thought of her dad giving up on her, the thought of anyone's dad giving up on their daughter. _ 'You played ME, Veronica...I don't know how I'm ever going to trust you again.'_ She tries desperately to focus on Klein again.

"You need to accept that we're the only people who love you anymore, and we're the only people who have any answers for you, because we've been through it. I know about your black hole, because of my black hole. It's what every addict's soul is like. There's no hope for you unless you accept the program. Think about it, Connie."

Klein picks up the chair, shuts off the light, and leaves the room. Veronica hears the door lock behind him and closes her eyes, allowing the tears to stream freely down her face. It takes an hour for her thinking to clear enough to realize that she's succeeded in being restrained for yet another day.

Wed. 3/11/09 evening: Paddy's Car Parts and Used Car Emporium, Neptune, CA

After an hour of tense waiting, Weevil and Wallace see a large semi truck approaching. The truck stops in the parking lot of Paddy's, and several men begin to unload a vehicle. Watching through the binoculars, Weevil confirms that it's a BMW. He nods at Wallace, and Wallace hits the speed dial on his disposable cell phone that he preprogrammed with the number of the Neptune Sheriff's Department. He puts on a thick Jamaican accent and says, "Ya, mon, I'd like to report a crime. The used car dealership on Third Avenue, Paddy's. I tink dey might be stealin' de cars or dealin' de drugs. I know I saw guns. Better be gettin' here quick, mon, look like dey be arguin' now." Wallace terminates the call before Deputy Sacks can ask for details.

Weevil rolls his eyes. "Jamaican?"

"Shut the fuck up, will you? Let's get over to St. Mary's," Wallace replies crossly. He starts the car and drives off. When they cross over the Coronado Bridge, Wallace opens the window and tosses the cell phone into the water. Weevil waves 'bye-bye' as Wallace guns the car's accelerator.

Wed. 3/11/09 late evening: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Several hours later, Dave and Logan come into the room again where Veronica is being held. Without incident, they release her restraints and take her to the bathroom.

Veronica is overwhelmingly relieved that she will be allowed to use a proper bathroom again. She makes no attempt to look at Logan directly. Dave watches her closely, expecting an outburst or physical resistance; at one point he nudges Logan when she pulls down her sweats without even trying to hide herself.

Logan doesn't even notice her immodesty; all he cares about is that Connie doesn't fight him and she keeps her mouth shut. He's completely exhausted by the stress of the day; Dave had kept him on duty several extra hours to take Logan through the procedure of the restraints again, and all Logan can think about is getting some sleep and some distance from the situation.

Veronica is returned to the chair for another long night, grateful for the solitude and darkness of the room.

Wed. 3/11/09 late evening: St. Mary's Church, Neptune, CA

Wallace opens up the Sonic Snoop program on one of Mars Investigations' laptops and accesses all the bugs he had located when he visited here the day before. Weevil watches in amazement as video feeds showing Father Patrick's office, the confessional booth, and the main altar of the church open up. "Shit, Keith wasn't fucking around. He's got the whole church covered."

"And the rectory," Wallace adds. "There are plenty of audio bugs too." On his own laptop, he doubleclicks on the icon for Mac's Bluetooth program.

"What's that?" Weevil asks.

"It's a program Mac wrote. It clones a computer using a Bluetooth keyboard to the screen here," Wallace explains.

"You mean, we can see whatever he's typing? Damn, that's good."

They settle in for what they hope won't be a long wait. Wallace calculates in his head; they called the Sheriff's department half an hour ago; it would have taken at least ten or fifteen minutes for a cruiser to respond. Assuming an arrest was made, the booking process might take as long as two hours. Wallace is betting that Liam won't want to spend the night in jail, and he'll contact his brother as soon as he's given the opportunity.

Weevil turns on the radio at one point, yawning in boredom. At Wallace's expression, he turns off the radio and begins to play with the Sonic Snoop interface, switching from one camera view to the next. "I bet we could get some pretty interesting video in the confession booth."

"Not exactly our priority," Wallace mumbles.

"Good porn is always a priority," Weevil retorts. "Especially if you know the girl."

"You're sick, okay?"

"You ain't seen nothing if you haven't watched a horny Catholic schoolgirl coming on to a priest," Weevil laughs. "And I'll bet Father Patrick loves to take confession from the Mexican girls. 'Ay, mami, chúpame, chúpame. Now say ten Hail Marys; all is forgiven.'"

"You kiss your mother with that mouth?"

"Not any more," Weevil replies shortly. Wallace looks over, realizing he has hit an unintended nerve.

They hear a phone ring from the speakers on the laptop. Wallace turns up the gain, and they listen. On the video, they see Patrick enter his office, clad in pajamas. Patrick picks up the phone and listens.

_'Patrick...I've been arrested. I'm the guest of the fine gentlemen of the Neptune Sheriff's Department. Call that shyster lawyer and you-know-who. It's a bullshit charge, receiving stolen goods. I need to get out of here by morning. You got it?'_

Wallace and Weevil exchange a glance.

Father Patrick hangs up and makes another call. They listen to a short conversation between Patrick and Stephen Tramser, a local attorney well known to Mars Investigations as one of Neptune's most competent but completely immoral criminal defense attorneys.

"Do you think it's this guy?" Wallace asks doubtfully.

"No, Emilio said it was a cop for sure," Weevil says.

They wait, watching as Father Patrick hangs up and boots up his computer. Wallace turns his attention to the other laptop running Mac's program.

ctrl N

roastbeefmanATyahoo•com tab tab Re: LF tab tab L arrested tonight by NSD, receiving stolen goods. Need you to intercede if possible. return alt S

Wallace looks at Weevil. "Roastbeefman? Any clue who that would be?"

"Hell no...If you were Mac, what would you do to find out who roastbeefman is?"

Wallace ponders. "If we were the cops, we could try to get the internet service provider to tell us what address that was sent to. Of course, it's a yahoo address. It could be accessed from any computer. There's no identity verification required to set up an account like that."

"We could watch the Sheriff's Department...see if anybody shows up," Weevil suggests.

"I think they're smarter than that. Hell, they got Liam off for racketeering before. That's some serious pull."

"Still, what else do we got? Let's set up near the Sheriff's Department. We can follow Liam when he gets released."

Wallace nods in agreement, not knowing what else to do.

Thurs. 3/12/09 early morning: Duncan Kane residence, outskirts of Neptune, CA

Duncan wakes up before the alarm again. He glances at the clock and rolls over, trying to get some more sleep. He gives up twenty minutes later. Today's meeting with his attorneys to prepare for the hearing next week is too important for him to sleep.

The new house doesn't feel like home yet. When Duncan isn't working on his custody case, he tries to keep himself busy by doing little projects around the house. Yesterday, he spent the entire day painting a pink-flowered border around the walls of his daughter's room. _At least, I hope..._ He resolutely pushes the thought aside. _I'm going to get custody. No judge could think that Rose Manning is a suitable mother, and...they're going to see that I didn't have a choice. I had to run with Lilly!_ He walks around his daughter's bedroom, trying to imagine her sleeping in the bed and himself coming in every morning to wake her up for school, maybe even getting mad at her for acting like her Aunt Lilly and running around with bad boys like Uncle Logan.

He takes a shower and dresses carefully for the meeting. His attorneys have suggested that he do an interview with the local paper, trying for some sympathetic publicity before the hearing, but Duncan is leery of exposing himself and his daughter that way and extremely nervous that the tactic will somehow backfire. He pours some cereal and gets the morning paper from the front door.

He unfolds the paper to scan the headlines. The lead story, in the largest point size ever used by the Neptune Register, reads, "Woman found murdered in Waterside Park." Next to the article is a large photo, obviously taken from a passport, of a beautiful blonde woman. The caption reads, 'Katerina Beversdorf'.

_Kendall...why the fuck didn't you get out of town when you could?_

Duncan reads the article. Sheriff D'Amato is quoted as saying that the woman was using apparently an alias, and that the department was expecting confirmation of the woman's true identity from the FBI.

Duncan thinks about the photo still on his cell phone of Kendall meeting with someone in the playground. He gets his phone intending to delete the photo immediately–_'fuck her'_–but hesitates. _I never talked to Veronica._ He dials Veronica's home and cell phone again with no answer.

Duncan drums his fingertips on the table, trying to decide what to do. His thumb hovers over the 'delete' option on his cell phone. He snaps the phone shut, then reopens it, debating what he should do. _I don't want to get involved with this with the hearing coming up next week. The last thing I want is to explain how I know 'Katerina'. Fuck, I don't even want to explain how I know 'Kendall'._

* * *

"L.O.V.E. or Letting Go of Virtually Everthing" is an actual slogan used by Alcoholics Anonyous.

la Eme-Mexican Mafia, a Mexican prison gang ("Eme" is the letter M in Spanish).  
give him the big picture-to 'hit' someone, implying a permanent solution in this case  
Rifamos-We control, we're down for anything, and we don't give a fuck.  
chúpame-suck me

* * *

(14) Larry Craig is a U.S. Senator who was arrested for 'lewd conduct' in a public bathroom (basically, solicitation).  
en•wikipedia•orgSLASHwikiSLASHLarryUNDERSCORECraig

(15) More legal stuff for the picky reader about the admissibility of evidence collected by Veronica and the rest of the team at Briar Hill: I've read a lot of articles about the legality and admissibility of evidence collected by a private citizen, such as a private detective. Again, please note, I am not a lawyer, and I did not consult an attorney, just various web sources of varying degrees of accuracy. If any attorneys are reading this and I've gotten it wrong, please let me know right away; I'll try to fix it and salvage my future plot twists.

It sounds to me that the 'exclusionary rule', based on the U.S. Constitution's Fourth Amendment that guarantees protection against unreasonable searches and seizures, which is a common plot device in American crime television and fiction, is primarily applicable to government employees. Police officers and federal agents are not allowed to gather evidence without prior authorization based on 'probable cause', in other words a judge must determine that there is reasonably sufficient evidence to presume that a target should be investigated and their property and personal belongings searched, unless a felony or misdemeanor in progress is actually witnessed by the law enforcement person. Electronic recordings without the permission of the person being taped would not be properly be admissible if conducted by a law enforcement person: "in strict cases, when an illegal action is used by police/prosecution to gain any incriminating result, all evidence whose recovery stemmed from the illegal action–this evidence is known as "fruit of the poisonous tree"–can be thrown out from a jury (or be grounds for a mistrial if too much information has been irrevocably revealed)."  
en•wikipedia•orgSLASHwikiSLASHExclusionaryUNDERSCORErule; accessed 7/29/08

This exclusionary principle does not apply to civil proceedings, such as a class action lawsuit like the one originally being pursued by my character, the attorney Epstein. In general, the rules of evidence are less strict in civil cases than in criminal, and the burden of proof is lower (witness for example, the criminal acquittal of O.J. Simpson for the murder of his ex-wife vs. the successful civil judgment against him, see en•wikipedia•orgSLASHwikiSLASHO.UNDERSCOREJ.UNDERSCORESimpson; accessed 7/29/08.

However, a private citizen, such as a private detective, can give evidence, including unauthorized recordings, in a criminal proceeding, generally without fear that the evidence will be excluded. From the same Wikipedia article, "Evidence unlawfully obtained from the defendant by a private person is admissible. The exclusionary rule is designed to protect privacy rights, with the Fourth Amendment applying specifically to government officials." The private person is, however, subject to tort remedies, i.e., Briar Hill Academy could sue Keith for damages subsequent to the violation of its reasonable expectation for privacy. Also, in a civil case, unauthorized recordings can also be used as rebuttal evidence against witness testimony; for instance, if Klein testifies in a civil proceeding that restraints are not used as a punishment, Epstein can introduce the videotaped evidence that Veronica was held in restraints.

I'm basing my plot on Keith preferring to bring in the government to prevent any allegations of misconduct on his and Veronica's part and also hoping to ensure that any evidence is irrefutable by the defendant's claims of illegal wiretapping or surveillance. If a federal judge signs a warrant and federal agents supervise any evidence collection, Keith has some protection against a retributory lawsuit, and a federal agent will ensure that the 'chain of custody' is unbroken (i.e., the evidence is maintained securely and continually by a law enforcement official). Of course, a federal prosecution against Klein and Briar Hill Academy has more chance of successfully shutting down the school and possibly leading to better legislation regarding private schools.

Note that private investigators cannot tap phones legally and are not allowed to access an individual's criminal record, and they are not allowed to use information gained by unauthorized recordings to blackmail (which is considered a violation of racketeering statutes) or to commit corporate espionage. There was a recent case of the so-called 'Private Detective to the Stars', Anthony Pellicano, a Los Angeles private detective who was found guilty on charges such as these. (You can find the article by googling 'Private Detective to the Stars' and New York Times; fanfiction won't allow this kind of url, no matter how creative I am with '•' and 'SLASH'.) Both Veronica and Keith, as licensed private detectives, and Keith as an ex-law enforcement official as well, would be aware of these fine points of criminal law, and Epstein as an attorney would certainly be aware of the difficulties of evidentiary rules.


	25. Chapters 74 to 76

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. All opinions regarding real-life organizations expressed in this fic are the opinions of the characters only. You may or may not agree with the conclusions of the characters, and no harm or insult is intended to these real-life organizations, or to any participant, past, present, or future, in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall, who is also my assistant casting director, Sobertears, and Kazy. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

_SOME INFORMATION YOU MAY NEED TO UNDERSTAND A JOKE IN THIS UPDATE:_

_In the U.S., there is a big advertising push for drinkers to nominate one person in their party to not drink while the others imbibe; he or she will then be the one to drive everyone else home. This person is called the 'designated driver'. Also: when one is stopped by a policeman on suspicion of drunken driving (driving under the influence), one is often forced to 'blow' into a breathalyzer, an instrument that measures your blood alcohol through your breath. So we say that someone 'blows' an 0.8 or a 1.0 if they are legally drunk. Don't say VanessaGalore never taught you anything. Don't drink and drive, kids. (Oh...and I hear from kazy, who managed to stop flirting with all the boys on her vacation long enough to glance at the update, that in France, the designated driver is called 'SAM'. Hmm. Interesting.)_

* * *

Previously on Veronica Mars: The Year of Living Dangerously Part Two:

vanessagalore•livejournal•com/56403•html

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Cognitive Dissonance**  
Veronica in restraints; Candice confronts  
Wallace; Logan bonds with the other  
employees and is given more responsibility;  
some dissent among the monitoring team.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Carrie: Amber Heard.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Candice Pauling:  
Toy Connor. Maria: Gina Mantegna. Kavner:  
Eric Bana. Tony: Romany Malco. Epstein:  
Scott Grimes. Dr. Kinny: Dan Castellaneta.  
Dave: Jason Wiles. Larry: Ed Quinn. Alyssa:  
Christina Hendricks. Jim: Adrian Quinones.  
Agent Lynley: James Badge Dale.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SEVENTY-FOUR: "COGNITIVE DISSONANCE"

Thurs. 3/12/09 morning: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

_Must be about nine o'clock...Dad must be meeting with a judge now...I'd love to send these fuckers to jail. Bored...so tired. Wish I could fall asleep..._

_Try the relaxation exercises again–they worked yesterday. My feet are asleep again. Okay, relaxing my toes, even my pinky toes. Now I'm stretching them again, now I'm relaxing them completely, there's no pain, I don't feel pain, flex my feet, stretch them out, damn I'm hitting against the restraint. Feet. Fuck. ...remembering Logan grabbing my foot hard, hurting me, hurt me a lot...stop. stop. stop!_

_Deep breaths. In...one two three four five six seven eight nine ten...out...one two three four five six seven eight nine ten. Again..._

_Have to do this. Have to keep going. I can do this. I know I can do this. Have to do this. Now the FBI is watching me too...maybe even some of the people from the internship program. Got to do a good job, got to keep going. There's no way I can get hurt with all these people watching me. Have to do this. It's only for...a few more days. For...a few more days. Fuck! Breathe, Veronica._

_Think... Think of a good time. Logan doing a strip dance for me. "Pretty good for a gimp." He puts his hands behind his head and thrusts his pelvis at me. I close my eyes and smile, thinking about making love with him, the way he feels inside me. He's doing this for me, he's dancing for me...because he loves me. He always tells me how much he loves me. Love you, Logan, love the way you feel. I keep my eyes closed, picturing him doing a silly dance for me..._

_"Open your eyes, Veronica. I'll fuck you until you're black and blue if I have to. You're not going to ruin us. You're going to keep your promise to me. You're. Going. To. Be. Careful."_

_What?? I am being careful. Why are you yelling at me? I am being careful! I haven't said a word since...since the bucket. You know I have to do this. I have to do this. All these people are watching me. I'm being as careful as I can. You're not being fair!_

_"Look, I don't give a rat's ass if it's fair. I don't care if you're angry. I care that you're safe."_

_Logan, it's not like this is all some new facet of my personality. You know who I am! You know what I do. And you know I'm doing this for you too._

_Logan's staring at me, refusing to answer. He turns to leave, and Dave points at the bucket and says, "Leave it for her to smell all night long...so she remembers."_

_Logan, don't do it...I'm not...I'm not an animal, or a user, or whatever they're calling me now. You're supposed to...you're supposed to protect me. I try to make him understand with my eyes when he looks at me. Damn, wish I could scratch my cheek, show him how much...fuck! Please, Logan...try to understand..._

_Logan says, "You stupid cunt. You're filth, a fucking animal. You're not even worth looking at." Dave high-fives him, and they laugh as they leave the room._

_I can't look at him anymore, and I close my eyes again. It's not true...not true not true not true true true truuuuue_

Thurs. 3/12/09 late morning: Hearst College dormitory, Neptune, CA

Wallace starts awake, realizing that someone is knocking on his door. He throws on a t-shirt over his shorts and answers the door. Candice is bearing two cups of coffee and a croissant.

She sits on the bed and says hesitantly, "What happened last night?"

Wallace shrugs. He takes one of the cups from her and joins her on the bed. "Nothing. We got Liam arrested. And we found out that the Fitzpatricks make contact with someone through a Yahoo account. But I don't know how that helps. We watched the Sheriff's department until nine a.m. this morning when Father Patrick must have finally put up the bail for Liam. Liam was cursing him out for taking so long to make bail."

Candice looks down.

"What?" Wallace asks.

She shakes her head 'no', and he touches her shoulder. Finally she looks up and says, "I want you to stop this. In the beginning, I just wanted to know if there was any chance Shawn was alive...if he maybe was hurt somewhere and needed help or...I don't know. Now, what you're doing with your friend Eli..." She begins to cry. "I don't want you or Eli to get hurt. I want you to stop this. I don't care if Shawn's killer is ever caught. Shawn was mixed up with bad people and was dealing drugs. He wasn't a blameless victim."

"But–"

"No. I want you to stop. Look at you...you're exhausted. You have another playoff game tomorrow night. You have practice in an hour, and you're a mess. Wallace...I'm not like your friend Veronica. I don't need to see Shawn's killer punished, especially if it means that you might get hurt."

"We actually found out a lot–"

Candice says firmly, "Then you can show it to Mr. Mars when he returns to Neptune. See what he says. You told me you trusted him."

Wallace nods.

"Will you promise me?" she asks. Candice strokes his face. "I believe in forgiveness. I don't believe in vengeance. Promise me, Wallace."

"All right, I'll talk to Keith when he comes back, and I'll leave it alone until then," Wallace replies, taking her in a hug.

Thurs. 3/12/09 early afternnon: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Some of the second-shift employees are sitting around a table in the employee dining room, waiting to go on shift. Dave asks, "So what's the difference between a drunk and an alcoholic?"

Larry nods and says, "The drunk doesn't have to go to a meeting."

Dave and Jim laugh uproariously. Logan smiles, trying to get the humor. Dave nudges him. "C'mon, man."

"Yeah, that's funny. The drunk doesn't have to go to a meeting." Logan thinks a minute and says, "I got one for you. A Highway Patrolman is waiting outside a bar, hoping for an easy bust. At closing time everyone starts coming out, and the cop spots his potential quarry. This guy is so smashed that he can barely walk. He stumbles around the parking lot for a few minutes, looking for his car."

Logan continues, "After trying his keys on five other cars, he finally finds his own vehicle. He sits in the car for a good ten minutes, as the other patrons leave. He turns his headlights on, then off, then the wipers on, then off. He starts to pull forward into the grass, then stops.

"Finally, when he's the last car in the parking lot, he pulls out onto the road and starts to drive away.

"The patrolman, waiting for this, turns on his flashers and pulls the man over. He administers the breathalyzer test, and to his great surprise, the man blows a 0.00.

"The patrolman is dumbfounded. He says, 'This equipment must be broken!'.

"The man replies, 'I doubt it. Tonight I am the designated decoy!'" Logan smiles as the others laugh uproariously.

"Designated decoy, yeah, that's good, Roger," Jim repeats. "Been there, man. You know what they say, you might be an alcoholic if you lose your car at least once a week."

"Yeah, or if the toilet seat keeps hitting you on the back of the head," Larry adds.

Logan snorts in response.

Dave stands up and stretches. "C'mon, we gotta get going here. Hey, Roger, did you hear? They're letting out your girlfriend."

"What?" Logan says without thinking.

"Yeah, you know, Connie McConArtist, your special girl. I guess Klein had a little talk with her last night. Sounds like he's making her his personal project. I know you're a little in love with her...heard you like 'em feisty," Dave says knowingly, punching Logan lightly in the shoulder. The other two laugh loudly.

"Yeah, right. Sorry, the tattoos are a turnoff," Logan replies, trying to recover.

When they meet up with Tony, he assesses Logan for a moment, then says to Dave, "If you think he's ready...I'd like Roger to find Maria and get Connie out of the restraints. We're going to try to put her back on the regular schedule, see what the restraints did for her."

Dave says, "Yeah, absolutely he's ready. I think he knows how to handle her now. Besides, Connie's really calmed down. The restraints were good for her."

Tony looks at Logan carefully, who nods that he's ready for the responsibility. "Okay. Go get Maria. She's doing chores in the common room."

When Logan and Maria enter the room where Veronica is being held, Logan is shocked at Veronica's appearance. _Connie looks exhausted and scared._ Veronica carefully avoids looking at Logan.

Despite Veronica's haggard appearance, Maria says, "Connie, looks like you've had a productive time here in restraints. Love you, Connie."

Logan glances at Maria, wondering why she thinks Connie had a 'productive' time. He walks over to Connie and releases the restraints. She sits looking from Maria to Logan and back, waiting for a direction.

"Good girl, Connie," Maria says approvingly. "We're going to try to let you be off the tether. Just remember, you have to stay within six feet of me at all times. No talking and no physical contact with any of the other girls, especially the newcomers. Do you got it?"

Veronica nods slowly without saying a word.

"Stand up," Maria instructs. When Veronica pushes herself out of the chair, she is unsteady and obviously stiff, and she hangs onto the chair arm for a minute until she regains her balance. Maria walks over and hugs her. "You know, it's an act of love to prod someone in their emotional sore spot. I love you, Connie."

Veronica replies dutifully, "Love you too, Maria. I really want to do better." She looks at Logan and adds impulsively, "I'm...I'm sorry I hurt you the other night. I was wrong to do that. I'm sorry." She turns back to Maria suddenly and blurts out hurriedly, "I'm sorry, I should have asked permission, I just thought...I wanted him to know I was sorry. Please, Maria, I'm trying to do better."

Maria frowns and says, "Don't do it again." She puts her arm around Veronica's waist and escorts her out of the room. Logan follows closely, watching for any sign that Connie's going to try another escape.

On their way to join the other girls already in group therapy, they pass Kavner, just going off his own shift. Kavner nods at Logan. After he passes them, he slows down and turns around to observe surreptitiously. Logan turns back and meets his eyes briefly, then turns forward again.

Thurs. 3/12/09 afternoon: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Keith is watching the monitor when Maria escorts a redheaded girl into group therapy. It takes a split-second before he realizes that it's Veronica, looking more exhausted than he's ever seen her. Logan enters the room shortly thereafter and moves off camera. The cell phone rings, and he picks it up absently, thumbing the send button. "Keith Mars."

"Keith, it's me," Kavner replies.

"Yeah, we're just watching Veronica go into group. Is she as bad as she looks? I'm pretty concerned right now." Keith tries to hold his voice steady. Carrie, observing from the corner, takes a few notes. Agent Lynley looks up, noting the stress in Keith's voice.

"I don't know. For sure, she's exhausted. I doubt she got any sleep the last two nights. And I heard that Klein himself is taking an interest in her. Apparently, he visited her last night," Kavner says.

"We heard it all over the wire. It was completely brutal. Told her she had a black hole in her soul that she was trying to fill up with her using...told her that I said I didn't love her any more and wanted to lock her up so she couldn't hurt anybody else," Keith replies briefly. "Of course that's a complete lie. I haven't talked to anyone at the school since she was transported. I was told to check in after a week, which would be tomorrow."

"There's no way they'll tell you about the restraints when you call," Epstein adds.

"What's that?" Kavner asks on the phone.

"Epstein is just saying that they won't tell me about her punishments," Keith explains.

"Ask how Logan is doing," Dr. Kinny interjects. He walks over to listen in on the cell conversation.

"Dr. Kinny is asking about Logan," Keith repeats.

"Well...he was having a problem in the beginning fitting in with the other employees. Then he started hanging out with a few of them. The one guy, Dave...he seems really nice, a real clown who jokes around. He's buddies with everyone and always seems to be in a great mood."

"But?" Keith prompts.

"He's no better than the guys who act tough. If the girls act out, Dave's just as brutal as any of them...maybe even worse. And he's totally indoctrinated into the program, really believes in what he's doing like most of the other guys. Logan's...well, he's been hanging with Dave. It's good and bad. Logan's trying to fit in. He's doing a good job on the operation, but he seems a little off to me. I don't know him that well though; he's probably fine."

"Ask him to come by after his shift," Dr. Kinny suggests. "We can ask him directly about Veronica too. We just saw him escort her into group therapy."

"Did you get that, Kavner?" Keith asks. He is still keeping one eye on the video screen, watching his daughter being seated with the other girls. At one point, Maria turns around to speak to Veronica, who flinches in response.

Kinny sees it too. "She's physically scared of Maria."

"Or she's acting scared," Agent Lynley suggests.

"And she's tired," Keith comments. He turns his attention back to the cell phone. "Can you ask Logan to come meet with us after his shift?" Keith turns his back to the others in the room and speaks softly. "And...Ryan," he says, switching to Kavner's first name. "I'd like you to be ready...in case we need to get her out of there quickly."

"Will do, Keith. Don't worry, she's going to be fine."

_Hope so. _Keith terminates the call with a sigh and begins watching the group therapy session.

Epstein explains what's happening to Agent Lynley. "The girls have to sit in the chairs with their hands on their knees. When the counselor asks the girls to participate, they have to signal by pumping their arms in their air. No one can talk unless they're called upon. If someone wants to comment, they signal to the leader. If the girls don't participate enough, they'll be accused of choosing out, of choosing not to participate in their program. If it's deemed a serious violation, they'll get time added to their program."

Kinny adds, "And it's not just the quantity of participation. The girls are expected to regurgitate the slogans and philosophies of the program."

"What about the attack therapy you mentioned?" Lynley asks.

"We've seen a few instances where the leader and the other girls attacked the girl who was testifying for not being honest," Keith states.

"No story is sordid enough. There's a lot of talk about personal responsibility, but the truth is that the girls aren't allowed to progress unless they admit to tremendous moral failings: addiction, alcoholism, criminal behavior, prostitution, even acts of violence. They're rewarded when they falsify their life story by exaggerating their faults. They have to admit that they need to work a program like the school for the rest of their lives," Epstein explains.

"What about your daughter? What's her cover story?" Lynley inquires.

"I told them she was drinking and maybe taking drugs. She was arrested but not convicted of shoplifting, and her grades have dropped. I mentioned a bad boyfriend that I wanted to get her away from," Keith replies.

"Okay, but what about the stuff she's going to make up if they attack her for not being honest? Does she have a lot of stories worked out?" Lynley presses.

"We talked about it. She seemed confident she'd be able to judge the situation and admit to progressively worse sins," Keith answers hesitantly.

"You didn't coach her on this?"

"You don't know my daughter. I've watched her take on the persona of a secretary, a Hollywood casting agent, and even a dumped pregnant girl at the drop of a hat," Keith says defensively.

"This is a lot more serious than some P.I. shenanigans intended to nail an insurance cheat. How will you know if she's diverging from the plan?"

Keith is fuming. _Like I'm some cheap gumshoe, and Veronica's just a bimbo..._ He takes a breath and says, "I've explained the code words to you. And I have confidence in my daughter's abilities."

Epstein interjects, "I think Keith is right. We've been watching her. She knows the goals of the operation, and she's been able to think on her feet. Any kind of script that we would have made up would have had to have been thrown out the moment we saw what was really going on at the school. No one that we interviewed truly prepared us for what was actually going on. And Veronica has managed to document everything for us. I'm completely impressed with her abilities."

Kinny says quietly, "She and I did some additional work after you left Neptune, Keith. We did some role playing, and we ran some scenarios similar to the attack therapy. I got to know her style of improvising, and I feel confident I'll be able to interpret what we're seeing. I've been working in this field for twenty years."

The room is silent except for a low, droning voice from the speakers of the computer monitoring the group therapy session, where the counselor, Alyssa, is discussing a quotation written on the blackboard:

_"All you really need is a truly open mind. Just resign from the debating society and quit bothering yourself with such deep questions as whether it was the hen or the egg that came first. Again I say, all you need is the open mind."_

Kinny continues, "I'm not saying we shouldn't be worried about Veronica's mental condition, and for that matter, we also need to be assessing Logan and even your other undercover operative. She does look tired and stressed to me, but it's what I would expect after being confined for forty-eight hours. I think we should just calm down a little and really examine what we're observing. Veronica was quite clear that she wanted the operation to continue."

Carrie pipes up from the corner. "Can I ask a question? What's the government's interest, specifically, in this case? Besides the obvious, of course: the payoffs to the Education Commissioner, and Frazzino possibly paying off the school to conceal his abuse of his daughter."

"Those are our primary goals," Lynley says shortly.

"So...why have Veronica continue to be undercover? What can she add to that case?" Carrie asks shrewdly.

"Well, if there are violations of child-abuse reporting or documented physical abuse, we can file charges," Lynley replies.

"But those aren't federal crimes. What's the FBI's interest in Veronica being undercover?" she presses.

"If evidence is uncovered of other crimes during the federal government's corruption probe, the evidence can be used to file other charges. And those crimes can also be used as leverage to compel Klein's testimony against Behr and Frazzino," Lynley explains. "And if Veronica is extracted suddenly, the school might be warned that they are being investigated."

"So she's the sacrificial lamb? Her safety's being compromised to bring down a couple sleazy politicians?"

"Every bit of evidence we gather and every criminal conviction that we can muster makes it more likely we can get a substantial verdict in a civil case that will shut down the school forever," Epstein adds.

"Until they reorganize and change their name and open up somewhere else. Like Klein's done before," Carrie states, scribbling notes as she talks. "Yes, I've been doing some research."

"He's never had a criminal conviction before, only civil judgments. There's never been evidence like this," Keith replies. "That's why Veronica wanted to go undercover. When she found out about the investigation, she insisted on being allowed to participate. She was horrified about the conditions at the school."

"What's the connection to Hannah Griffith?" Carrie says insistently.

Lynley stares at Keith. "I'd like an answer to that as well. Mike Fields said Veronica had a hare-brained idea about the murder."

"Is that Veronica's primary mission?" Carrie asks excitedly. "Is there a connection between the school and Hannah's murder?"

"What makes you think the school was involved in Hannah's murder? I explained it to you: we're here at the request of Hannah's mother, who regrets sending her daughter to a tough-love school," Keith replies.

"Bull. I never really believed it was the Saturday Night Slasher who killed Hannah Griffith."

"Yeah, you thought it was Logan Echolls, stumping along in a full leg-cast, somehow managing to kill a girl and plant evidence pointing to a notorious serial-killer," Keith mocks.

Carrie ignores him. "That's why Logan's involved, isn't it? He's trying to clear his name, and Veronica's helping him. This is great stuff."

"That is NOT Veronica's primary mission," Keith responds forcefully. "And surely you can see that she is unable to do anything other than play her part as a student."

"A bitchy student if you ask me," Carrie says snidely.

"Carrie, please don't make me regret allowing you to be a part of this," Keith warns. "If we uncover evidence about the school or any of its employees being involved with Hannah's murder, of course we'll turn it over to the serial murder task force." He notices Epstein is about to add something, and Keith subtly shakes his head 'no'.

Lynley clears his throat. "And Ms. Murray, don't forget about the agreements you signed with the Bureau prohibiting you from publishing without clearing your stories."

Carrie sighs. "I haven't forgotten."

Dr. Kinny says in a loud voice, "Veronica is speaking."

They turn as one to the computer monitor. Veronica is standing up and appears nervous, shifting back and forth between her feet. She speaks in a dull monotone. "I don't know. I'm really trying to understand. You're saying that we shouldn't question the program, that we should just accept that it works without proof?"

"I'm saying that by demanding proof you're not open to what the program can give you. And you might consider that I and every other successful graduate of this school are proof that the program works. Once I stopped fighting and started asking what I could do to make my life better, I did get better. You have to admit that you need our help and tell us everything you've ever done that got you here. I like the improvement in your attitude, Connie, but you're still questioning too much. You need to accept that we know how to help you."

"I...I'm trying. I really want to earn a phone call to my dad," Veronica says hesitantly. "I know you guys want to help me." She rubs her eyes, obviously fatigued.

Keith thinks proudly, _That's my girl. _ He looks around triumphantly at Lynley, who shrugs. Keith says, "You see what she did there? She's definitely okay. She might be tired, and she's pretending to go along to get a little break for herself, but she still managed to tell us that she doesn't want to quit."

They continue to watch the video feed as Veronica sits back down, and other girls stand up to give their take on the topic of the day. At one point, Carrie leaves the room, and Epstein pulls Keith aside.

Epstein asks, "I've been thinking about the teacher who helped Hannah Griffith escape. Were you able to get a name from the Workers' Compensation database?"

Keith replies, "I did get a name. Michelle Weisz. It's the only one that fits the facts; the dates of her employment match with the story Logan got from Tony. And I ran a preliminary check on that name; she's completely disappeared. There's been no trace of her in any of the major databases since several months after Hannah's escape."

Epstein says, "There's a rumor on the Internet. I've run across it a few times while I've been investigating the schools. There's a woman who has helped a couple dozen kids escape from the schools. On the boards, they call her the Guardian Angel. They say that she tries to get the kids out who shouldn't be in the schools at all–the kids who are most at risk. They say she changes her name and moves every few weeks so the tough-love schools can't find her and stop her. The rumors make her sound like a superhero or a crusader."

"Are you thinking that the Guardian Angel is Michelle Weisz?"

"I don't know. But I don't think she's been around for longer than three years, so..."

Keith says, "So it might be her. I suppose she could have been radicalized by her experience at Briar Hill and decided to try to help other kids after getting Hannah out. How are you proposing to find her?"

"I do have some contacts with kids who've escaped from the schools. Most are too scared to come out publicly about their experiences, but I think they trust me. They know I'm working on a big lawsuit that might impact the whole industry." Epstein looks at Keith seriously. "I think we'd get a response if I put out the word on the tough-love survivor boards that I'm looking to talk with the woman who helped Hannah Griffith escape."

"Do it." Keith sees Carrie come back into the room. "Don't tell Carrie, okay?"

"Right."

"And Jim...I also think we shouldn't tell Ms. Denenberg these theories about Hannah's death. I don't want to unnecessarily torture her with possibilities unless we find evidence to support them."

Epstein nods.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Survivor Guilt**  
Dick is questioned about Kendall's murder;  
Veronica back in the daily 'routine'.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Dick: Ryan Hansen.  
Klein: Clancy Brown. Maria: Gina Mantegna.  
Tara: Kirsten Prout. Megan: Anna Lynn McCord.  
Dave: Jason Wiles. Shari: Jessalyn Gilsig.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SEVENTY-FIVE: "SURVIVOR GUILT"

Thurs. 3/12/09 afternoon: Pi Sig Fraternity, Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Chip Diller opens the door of the frat house to Sheriff Leo D'Amato. With mock politeness, he says, "Sheriff. How can we help you today? As you can see, not a keg or an underaged girl in sight."

"Today," the sheriff says wryly. "I'm looking for Richard Casablancas, Jr. Is he around?"

"Well, he's certainly not in class. Try upstairs, second door on the right," Chip motions toward the stairs and walks away.

Leo goes upstairs and knocks on Dick's door. There are signs all over the door reading 'Choose Pi Sig. Your girlfriend already has.', 'DaKine Gear', 'I Always Take Life With a Grain of Salt and a Slice of Lime and a Shot of Tequila', 'Pi Sigs: Cocky Since 1908', and 'Pi Sigma Sigma: Sorority Tested, Mother Approved.'

Dick opens the door, and Leo comments, nodding to the door, "Classy."

"You should have seen the ones we rejected," Dick replies. "Sheriff D'Amato, how can we do you today?"

"Can I come in?"

"Uh, this is not some random frat party investigation, is it?" Dick suddenly looks troubled. "Did something happen with Mac?"

"Mac?" Leo repeats.

"Cindy Mackenzie. The girl whose family was killed. Is she all right?"

"I'm not here about Ms. Mackenzie, but...you're friends with her?" Leo asks.

"Yeah. Friends. Exes, I guess. Can you get in touch with her for me?" Dick asks hopefully. "I'm worried about her. I heard...I heard through the grapevine she's in witness protection."

"I assume by the grapevine you mean Veronica Mars."

Dick shrugs. "Ronnie's got connections. I'm worried about Mac; she's all alone now, and nobody can get in touch with her."

"I'm not here about Ms. Mackenzie, Dick. Have you been in touch with your stepmother recently?"

"My stepmother? Oh, you mean Kendall. I know my dad started divorce proceedings in absentia something," Dick says vaguely. "I haven't heard from her in a couple years. Since...well, she didn't show for Cassidy's funeral. I know I haven't seen her since then."

Leo pulls out a picture of 'Katerina Beversdorf'. "How about this woman?"

"Hot! I wouldn't kick her out of the sack," Dick comments.

"That's your stepmother, at least that was your stepmother. She had changed her appearance," Leo says.

"Wait...had changed?"

Leo sighs. "You don't read the papers, do you?"

"Just the personal ads."

"This woman was found murdered late last night. Her ID identified her as Katerina Beversdorf. But the fingerprints told a different story. Apparently, her birth name is Priscilla Banks, and she was using the name Kendall Shiflet prior to marrying your father," Leo explains slowly.

"Wait...what?"

"She also served some time on a fraud charge."

Dick sits down on his unmade bed. "Kendall was..."

"It looks your daddy's wife was a con artist. Where is your father, by the way? No one seems to know. Your mother pretty much hung up on me when I asked her."

"He's in the Caymans. You know, loose banking regulations and all."

"Wow, that's family loyalty," Leo comments sarcastically.

"He doesn't really make a secret of it. After he served his time, he started making an effort to be completely 'transparent' and 'above board', or so he says," Dick comments. "You know, he doesn't want to go back to the big house? But I'm sure he's still raking it in somehow. Just...slightly more within the law this time."

"Right. Do you have an address or a phone number?"

Dick points to a postcard thumbtacked to the wall above his computer.

Leo scribbles the information down. "So you didn't have any contact with Kendall recently?"

"Uh...I think I would have remembered someone who looked like that. I always wondered what Kendall would look like as a blonde..." Dick says dreamily.

"You know, the SEC mentioned that there's still a significant amount of money that's unaccounted for from your father's business dealings in 2005. You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"

"You obviously don't know much about me. My little brother was the one who inherited Big Dick's financial, ah, ecumenical," Dick says, slightly nervous.

"Right. The Phoenix Land Trust; your brother bet against incorporation. And of course you remember who was CEO?"

Dick's eyes meet Leo's. "Yeah, Kendall. I thought for sure I'd never hear from her again after she made the big score. My dad was the only one who didn't seem to get it that Kendall was only after his money."

"So where were you last night between, say, nine p.m. and midnight, Dick?"

"Wait...you think I killed her? Wow, that's twisted. Is that what you call Oedipal? Offing your stepmommy?"

"I think you might want to get the Cliffs Notes on that one, Dick–that's not quite how the story goes. Where were you last night?"

"I hit the Delta Tau cocktail hour and hooked up with Jennie Budosh. I think she might remember me. You know, I have a few signature moves," Dick says lightly.

"Her number?"

"Uh, hang on." Dick digs in his jeans pocket and triumphantly extracts a matchbook. He opens the cover and presents it to Leo with a flourish, who glances at it quickly.

"Yeah, that's the number for Mama Mia Pizza. 555-7437, 555-PIES."

"Shit, you're right. Damn, I thought she had a good time," Dick muses, shaking his head. "I'm sure she's in the book. You know, maybe the registrar would know..."

"Hope you're not yanking my chain, Dick," Leo replies. "You sure this girl's gonna vouch for you?"

"Well, I don't know about 'vouch' if she gave me a fake phone number. But, you know, other people at Delta Tau saw us together too. She was all over me. You know, a little needy?" Dick confides. "You have to be a lot gentler with girls like her–but it's worth it. Mmm," he says, remembering.

"I wouldn't know. I'll be in touch, Dick."

Thurs. 3/12/09 evening: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica moves through the day in a slight daze. It seems as though everyone is watching her; she sees Klein several times, interacting more than usual with the student population, and she feels his eyes upon her as she tries to blend in with the other girls. She keeps telling herself that he can't possibly know she is a plant; but every time she catches him looking at her, his expression is inscrutable and vaguely unnerving. Maria seems pleased by her compliance; it makes Maria look good and of course lightens her responsibilities to have Veronica appear to be reformed.

When she enters the dining room for dinner, another girl bumps into her, and Veronica shies away compulsively, fearing that she will be blamed for something. Maria crossly orders her to keep going, and Veronica obediently moves ahead, joining the line of girls waiting for their insubstantial meals. She watches the other girls' movements and tries to copy them. _I just have to get it right,_ she thinks; then she remembers that she actually has to get it _wrong_ for her observers, and her fright overwhelms her. She tries to summon the courage to provoke Maria again and fails. Veronica keeps her head down and concentrates on her dinner. _I'm sorry, Dad._

After dinner, the girls are herded into the classroom and handed worksheets. Veronica finds the relative sanity of algebra to be oddly comforting; the numbers and letters behave the way they're supposed to. She works through several sheets of exercises on factoring polynomials. Then she is given worksheets on American history. The dates and facts of the American revolution help to settle her nerves even further. For a moment, she is able to pretend she is back at Neptune High, with Dick Casablancas trying to hit her with a spitball and Casey Gant not-so-subtly walking past her desk and looking down her shirt.

She looks over at Tara struggling with her own worksheets, and Veronica feels deeply ashamed. The girl's distress is palpable; her frustration and depressive affect increase daily. _Here I am–I'm supposed to be a professional, I'm supposed to be here to save girls like Tara, and I can't even muster up the courage to do my job. I'm letting them get inside my head and scare me. Fuck! Got to keep going, Veronica._ For several minutes, she watches Tara and thinks about how she can document Tara's difficulties. She looks up to find Shari standing next to her desk, and Veronica bends her head over her worksheet again, her anxiety over punishment preventing her from making a smart remark. Shari moves off, and Veronica sighs in relief.

She keeps reviewing the last conversation with Logan in her head; now Veronica wishes that she had asked for more information as to what she should be trying to document for the federal observers. Without any information to the contrary, she assumes the goals of the operation haven't changed. _Attack therapy, brutal punishments, food restrictions, and no access to medical treatment._ She knows that she's going to have to act out again, but she realizes that she is shying away from every opportunity that presents itself. Finally, she decides to just go along for the rest of the evening; if she is honest with herself, she admits that she is feeling very traumatized by the experience of the restraints. Her thoughts still feel disconnected and unreal, and she still catches herself mixing up conversations and events in her memories. And her uncertainty, no, her _fear_, is real and oppressive.

_Tomorrow; I know I can do this tomorrow._

After the class period is over, Veronica expects to be led to the sleeping room. All the girls look tired, but Veronica is completely exhausted after not sleeping for two days in restraints, and she longs for some real rest. But Klein is waiting outside the classroom, and he leads the girls to the group therapy room, where Logan and Dave take over for two other guards. _What the hell is Klein up to now? Why the extra therapy session?_ Veronica finds herself trembling, and she forces herself to stay calm. _I'm not going to let this fucking bastard beat me,_ she thinks.

She tries not look at Klein as she sits down next to Maria. _Got to look like I'm going along._ She puts her palms flat on her legs like every other girl and forces herself to stay alert. Veronica knows she should feel more relaxed with Logan there, but she irrationally feels more tense knowing he's watching. She vows not to look at him at all. Then she remembers that her dad, Epstein, and the others are watching too. Veronica feels deeply ashamed and embarrassed to have her dad see her unnerved like this. She tries to appear alert and in control of herself.

Klein starts by asking if anyone wants to share. Veronica knows what she's supposed to do: she watches Maria and copies her frenzied pumping arms. Thankfully, Klein calls on Megan, who talks about how safe she feels away from the pressure of boys and drugs. Megan adds that she's grateful her parents loved her enough to send her to Briar Hill. Klein praises her for her honesty, but tells Megan that she needs to dig deeper to really get at the root of her problems; she can't truly get better until she admits that she would seek out drugs and sex no matter where she was and who was around her. Megan flops in her chair again, frustrated. Klein notices her angry posture and calls her on it.

Megan stands up again. "I've done everything you've asked! I wrote the 'guilt letters'. I admitted my flaws to everyone in the group."

_Guilt letters?_ Veronica thinks. _What the hell is that?_

"And you're still whining about it," Klein retorts. "The process isn't ever going to end for you. You think you're done. You can't get _done_ if you're an addict. There's always more to admit, there's always more to learn." He gets right in her face and yells at the top of his lungs. "There's no cure! When are you going to learn that? You're an addict, Megan. And now you think a couple sob stories in group mean you're cured for life. Don't you get it? The group is your life now. When you became an addict, you signed up for a lifetime of work in the program. It's either the program, prison, or death. Stop. Your. Whining. Quit your stinkin' thinkin'! You disgust me, Megan." Megan sinks into her chair, devastated by the abuse.

Dave nudges Logan and comments in a whisper, "Megan can't be honest for more than two words in a row." Logan nods, trying to make sense of Klein's rhetoric. The phrase 'Program, prison, or death' rings in his ears. The headmaster's powerful stage presence and convincing mannerisms are mesmerizing, and Logan keeps thinking about his own blackouts last fall. _Who am I kidding? Stop your whining and quit your stinkin' thinkin', that should be my motto._ He tries to focus on the scene.

Sarcastically, Klein asks for more volunteers. Veronica can't imagine anyone will be willing to take more of Klein's abuse, but everyone pumps their fists in the air and pounds their feet on the floor, hoping to called on. Her fatigue threatens to overwhelm her, but she manages to imitate the other girls as best she is able._ How does anyone survive this? For months or years on end?_

Klein calls on Tara, who looks frightened to death. Tara says slowly, "I'm glad to be able to face my learning problems for the first time in my life. I'm not relying on some drug to help me; I'm doing it myself."

_No, Tara!_ Veronica withers at Tara's acquiescence.

"This is really an awesome opportunity. I never knew how much the drugs held me back. And I'm learning about myself–why I do the bad things I do. I have to accept that I'm not very smart, and I do dumb things. I need something like the program to help me stay straight. I know I was on the wrong path before. I'll never take any kind of drugs again, and with the help of the program, I think I'll survive if I work really hard." Tara waits, expecting to be verbally assaulted. But Klein merely nods and indicates that she should sit again. Tara's relief is obvious.

Veronica realizes that the irrational alternation of support and abuse is more disconcerting than a steady stream of harsh invective. _How can you modify your behavior if you don't understand what the right thing to do is? Today, you get praise; tomorrow, you're insulted and vilified._ Veronica's certain that the unpredictable nature of the 'therapy' at Briar Hill is designed to break the students faster and has nothing at all to do with treatment. She feels a surge of anger at Klein and his sick methods.

Klein announces that they are going to do a new exercise. He directs the girls to circle their chairs. Veronica's heart begins to pound, but she is careful to do exactly as she is told. As she moves her chair into place, she accidentally catches Klein's eyes and is terrified to see that he's staring at her. She sits quietly with her hands on her thighs, trying to avoid looking at him, but feeling his gaze upon her. Logan and Dave move slightly, and now Logan is in Veronica's peripheral vision as well. Afraid to look at him, she tries to narrow her focus and stares straight ahead, wishing this night would finally be over.

In his deep voice, Klein explains, "This is called the 'Lifeboat Exercise'. Our ship has been wrecked at sea, and there are only a limited number of lifeboats. There are ten of you here, but there are only seven seats in the lifeboat. Each of you in turn will go around the circle. You will tell each of the girls, 'You live' or 'You die'. You can save yourself, or you can choose to give up your seat to someone more worthy. You know the exercise, Maria, we'll start with you."

Maria walks around the circle a few times, looking each girl in the face with cold, dark eyes; Veronica realizes she's deciding who merits survival. She passes by Veronica a third time, then spins around and screams in Veronica's face, "You die! You die!" The spittle flies into Veronica's face, and she flinches; Veronica is screaming on the inside but she keeps silent, shaking with the effort. Maria smiles chillingly and moves on to the next girl, Tara, shouting, "You live!"

Veronica cannot imagine the supposed therapeutic value of the exercise. _How is this supposed to help someone? Are you saying that some people deserve life more than others? Is Maria rewarding people who are further along in their program?_ She listens to Maria's decisions and decides that there is no logic to them. She is not just too tired to understand this exercise; it is completely insane. _Except, of course, that I am definitely not worthy._ Maria sits down and smiles at Veronica. Veronica stares back, wondering if there's anything human left in Maria after years here at Briar Hill.

Logan listens to the exercise; he knows that the process is hurtful to the participants, but something about it also seems completely spiritual, almost wise in its acceptance of the vicissitudes of life. He is jolted out of his musings by Maria's vicious 'You die!' aimed at one of the newcomers; he realizes that he's being relentlessly sucked in by Klein's diatribes and the constant indoctrination about addiction. He vows to resist; _just because I might be an addict doesn't mean..._ He glances at Dave, who is completely oblivious to the sick drama playing out in front of them.

The next girl to go is Megan, and she too chooses to start by telling Veronica, "You die!" Even expecting it, Veronica shakes with the emotional blow delivered so callously by someone who doesn't know her at all. Megan of course tells Maria that she will live, and, not surprisingly, nominates herself to live as well. Veronica expects Klein to attack Megan for her selfishness, but he remains silent, merely observing the progress of the exercise.

When Tara stands up, she immediately goes to Veronica and says, "You die" in a quiet voice and moves quickly to the next girl. She tells Maria and her own oldcomer, "You live", and picks five other girls to live; Veronica suspects that the choices are completely random.

It is finally Veronica's turn; she stands up and starts by telling Maria and Tara, "You live". She tells Megan and two other girls that "they die"; she selects four more girls to 'live' and finally ends by saying, "I choose to give myself the last seat," refusing to give Klein the satisfaction of saying "I live." She sits down and waits, expecting an explosion.

He walks over to her. "You think you deserve a seat on the lifeboat?"

She swallows her fear. _This is it. Go for it, Veronica. See if you can get him to react for the video._ She looks him right in the eye and says, "Yes. I deserve to live."

He regards her a moment before saying, "I feel sorry for you, Connie." He looks around the room. "Tara, you win. You had the most votes to live. But...you didn't vote for yourself, so–I'm sorry, Tara. You still die. ...It's time to go to bed. I'd like you all to think about what you learned here tonight."

_What the fuck? What we learned?! _Veronica practically screams at him. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Logan pushing himself off the wall; he has seen her seething reaction. She flinches compulsively; _I can't, not tonight, I can't have him holding me down._ She looks away and tries to control her breathing. Klein looks at her, and she suspects that the entire exercise was bait, and he was hoping for another opportunity to tear her down again, this time in front of everyone. _Not yet...I need...I need a little time._ She glances quickly at Logan again; he's muttering to Dave, seemingly disinterested. She knows he can't appear overtly protective of her, but still..._it fucking hurts._

She tears her eyes off Logan and returns her gaze to Klein. _I WILL take you down. Just...not tonight._ It occurs to her that maybe Klein is thinking the same thing.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Meaning of Heroic**  
Logan reports to the monitoring team;  
Logan and Veronia have a bad night.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Klein: Clancy Brown.  
Carrie: Amber Heard. Dr. Kinny: Dan  
Castellaneta. Epstein: Scott Grimes.  
Dave: Jason Wiles. Agent Lynley: James  
Badge Dale. Special guest: ??  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SEVENTY-SIX: "THE MEANING OF HEROIC"

Thurs. 3/12/09 late evening: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

Carrie answers the door; Logan stares at her with disgust, realizing this is the first time they have been face-to-face since Carrie suddenly disappeared from his life last fall.

Finally she says, "So are you coming in?"

He brushes past her without speaking.

"Yeah, I've missed you too," she calls after him as she shuts the door.

_Apparently, _Logan thinks bitterly. He enters the living room where the four men are discussing the evidence. Keith quickly introduces Agent Lynley, and Logan shakes his hand. Logan listens as the men catalogue the list of Veronica's successes; for him, these events are reality, not some theatrical production, and he keeps getting confused when they call her Veronica instead of Connie. Finally, Keith turns to him and asks about Veronica's condition.

"Yeah, uh, Connie, I mean Veronica, yeah, she's all right," he replies, stumbling.

Kinny frowns at him.

"Veronica is really trying to behave since they let her out of the restraints," he adds.

"But...how is she doing? Do you think she can keep going? She used the code words during group therapy, we noticed. She sent a clear signal to us that she's all right, but...Logan, I have to admit I'm worried about her. That last evening session was particularly brutal," Keith presses.

"Well, she seems tired. She's certainly acting more compliant," he answers briefly.

Kinny speaks up. "Do you feel that she is competent to assess her own ability to continue?"

"What?" Logan says, turning to him.

"She could be losing her perspective on the operation," Kinny explains.

"There's a lot riding on this," Lynley comments.

Logan stares at him. _Fuck you, 'a lot riding on this'._ "I think she's all right. Veronica's tough." He struggles for a minute, trying to organize his thoughts about her. "She's...well, she's killing me with this shit," he finally manages bitterly. "She's too fucking good at this."

The room is silent, processing Logan's anger.

He tries to explain. "I just...I hate this, okay? She never realizes how scary it is for the people around her." Logan looks around and realizes that everyone is shocked. Kinny starts to speak, and Logan cuts him off angrily. "I'm all right. I need to be there for her. And she's all right too. I just want this to be over. ...I just want this to be over."

Epstein says weakly, "You guys have done a great job. It's...heroic really."

"Yeah," Logan comments. "Heroic." _Pinning a girl with your body, that's heroic._

"Logan, I think we should consider–" Dr. Kinny starts.

"No. I'm fine. She's fine. She wants to keep going. She's just tired. It's like you said, she has some control over the operation. She's just behaving for a little while. Connie's–I mean Veronica's–going to get the rest of the evidence as soon as she can. She's stronger than me. That fucker Klein scares the shit out of me. He makes just enough sense that..." Logan sees Keith opening his mouth to speak, and he adds quickly, "Don't you dare stop this now. We didn't go through this to get nothing. You said you need more to make sure that Klein gets convicted, right? I personally want to see him fry in the electric chair."

Kinny stands up and sits down next to Logan, putting his hand on Logan's arm. "Are you sure? You don't seem okay to me."

"It's not going to help to stop now," he replies. "Everything's already fucked up."

"What's fucked up?" Kinny asks.

"Me and Veronica, okay? She'll never forgive me if I pull the plug," he spits.

"Logan, that's not true. Tell me. Tell me what you're seeing with Veronica," Keith says. "What happened with you and Dave...in the restraints room?"

Logan sighs. "She fought back against him. She was making comments." _Damn you, Connie._

"We know. We heard her over the wire," Keith encourages.

"Then he grabbed her around the neck and forced her back against the chair." Logan remembers Dave threatening Connie, _'Shut the fuck up, you little con artist. We know all your tricks here. We've seen 'em before, and we know how to handle them...Gonna control yourself, cunt?'_ Logan continues, "He had me get a bucket and forced her to...go in the bucket in front of us. He fucking humiliated her."

Keith is appalled. He knew something had happened, and Veronica's impassioned speech scared him as much as it had inspired him, but until this moment he didn't realize just how courageous she had been. He is about to speak, but Logan interrupts him again.

"What scared me the most was the way she sat back down and let herself be restrained afterwards. God fucking damn it," he comments morosely. Logan drops his head into his hands.

"Did Klein know about this?" Lynley asks.

"What? ...Yeah, he had to have known. We left the bucket there, with...with her pee in it. Dave told me that Klein went in the room and talked to her later last night," Logan relates.

"Yes, we heard him over the wire. It was pretty scary just to listen to. What he said to her..." Keith says.

"What did he say?" Logan asks.

Keith stays silent, considering what to tell him.

Angrily, Logan repeats, "What did he say? Goddammit, what was that fucker saying to her?"

"He told her no one loves her, that I don't love her anymore and that she hurts everyone around her."

_Fuck. That's exactly what I just said: she never realizes how scary it is for the people around her._ Logan looks at Keith, who nods slowly. "I want to nail him," Logan says. _Fucking Klein, scares the shit out of me..._

"We all do," Keith says. "But Logan, I think we're all pretty concerned about you as well as Veronica."

"No...I'm fine," he lies. "She's the one who's suffering."

"Logan, I've never seen you like this–"

"I'm fine! It's just..." he stops himself just in time.

"What?" Kinny asks. "Logan, you've got to tell us what you're feeling, or we'll have to stop this immediately."

Logan swallows, staring at Kinny. Finally he says in a quiet voice, "I just keep thinking, 'why do you make me do this to you?'"

Kinny nods shrewdly. "It's what he said to you. What your father used to say."

Out of the corner of his eye, Logan sees Carrie taking notes. He stands up and hurtles himself across the room; he rips the notebook from her hands and throws it aside violently. "You are not fucking allowed to use that, you fucking bitch!"

"Full access, darling," she says angrily.

"NO! You are not fucking allowed to use that!" Logan grabs Carrie by the arms and makes her stand up. He shakes her, screaming, "What the fuck is your problem?"

Lynley and Keith hustle over and stop Logan. Keith wraps Logan in a hug, and Logan continues to tremble with anger. Keith looks at Carrie, who is holding herself tightly, shaken up by Logan's violent reaction. "Carrie...let it go. You have enough of a story here without that detail." Addressing Logan, Keith begins, "Logan, I want to pull you off–"

"No." Logan pulls himself out of Keith's arms. "I want to go on. You are not going to leave her with only one other person in there. And...I want to nail this fucker." He turns to Carrie. _This is fucking hard. I fucking want to kill Carrie, but..._ "I'm sorry. Carrie, please. Please don't use that. You know I cared about you when we were together. It hurt like hell when you just left me without a word last fall." Carrie's eyes widen at this admission.

Logan continues, "Please...this is important. These fucks aren't just hurting Veronica. They...hurt Hannah too, and all these other girls and...we don't even know how many people they've hurt. I'm hating this, but...I'm begging you, Carrie." He looks at her, and he makes a decision. "Do I have to get on my knees and beg you? I don't know why you hate me and Veronica so much. You left me, remember? You didn't have to do that _Dateline_ story. You and I...we were pretty happy. Maybe if you hadn't left...we could have had something. But you did, you left, and you fucking tore me and Veronica to pieces on national television. I can't believe I was with someone who could hate me this much."

Carrie swallows and finally says, "I hate you because you always loved her. When she was in trouble, you ran to her immediately. You never really..."

Logan nods. "That's just the way it is with her. I can't help the way I feel about her."  
_  
_Dr. Kinny takes Logan's arm and says gently, "I want to talk to you alone. Away from her, away from Keith." Keith looks up at this, but merely nods. Kinny escorts Logan to one of the bedrooms and shuts the door.

"Tell me about Connie," Kinny prompts, purposely exploiting Logan's disconnect.

Logan hesitates. "She's...she's so tough. When every other girl would be backing down, she throws their words back in their faces."

"Do you think she's being courageous or foolish?"

"Connie's...I mean, Veronica's both. She's always thought she was invincible. But, yeah, she's courageous. I believe you when you say she managed to get the code words in again."

"How do you feel when she smart-mouths you, when you're acting the role of the guard?" Kinny carefully stresses 'acting'.

"It's hard to...remember...that's it's actually Veronica, and she's not really Connie," Logan tries to explain. "I mean, I _know_ it's Veronica, and I _know_ I can call Keith and tell him that we have to stop the operation, but when I'm there, it's like I'm really 'Roger', and she's really 'Connie', and there's no way to stop this. And I...I'm one of the guys now; they're trying to help me do a good job, and you know, this is fucking unbelievable, but I'm _grateful_ to them for helping me. I'm fucking _happy_ they're treating me like one of the guys. I have to be a good employee in order to do this, so I have to laugh with their fucking AA jokes and make fun of the girls. You know, they call Veronica 'Connie McConArtist'. And you know, it's _funny_, the shit they say about her; the jokes are funny. And..." his voice trails off.

"What?"

"They tease me, they say that she's my girlfriend." He turns to Kinny, his entire demeanor incredibly stressed. "What if I'm doing something, something that's going to give her away? She's going to get hurt because of me."

"Tell me why they say that."

"I guess because of the fight when she tried to escape. And then...I think they made sure I was the one to go with Dave for her bathroom visits, because...well, they're making sure I can do the job, that I can be the fucking brutal prison guard."

"So you're having to be a little rougher with her because they're teasing you?"

Logan nods. Helplessly, he says, "Please...don't let them stop this. Don't let them pull me out. I'm afraid of being there, but I'm so much more afraid of not being there. It's only for a couple more days, right? She just has to get attacked in therapy, right? Maybe taken down again? If I'm there, I can try to make it look worse than it is, so she doesn't get hurt. I know how to do that now. And, Dr. Kinny...I think Klein's going to really go after her. He's watching her all the time now. I don't know if he thinks he needs to make an example out of her, or maybe he really thinks she needs more help. I mean, the guy is a fucking psycho, he believes this shit is helping them. He's so damn...good at this. He practically had me believing him. And the way Connie's acting...I mean, Veronica...according to the way they think, she really does need extra help. ...I'm fucking scared for her, okay? Please...make them let me stay on this. I know, I'm getting fucked up too. I can't believe I attacked Carrie like that." He almost babbles at the end, trying to make Kinny believe him.

"Logan, you're on high alert. We talked about this."

"I can handle it," Logan swears. "I have to be able to handle it. I apologized to Carrie, right? That's gotta count for something."

"It counts for a lot, Logan. I know how much anguish the paparazzi have caused you."

"You're going to get a great book out of this," Logan comments wryly. "You'll be able to retire from Hearst."

"I'm not thinking about a book. I'm thinking about doing something for the greater good. Even as a professional studying these situations, I never really had a complete perspective. I've told Epstein that I want to assist with the civil case and work with him on getting legislation passed to regulate private schools better." He notices Logan's surprised look. "Yes, academics in their ivory towers can be surprised by the real world. This isn't just a weekend experiment. This is tragic and frightening. ...I think you can do this. I think if we pull you off, Veronica will be in more danger. You need to be monitoring yourself better, though. I want you to be constantly reminding yourself of the reality of the situation. You are Logan and she is Veronica, not Roger and Connie. You are not like the other guards, and you are not like your father. Your father would never have volunteered to do something like this, would he?"

"Not unless it was for the cameras," Logan says drily.

"Right. And you _don't_ want any publicity for yourself. That's not how your father behaved."

Logan nods, realizing the truth of this.

"You didn't seek this out. Your intention is to help these girls. You need to be reminding yourself of that constantly, Logan."

"Okay. I'm here for Veronica...and for all the other girls. And I'm not Roger, and she's not Connie." _Easier said than done,_ he thinks.

Thurs. 3/12/09 very late: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica wakes up in a cold sweat. She realizes that she was dreaming that she was still in restraints. Her muscles actually ache with the vivid memory. Mindful of the motion control sensor located above her bed, she cautiously rolls over to stretch her body without triggering the alarm.

_Oh my god._ The bed is soaked; her bladder let go in her dream. She tries to roll back away from the wetness. Veronica knows from watching other girls who had nighttime accidents that she has to lay there for the rest of the night. _So fucking humiliating._ When she closes her eyes, she is right back in the restraints again, with Dave and Logan laughing at her because she couldn't control herself. Then Klein comes in and begins to point out her faults. He finishes up by telling her that her dad doesn't love her anymore; she can't even be trusted to control herself. _'He's locked you up here, sort of a last ditch effort, hoping maybe, just maybe, he's wrong about you...that there might be something worth saving after all.'_

Veronica takes a breath, then screams back at him, what she _should_ have said the first time, "You don't know a fucking thing about me! I'm here to help people. There's nothing wrong with me. You're the one who doesn't have a soul. You're the one with a black hole inside!"

From across the room, Logan, leaning on the wall, chuckles quietly. "That's my girl, spreading sunshine wherever she goes."

Klein looks over at Logan. "Your girl? Do you know Connie?"

"Hell yeah. We used to go out."

_Used to go out?_ she thinks.

Logan pushes himself off the wall. "Yeah, she's always accusing the people around her of one crime or another. You can usually find her out digging through someone's trash, or beating out a confession. She's a private detective. She accused me of killing my girlfriend." He directs his comments to Veronica, who struggles against the restraints, furious that he is turning on her. "You know, Veronica, if you dig deep enough, you're gonna find that everyone's a sinner. Judge not, Veronica. Can't you see that these people are trying to help you? All you ever do is use the people around you, then you turn on them when it's convenient. I'm sick of it, Veronica."

Veronica whispers, "How could you tell him...how could you tell him I'm a detective?"

"How could _you_ think I killed Lilly? And then you told Weevil!...fucking Weevil, who already hated me...you told him I killed Lilly so that the fucking PCHers would come after me. Yeah, Veronica...I know you did that. I let you slide all this time. But I know you sicced him on me, so that he came after me and found me on the bridge. You know, just one little slip of the foot that night, and I would have been out of your life forever. How much easier would your life be if you didn't have to see me anymore?"

"Logan, that's not true. I love you," she protests, shaking her head.

"Come on. That's not how you really feel. You blame me for Hannah's death, too. You can barely stand to look at me."

Veronica, horrified, looks from Logan to Klein, who looks interested at this new revelation. "Logan, no!"

Logan says to Klein, "You know what? She's all yours." He gives a little wave and walks out of the room.

Veronica wails, "No..."

Klein pulls up a chair and sits facing her. "Tell me who else is undercover with you." His eyes narrow, and he stares at her. "You're wearing a wire, aren't you?" He pulls up her sweatshirt as she struggles against him. He pulls viciously on her bra and sees the bug. "Fuck!" Klein takes the bug, exposing Veronica's breast as he examines the bra more closely. He drops the bug to the floor and grinds it underneath his shoe. He grabs her neck and throws her back against the chair roughly. "You are going to regret this."

Veronica starts awake, her heart thumping, sweating and shaking in the wet bed sheets. She doesn't dare close her eyes for the rest of the night.

Thurs. 3/12/09 very late: Briar Hill Employees Quarters, Manchester Center, VT

Logan lies awake rehashing the angry meeting over and over again in his mind. He berates himself for letting Carrie see his fears about turning into Aaron. _Damn! There's no way she won't use that. I can see the tabloids now: 'Logan Echolls gives the performance of a lifetime; says abuser is a role that comes naturally.' Fuck!_

He finally falls into a restless sleep, only to be faced with a vision of Hannah, seated across from him in restraints. He stands up and goes to her immediately, intending to release her.

"No, Logan. You can't. You have to finish this."

"I can't," he replies. He brushes a tear from his eye. "I can't stand it, first you, now Veronica; how can you stand to look at me? It's all my fault. Hannah, I'm so sorry."

Hannah says somberly, "No, it's not your fault, Logan."

"Yeah, it is. Your mom was right. I am evil. You're a sweet girl and..."

"Did you ever consider that you're not as notorious as you think you are? Logan, I want you to listen to me. I need you to be strong. Veronica needs you to be strong. You need to tell the world what's going on at the school. Veronica's being so brave; I can see why you love her so much. Don't be so mad at her. She's...she thinks you don't love her anymore."

"Hannah...did Klein kill you? What happened here that you had to run away?"

"Logan, you have to finish this. My mother needs this. She needs to punish someone. I'm worried about her; she blames herself," Hannah replies.

Logan closes his eyes and says, "But who killed you, Hannah? You've got to tell me!" He opens his eyes, and Veronica has replaced Hannah in the chair. "Veronica, where'd she go? Do you know what happened to Hannah?"

"Logan, I need you," Veronica replies. "Listen to me. I'm not Connie. I'm Veronica. Tell me that you love me again."

"Of course I love you..."

"No, really tell me. Like you used to, when I was a fool...when I took you for granted," she pleads, her voice breaking.

"I love you, Veronica. You know I'm always here, if you need anything."

"I need _you_, Logan."

"Veronica..." Logan says desperately. "You have to be all right. I'm going to make sure; I'm not going to let them...we're going to be all right." She melts away, disappearing from view.

He gets up and splashes cold water on his face. He looks at himself in the mirror, the beard and the mustache and the dark hair shocking him as always. He plays with his hair a little, worrying that the lighter roots will give him away before deciding that he's being ridiculous. Logan tilts his head and realizes that, in this light, he resembles a photo of his dad from several years earlier that used to be prominently displayed on the grand piano. He thinks it was from some television summer junket when Aaron actually promoted his mother's career for once; he searches his memories and recalls several incredibly hot sessions with Lilly in the pool house while his parents were in L.A. that summer. Of course, there was hell to pay when Aaron discovered how much of his liquor had mysteriously disappeared during his absence. Logan fusses with his hair, wishing he could forget about fucking Aaron for just one day in his life.

He thinks about redheaded and tattooed Veronica just a few buildings away, and he wonders if she at least is able to sleep.

_I am not Roger...I am not Aaron._

* * *

(16) Wilson, William G. Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions. USA: Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc., 1952. p. 26.

(17) Szalavitz, Maia. Help At Any Cost. New York: Riverhead Books, 2006. p. 171.

The photo of Harry Hamlin and Lisa Rinna I'm referring to:  
imdb•com**SLASH**media**SLASH**rm3958151936**SLASH**rg1173330432

It has been reported to me that some readers are having trouble accessing the next chapter. If you are, you can read it at my journal here:  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/59599•html


	26. Chapters 77 to 83

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**FURTHER DISCLAIMER: No celebrities were injured in the writing of this update. Representatives of the ASPCA were present at all times to make sure KBell's dogs were not traumatized. Also, no beta readers were permanantly scarred, although the Beta Wars of August 2008 will go down in history as "epic".**

** FURTHER WARNINGS: This update is extremely harsh and contains violence. Basically, I don't think anyone should read it. Really, you should just go reread the airplane scene (my chapter 39, FF section 14) instead and wait to read the 'previously on' next week.**

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall, who is also my assistant casting director, and Sobertears. And a big thanks to wilyone24, who helped end the Beta Wars and will probably never comment on my fic again if she knows what's good for her. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility. I reiterate: this fic would not exist without my betas.

* * *

**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from Chapters 74-76:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/59264•html )

Veronica is still in restraints. She starts to imagine that Logan is the one responsible for her punishment. When she is released, she looks exhausted and stressed, but she still manages to say the code indicating she's okay. She tries to continue her undercover work, but decides to make a respite for herself by temporarily complying. The girls are taken through a sadistic psychological test known as the Lifeboat Exercise.

Candice convinces Wallace to hold off on proving that Liam Fitzpatrick is responsible for her brother's death.

Logan bonds with the other employees at the school.

There is dissent among the monitoring team watching over the operation. The attorney Epstein finds the woman who helped Hannah escape, Michelle Weisz, also known as the Guardian Angel to those she helps.

Sheriff Leo D'Amato has identified the murdered Katerina Beversdorf as being actually Kendall Casablancas, and he questions Dick.

Logan breaks down in front of the monitoring team and admits he is becoming confused as to his own identity and is reliving aspects of his own abuse. He begs to be allowed to continue the mission, even going so far as to ask for Carrie's forgiveness.

Veronica has a nightmare that Logan is telling Klein about her life and wets the bed. Logan has a nightmare with visions of Hannah and Veronica in restraints; Hannah begs him to continue, and Veronica tells him she loves him and needs him. When he wakes, he vows that he's not Roger and he's not Aaron.

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Risk Management**  
Veronica tries to hang on; the monitoring  
team disagrees; Mac's family meets with  
the U.S. Marshals.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Carrie: Amber Heard. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Maria: Gina Mantegna. Kavner: Eric Bana.  
Tony: Romany Malco. Epstein: Scott Grimes.  
Dr. Kinny: Dan Castellaneta. Alan: Ned  
Vaughan. Agent Lynley: James Badge Dale.  
Samuel Mackenzie: David Grant Wright.  
Natalie Mackenzie: Courtney Gebhart. Ryan  
Mackenzie: Michael Drummond. US Marshal:  
Fred Weller. Brenda: Katherine Bailess.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SEVENTY-SEVEN: "RISK MANAGEMENT"

Fri. 3/13/09 morning: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica finally falls asleep late that night only to be woken a few hours later with everyone else. When she wakes up, she's disoriented–headachy and out of sorts–but she quickly remember where she is when Maria starts the day by screaming at her to hurry up. Maria is scornful and disparaging when Veronica admits that she wet the bed the night before. She gets dressed quickly, hoping that breakfast will help clear her head.

As they head into the dining room, Veronica stumbles a little, and Maria glances at her sharply. "What now?" she asks crossly.

"I think I need to see a doctor. I don't feel good at all, and–"

"Stop your whining! You're fine."

"Please...I really–"

"No!" Maria responds with finality. "Of course you don't feel good, you just got punished for acting out. Let's go, we have chores to do. And we have to wash your dirty sheets too, you stupid cow."

_Shit._ Veronica passes her hand across her forehead and wonders if she's running a fever._ Maybe I can get a message to Kavner; he could get me antibiotics or..._ She realizes the right thing to do would be to end the operation, right now. _It would be so easy to just say it, to just say 'California' or 'Lamb'. 'I really could go for a rack of lamb with a side order of California rolls.' Maria would look at me like I was insane, then when Dad breaks down the front door, I could punch her in the mouth._ She chuckles under her breath. _C'mon Veronica, you don't feel too bad right now; you can fight it off. All we need is a good video of the attack therapy and maybe a takedown for the feds. I can do it. I can get through this. I'm not that sick. And...I got 'em on tape again, denying me access to a doctor._ She feels perversely proud of herself. Remembering that her dad is listening and probably worrying, she says quietly, "I'm sorry, Maria. You're right, I'm tired from being punished. I'm just really missing my dad. I wish...I wish I appreciated him more before...before he sent me here."

Maria rolls her eyes. "You really can't shut up, can you? You're going to be here forever."

After they take care of Veronica's bedding, they are assigned to work in the bathroom. Tony stops in and pulls Maria aside to talk. Veronica notes that Maria looks at her and nods; she wonders what the hell is going on now. After Tony leaves, Maria gets an old toothbrush from a cabinet and explains that Veronica is going to scrub the floor.

Veronica looks at the toothbrush._ You're fucking kidding me._ She takes the toothbrush and gets down on her hands and knees, still a little shaky from her throbbing headache. Maria points at the corner and brings Veronica a bucket of soapy water; Veronica begins scrubbing the floor. Her shoulders, already aching from being confined by the restraints, are screaming after a few short minutes. When Veronica takes a second to stretch, Maria, wiping down the walls with a sponge, yells, "What are you doing? This hard work is good for you. You're supposed to be thinking about how hard is to beat your addiction, how tough the battle is for your soul."

_Sorry...I missed that,_ Veronica thinks wryly. _I'm not getting all the fine subtleties of the program. I must be stupid or something._ Aloud, she says, "I'm sorry, I'll try harder."

Tony pokes his head in, wondering about Maria's outburst. "Everything okay?"

"She's just slacking off. I thought she might have learned something while she was in restraints, but she's still resisting."

Tony watches a moment before leaving.

Veronica tries to scrub harder, her shoulders protesting bitterly. After a few minutes, she asks quietly, "Maria?"

"Now what?" Maria replies in exasperation.

"I...I don't understand the Lifeboat Exercise we did last night." Veronica makes sure to keep at her task while she talks. "I can't get better, I can't _do_ better if I don't understand."

"What don't you understand?"

"How does it help me, or anyone else?"

"Well, look at Tara. She won. Look at all the girls who thought she was worthy of living," Maria says impatiently. "See? It was a good experience for her, to see that the girls here believe in her."

"But Klein said she still died."

"Because she didn't value herself enough to give herself a seat."

Veronica doesn't have to pretend to sound confused. "But I thought it was selfish to take a seat away from someone you thought was more deserving. And it was so awful to hear someone yell 'you die' in your face. How can that help you?"

"Oh my god, you're impossible. I don't think you're ever going to graduate," Maria snaps. "I can't deal with you when you're like this. Stop talking and work harder."

_I'm impossible? I think we just found out that Maria doesn't understand the point of the exercise either._ Veronica is assaulted by a new wave of fatigue; she closes her eyes for a minute against the increased pain in her head. When she opens her eyes, she sees Maria approaching in her peripheral vision, and Veronica tries to scrub even harder as Maria watches.

Fri. 3/13/09 morning: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

Epstein calls Keith over to look at an email he has received.

Keith says sharply, "The teacher?"

Epstein nods, saying "Apparently. She's willing to meet with me tomorrow morning. She's in New York State, near Albany. That's about an hour and a half from here."

"She admits she helped Hannah escape?"

"Not in so many words. She says, 'I'm familiar with the incident you describe.'"

Keith thinks for a minute. "This is too big an opportunity to pass up. She might even have information relevant to our lawsuit. I need to go with you." He glances at the monitors; the video shows the empty group meeting room, and the audio feed is mostly silent, with an occasional comment from Maria exhorting Veronica to scrub harder. "The mornings are usually chores, with not much going on–I think I can leave the monitoring to Dr. Kinny and Agent Lynley. We can be back by late morning, in time to monitor lunch and then the group therapy in the afternoon." Epstein nods, and Keith goes back to watch the main monitor.

"What's going on?" Kinny asks.

"We're going to have to meet with someone tomorrow morning," Keith says evasively, keeping his voice down to prevent from Carrie from hearing. "It's important for the case. We'll leave you and Agent Lynley in charge, but we'll be in constant contact by cell. We can be back in a couple hours if anything changes."

Kinny says, "Veronica asked for a doctor this morning."

"Yes, that's one of the things we needed to document: that the girls are refused medical attention."

"She did say that she missed you afterwards; I don't think Veronica thought she could ask to call you without raising a red flag. So...she kind of used the code, but...I don't know. Her voice sounds a little off today," Kinny notes.

"Are you thinking she's actually sick?" Keith says, worried.

"Maybe."

"I'll let Kavner know. Make sure Lynley knows about it, so he can be listening for it as well. But she didn't say anything about 'California', or use the other two code words, 'Lamb' or 'Lianne'?"

"No...but Maria shut her down pretty quickly," Kinny explains.

For a moment, Keith wavers in his resolve; he pictures Veronica home from school, lying in bed surrounded by boxes of tissues and her favorite stuffed animals, and he decides that he's going to end this. _Enough._

Lynley comes into the room. "I just spoke to the judge. I laid out the evidence we have, and he said it's not enough for a warrant to search the premises and subpoena his financial records."

Keith rubs his forehead. "What does he need?"

"He's looking for an actual physical altercation to substantiate the child abuse accusations, and he'd like to have a recording of Klein discussing his financial arrangements with the education commissioner," Lynley says. "I'm sorry. He's firm about this; he agreed that what we've got is sick, possibly even rising to the level of depraved indifference. But it doesn't clearly demonstrate a failure to notify under child abuse legislation, especially when the parents signed releases permitting the school to do just about anything to the girls. It's not enough evidence for a criminal investigation...which means, probably not a felony conviction for Klein."

"How are we going to get Klein to make contact with the education commissioner?" Keith asks dispiritedly. "I'm really wanting to end this sooner rather than later. Veronica's been undercover a long time."

Carrie raises her hand and says, "Why don't you phone in an anonymous tip about the school to the education department? Won't they have to investigate it, or at least tell Klein to prepare for a surprise inspection? Or better yet, call the local TV station with the tip. They'll call the education department and ask why the school isn't being inspected properly. Behr will be on the phone to Klein in a second telling him to get ready for a media brigade."

Keith nods. _If I hadn't been so distracted by Veronica's condition, I would have thought of that._ "It's good, Carrie. You have a certain...flair for this sort of thing. Let's try it; it's worth a shot." _We'll get Veronica out as soon as possible._

Fri. 3/13/09 morning: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Kavner gets Keith's text and tells Tony he needs something from his room. He collects a few Tylenol from his bathroom, then heads back to the main building. Kavner finds where Veronica is slaving over the bathroom floor with Maria supervising. "Need a break, Maria? I know this one's a handful."

"Don't turn your back on her," Maria warns. She leaves the bathroom.

"Are you okay?" Kavner whispers. Loudly, he says, "Come on, princess, put your back into it."

Veronica nods. Kavner pushes the Tylenol into her hand; Veronica smiles wanly and dry-swallows them.

Kavner mutters, "A day, maybe two, and that's it. You gotta get them to take you down. Okay?"

Veronica nods again. She resumes her scrubbing in case someone walks by. Kavner whispers, "I'll bring more later," and she nods again. Maria comes back in as Kavner says disgustedly, "You call that clean? I bet you were one of those spoiled rich kids that never did a day of work in your life."

_You'd be betting wrong, _she thinks. She's ridiculously comforted by the knowledge that her dad and the others are paying attention to everything she says, and she feels her headache dissipating as her resolve strengthens. _I'm going to finish this. I can do it. You're going down, Klein. I'll be looking forward to visiting you...behind bars._

Fri. 3/13/09 morning: San Diego RCFL, San Diego, CA

Mac, with her parents and her brother, sits in Alan's office. Her mom hasn't let go of Mac's hand for the last two days. Last night, Mac decided that she wasn't willing to put her family in any more danger; they will be in witness protection as a family, but she will be on her own. Today is their last day together before her family leaves her, forever.

The U.S. Marshals representative goes over the paperwork a final time with Sam and Natalie Mackenzie. Ryan lies on the couch playing with his PSP2; Mac is certain that he doesn't really grasp the severity of the situation, and she's glad of that. He's still not one hundred percent recovered from his emergency appendectomy. The surgeons at Neptune Mercy Hospital insisted that the federal agents wait three days before transferring Ryan to San Diego, and today is his first day out of bed.

Mr. Mackenzie asks, for the thousandth time, "Are you absolutely certain this is necessary?"

The U.S. Marshal nods. "Families who take this as an opportunity to get a fresh start tend to do well in the WitSec program. We've located a position for you as a sporting goods manager of a large franchise. I don't want to say the location..." he adds, glancing at Mac.

"I don't want to know. I want them to be safe," Mac reiterates.

"Exactly. Mrs. Mackenzie, do you have any other questions?"

"No. I'm still just...in shock I guess," Mac's mother replies. "The schools are good there, I suppose? I don't know...what else should I be asking about? Do we get to pick our names?"

The Marshal shakes his head 'no'. "You'll be briefed on your new identities when you arrive at your destination."

"Mom, I'm so sorry. I would never have–" Mac says impulsively.

"You didn't do anything wrong," her father says. "We're so proud of you. What Alan said...that they arrested fifteen Russian mobsters because of the information you gave them. It sounds like you accomplished something important."

_Yeah, I made sure that Dick Casablancas could watch streaming porn videos,_ she thinks. "Still...I should have left it alone." She can't meet her dad's eyes. He's told her over and over again that he's proud of her, but Mac feels completely responsible for ruining her family's life.

Alan adds, "We have to finish up here and get to our next meeting, Mac."

Mac nods that she remembers._ The meeting...with the agent who's going to pretend to be me at my family's 'funeral'._

Mac's mother says impulsively, "Can we have...I don't know...like a family night tonight? Just pretend that everything is okay, and we're all together just because...just because we're a family."

"Of course," the Marshal replies. "We'll have to arrange for some additional security at your hotel, but that sounds possible."

Mac turns to her mom. "Maybe a movie and Monopoly? Like we used to do, when we went camping in the RV."

"You hated camping," her mother reminds her.

"No, I didn't," Mac lies. "That would be really fun. We can pretend we're in Yellowstone again. You know, your famous campground chili and s'mores for dessert."

Mac's mom hugs her tightly.

Alan clears his throat. "We have to go to our meeting now, Mac. We'll get you back to your family as soon as possible."

Mac hugs her mom one more time, then hugs her dad. She goes over to Ryan and kisses him on the forehead. He glares at her, and she smiles back. "Behave yourself, squirt."

As they walk down the hallway, Mac says, "Alan, there's something else. I wanted to run it past you before I told the Marshal."

Alan glances at her.

Hesitantly, she says, "Apparently there was a mixup at the hospital when I was born. I was switched with another baby." At his incredulous expression, she continues indignantly, "I'm not making this up! My friend Veronica investigated and figured it out. There was a lawsuit against the hospital, and my parents and the other family settled. My parents never told me; I guess they thought it wouldn't help to know, but..."

"You're not kidding, are you?"

"No, I'm not kidding. And, well, I do have a relationship with my biological mom. We meet for coffee about once a month. We don't really talk about the switched-at-birth thing; I just wanted to get to know her a little. Anyways, if Veronica could figure it out..."

Alan sighs. "I suppose you're right. Is there a lot of evidence of the relationship between you and this other family?"

"No, not at all. Veronica's just really...good at that kind of thing; that's how she was able to figure it out. I just wouldn't want anybody else to get hurt," Mac explains.

Alan looks at her sharply. "This is not your fault. And remember, you're personally going to be paying an awfully high price for someone else's crimes, for the rest of your life. You shouldn't feel guilty."

Mac sighs. "What about my friends? Do you think they'll be okay? Veronica...Wallace...you don't think they'd hurt them do you? What about that guy Dick who's always writing me?"

"We'll be watching them, of course. I'll talk to the Marshals about your concerns. The Russian mafia is mainly known for going after the families in retribution. I don't think your...biological family or your friends are going to be threatened, but I'll apprise the Marshals of the situation." He stops at an office and opens the door for Mac.

Inside, a young, petite female agent, a woman with a clipboard, and a man with a video camera are waiting. The young agent walks over to Mac and shakes her hand. "Hi Mac, I'm Brenda. I'll be taking your place at your family's 'funeral'. I hear you took down half of the Russian mafia."

"I didn't do anything," Mac mutters. She looks at the woman and thinks, _She doesn't look anything like me._

Alan takes a seat and motions that Mac should sit down as well. "So here's what we're doing. We're going to have you walk around the room and do a few other things for the camera to record. Mrs. McMillan," he nods toward the woman with a clipboard, "is going to be in charge of duplicating your hair and general physique. We've located a suitable outfit for the funeral from your dorm room. Brenda's about your height, but she's thinner than you. Of course, she's going to be wearing a vest, so that really won't be an issue. Brenda needs to work on how you walk and your general mannerisms."

"How can you do this?" Mac blurts out, looking at Brenda. "Aren't you scared? You're trying to get the Russian mafia to take you out."

"It's my job," Brenda says ruefully. "And I'll be well-protected. Don't worry about me. I just need you to try to show me how you walk and act normally so we can do our job."

Mac shrugs, and the woman with the clipboard takes notes as the cameraman records every movement. Brenda watches Mac carefully and imitates Mac's movements.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Prima Facie Evidence**  
Klein reports to Connie's 'dad'; Kendall  
in the news; Klein makes Connie his  
special project.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack. Klein: Clancy  
Brown. Maria: Gina Mantegna. Tony: Romany  
Malco. Kavner: Eric Bana. Dr. Kinny: Dan  
Castellaneta. Megan: Anna Lynn McCord.  
Dave: Jason Wiles. Alyssa: Christina Hendricks.  
Alan: Ned Vaughan. Agent Lynley: James Badge  
Dale. Randy Winsome: Mark Valley.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SEVENTY-EIGHT: "PRIMA FACIE EVIDENCE"

Fri. 3/13/09 noon: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

Agent Lynley nods that he's ready, and Keith dials the main phone number for Briar Hill. After a short wait, he is connected to the headmaster's office. "Mr. Klein? It's Keith Morris. I'm calling to see how my daughter Connie's doing. I'd really like to speak to her."

"Yes, Mr. Morris. I'm afraid...well, I'm afraid that Connie's not reacting well to the program. She's been consistently verbally abusive to our employees. In fact, she even struck one of the guards."

"Oh my god, was somebody hurt?" Keith replies in a nervous voice.

"No, she was put in a hold to prevent her from hurting herself or anyone else. Mr. Morris, we have a strict policy that students who are violent have their next phone call with their parents taken away."

"You mean..." Keith says.

"Yes, I can't allow you to speak with her. She understands why she won't be allowed to speak with you. She's not happy about it, but we find that the best policy is to have strict rules about consequences for bad behavior."

"What did the psychiatrist say when she was admitted? I'm so worried about her," Keith presses.

"She's showing some symptoms of oppositional defiant disorder. We don't believe in medicating for that condition here. The girls usually begin to show improvement as they see that reward and punishment are the logical results of their behavior patterns, and they begin to modify their actions appropriately." Klein sighs heavily into the phone. "You know, in Connie's case, it's really apparent that she's been consistently abusing drugs and alcohol for quite a while now. It can sometimes take months for the brain to adjust to a non-altered way of viewing the world, especially in a teenager's brain that is still growing and developing."

"But has she shown any sign of improvement since she arrived?"

"What often happens is two steps forward and one step back. A little progress is usually followed by some backsliding, and that's what we're seeing with her. She is doing well at her school work; she's obviously a smart girl, someone who might be able to make something of herself if she applies herself to her rehabilitation. Of course, it's good that she's away from all the bad influences that were tempting her to act out and use illicit substances instead of dealing with reality."

"How long do you think Connie will have to stay at the school?" Keith asks, trying for a desperate tone.

"I think you should count on a year minimum...possibly longer. She's seriously troubled."

Keith sighs. "I hate to even say this...I'm worried about your fees. This is going to take my entire life savings. I want to do the right thing for my daughter, but–"

"You know about our referral program right? I can have our financial aid person talk to you. If you recommend other students who might benefit from our program, we can prorate your daughter's tuition ten percent for each student who enrolls. And you'd be helping other children as well," Klein answers.

"Oh, that would really help," Keith says gratefully, thinking, _you smug son of a bitch._ "You know, it's just so hard to come home to an empty house every night. I miss her so much...even though she was cursing at me and acting like a crazy person. Can't I speak to her for just a minute?"

Klein replies, "No, I'm sorry. That's not possible. Frankly, at this point, you still can't trust her to tell you the truth about her treatment here. She would be making up horror stories about supposed abuse and mistreatment at the school. You wouldn't believe what I've heard some of these girls tell their parents. It's frightening to hear, and you don't need that at this point. I will let her know that you love her and are worried about her. She knows that if she works hard, she can earn a phone call to you."

"Oh, thank you so much. You're sure she's doing okay? She's getting enough sleep and eating all right? She can see a nurse if she's not feeling well?" Keith asks. _Come on, say it. She just asked for a doctor; come on, asshole._ He keeps his fingers crossed that's he's not pushing it.

"Of course. We would let you know right away if she needed medical attention. I'll tell you what...I usually don't allow this, but you can call me next week, and I'll personally give you an update on her progress. Don't worry, Mr. Morris; you're doing the right thing. Your daughter's going to be just fine."

Keith terminates the call. Lynley gives him a thumbs up, and Keith thinks, _Gotcha, you bastard_.

Fri. 3/13/09 afternoon: Duncan Kane residence, Neptune, CA

Duncan opens the Neptune Register. He half expects to see a story saying, 'Kane heir sought in connection to blonde bombshell's mysterious murder.' To his relief, the lead story merely identifies the woman first thought to be Katerina Beversdorf as actually Kendall Casablancas, the wife of Richard Casablancas, Sr. The newspaper summarizes the Richard Casablancas saga in lurid detail, and notes that Kendall was the CEO of an investment group known as the Phoenix Land Trust, which was dissolved after the death of Cassidy Casablancas. The story concludes with a request for anyone with knowledge of Kendall's recent whereabouts to contact the Neptune Sheriff's Department.

A sidebar discloses that the SEC has reopened the investigation into the Casablancas real estate swindle, hoping to recover more of the funds stolen from investors. The article quotes Samuel Nelson Pope, a former investor in Casablancas REIT Enterprises, as saying that the majority of the shareholders received almost no restitution when Richard Casablancas pled guilty to fraud. Pope continues, "The shareholders received pennies on the dollar while Mr. Casablancas got off with six months in a country club federal prison. The SEC seized all of Mr. Casablancas' assets, but the majority of the funds invested by small shareholders has disappeared into thin air. The magnitude of this fraud was shocking; many investors such as myself lost our entire savings."

Duncan frowns. _I thought Kendall said five million. What Mr. Pope is saying sounds like a lot more than five million was missing._

_FLASHBACK: Kendall is being interrogated in Duncan's hotel room at the Neptune Grand._

_Kendall says, "I knew Dick Senior was crooked, but I thought he was too smart to get caught. And there was so much money changing hands, it was easy to make some of it spill into my hands."_

_Keith asks, "How much?"_

_"Five million. My cut was half. Liam and I had an arrangement. But I never trusted him; I always knew he was likely to screw me over. When Beaver took his swan dive, I decided to take the Phoenix Land Trust money and run."_

Duncan thinks, _I don't know why anybody trusted a word she said. Maybe she had all of Dick Senior's money._

Duncan rereads the article, stopping at the phrase requesting information on Kendall's recent whereabouts. _Goddammit!_ He throws the paper across the room. He gets his cell phone and deletes the photo of Kendall with a savage stab of his thumb. _I don't want anything connecting me to that whore. I'm going to lie low until the custody hearing._ He drops onto the couch and holds his head in his hands.

Fri. 3/13/09 afternoon: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

After lunch, the girls file into the group therapy room. The Tylenol helped for a little while; Veronica's headache has diminished, but she still feels exhausted and weak. Dave and Alyssa are already in the room, sporting parkas and hiking boots. Veronica thinks, _Fuck...now what?_ Klein is leaning against the lectern at the front of the room. He directs the girls to stand in a line and keep quiet.

In a quiet voice, Klein says, "You are here at Briar Hill because your life out in the world didn't work. We are the end of the line. We are your last hope." He pauses, meeting the eyes of each girl. The directness of his gaze is intimidating and penetrating; Veronica tries to unfocus her eyes while still appearing to compliantly watch him. He walks over to her and stares her down. "Some of you think you already know the solution. You may even think that I don't know what I'm talking about. You might even think that you've had a hard life and that I can't possibly understand why you're like this...It's bullshit!! You don't know a fucking thing. We are the last ones left in the world who give a crap about you. And this is your last chance to prove to us that you deserve our help."

He walks up and down the line. "You might be tired because of everything we've asked of you. Your body might be aching because we made you face facts. And the pain that you feel makes you think that you've earned a break; you think you _deserve_ a second chance. Well, guess what? _You don't._ You don't deserve a fucking thing." He stops in front of Veronica again. "If you think you're feeling pain now, you are kidding yourself. You're going to cure yourself with your pain. You're going to concentrate on it until you can see its shape and color, feel its rough edges, and hear it screaming your name. You're going to push yourself farther than you've ever gone before. You're going to empty out all the blackness from inside you, and let us fill you up again. If you keep choosing out, you're going to slip into that blackness forever, and we won't be able to pull you out."

Still focused on Veronica, Klein takes it up a notch. "You're not going to be able to use the bullshit you've been relying up until now. We know you're pathetic, and there's nothing in you worth saving. You are at the end of the line here, and we are your last hope. Choose life."

The girls, including Veronica, quickly chant together, "Choose life. Choose the program."

"Love you, Connie," Klein says.

Veronica isn't sure how to respond. Maria strikes her in the back, and Veronica stumbles forward. She mumbles, "Love you."

Klein looks around, and the girls say as one, "Love you, Connie." Veronica gets back in place in the line, staring at Klein's contorted and angry face.

Klein gets an inch away from Veronica's face. "Connie, today you're going to think about everything you've ever done wrong in your life. I _know_ you. I _know_ you use everyone around you just like you use drugs and alcohol and sex. I _know_ you don't care about anyone but yourself. And most of all, I know that the people in this room are the last people in the world who just might save you, if you're willing to save yourself...You're going to make a list in your head of everyone you've ever hurt. And when you're done, we'll start writing your guilt letters. And then, you're going to think some more. Because we're just getting started. _You're_ just getting started. Love you, Connie."

The girls repeat, "Love you, Connie."

"Are you ready to begin, Connie?" Klein asks.

Veronica takes a breath and tries to look contrite. She thinks, _Fuck you, asshole. You're a fucking lunatic, and you don't know shit about me._ She stares back, wanting to scream at him, but willing herself to keep quiet.

Klein appears to read her mind. He leans in and says, "Not fast enough, Connie. I guess you're still not ready to let us help you." He motions toward Maria. "Take her down."_  
_  
Maria grabs Veronica's hair and pushes her to the ground. The other girls jump in and viciously hold her to the floor. Two girls sit on her torso; Maria takes Veronica's arm and twists it painfully behind her back. Megan holds Veronica's head sideways against the floor, and Veronica's face contorts with the pain.

Klein kneels down next to her. "I see we still have a lot of work to do with you."

"Why are you doing this? I didn't do anything! I want to call my dad! I know my rights!" she replies shakily, grimacing against the pain as Megan increases the pressure on her head.

"YOU DON'T HAVE ANY RIGHTS! YOUR OLD LIFE IS OVER, AND WE'RE YOUR LAST HOPE! WHY CAN'T YOU ACCEPT THAT WE LOVE YOU?!" he screams at her.

"I WANT TO CALL MY DAD! WHEN HE FINDS OUT ABOUT THIS, HE'S GONNA MURDER YOU!" she screams back.

Klein stands up, laughing bitterly. He says to Alyssa, "No water for her on the hike." He looks at Maria and says, "Get her up."

Maria stands up and pulls Veronica's arm at an angle. Veronica feels something pop in her shoulder, and she starts to cry and tries to pull away from Maria. "I think you broke my arm...I want a doctor, and I want my dad!"

"God, you're a fucking broken record." Maria shoves Veronica's injured shoulder, and Veronica moans, clutching her arm to her side. "I don't want to hear another word out of you today, or I'll break your other arm."

Veronica thinks furiously, _You are not going to break me! I am going to make you pay for this. I don't choose your fucking program._

Klein stares at her. Suddenly Veronica feels certain that he is reading her mind. "You know, I truly feel sorry for you, Connie. You're pathetic."

Alyssa leads the girls out of the room. Maria tries to push Veronica again, but Veronica shies away and joins the line of girls heading for the entrance. As they leave the room, Kavner is standing outside. He walks over to Tony, who is also watching with interest. "What's going on?"

Tony replies, "Klein decided to change things up a little bit. We're canceling therapy today and doing a hike." He leans closer and says quietly, "Klein's concerned about the new girl. He's worried that she's not responding well to treatment."

Kavner answers, "Right." _I don't like this at all._

When Veronica walks past, she shakes her head subtly at his expression. With every molecule of her body, she tries to send the message, _Don't you dare stop this!_

As soon as Tony moves away, Kavner goes outside and lights up a cigarette. He turns his back to the main building and sends a quick text to Keith, then, glancing back over his shoulder, heads over to the employee quarters to find Logan.

Fri. 3/13/09 afternoon: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

When Veronica disappears from view on the video feed, Keith pushes himself up out of his chair and walks outside. It's colder today than it's been; his breath is visible in the chilled air as he tries to slow his pounding heart.

Dr. Kinny joins him. "You okay?"

"Not really," he replies brusquely.

"Do you want to stop it? No one will blame you. I think we have enough now," Kinny asks. "We can get the feds in and–"

"No, Veronica was pretty clear. She said it three times." _ 'I want to call my dad.'_

"Still, it's your call."

Keith sighs. "What do Lynley and Epstein think?"

"Epstein can only think about the lawsuit. Lynley wants to nail the education commissioner...We do have them doing a takedown on video now; it'll definitely be admissible in court."

"But it's the other girls doing it. Klein and his staff are relatively insulated from prosecution," Keith says morosely. "He's really good at this. He whips the girls into a frenzy, makes them worry about getting more time added to their own programs, and he gets them to brutalize each other."

"What would Veronica say if you could talk to her?"

Keith laughs. "She'd insist that we kept going. Even not feeling well, even with her arm hurt..." He looks at Kinny. "When I was investigating the Lilly Kane murder, she never told me to back down. She lost all her friends because of it. Hell, she lost her mother because of it. But she knew it was the right thing to do." His phone beeps, and he flips open the front to read the new text message. "Kavner says the hike was a last-minute change; he's not going to be able to get assigned to it. And Logan's..."

"Right, they won't put him on it because of his knee."

"So she's alone on the hike." Keith draws in a breath. "It's pretty cold today." He nods at the ground. "There's a couple inches of snow on the ground also."

"You know, we can try Carrie's suggestion–see if we can shake things up a bit. If a TV crew is there snooping around, that will protect Veronica. The school will have to be on their best behavior for the cameras," Kinny points out. "You know, Veronica might not be feeling well, but that was impressive. Your daughter has guts."

"I know," Keith responds._ And she thinks she's invincible._ "You're right. We'll get Carrie to call a local news station. I'll feel a lot better if the media is there snooping around." He sends a reply text to Kavner: _Call me when you can talk, 911._

Fri. 3/13/09 afternoon: WMCT Television Studios, Manchester Center, VT

"Action News, 'We get there first,'" the receptionist says into the phone.

"I need to speak to one of your reporters. This is going to be a huge story!" Carrie says excitedly.

The receptionist transfers the call. One of the reporters in the newsroom picks up the extension. "Action News. This is Randy Winsome. How can I help you?"

"I'm calling about a private school in Manchester Center. You wouldn't believe what's going on there! The girls are being mistreated; there's no way this is legal. I saw a girl being beaten by one of the teachers," Carrie explains hurriedly.

"Hold on...slow down a second. What school...and what's your name?" Randy asks.

"It's Briar Hill Academy, just outside of Manchester Center. I'd rather not say my name...I'm afraid of those people! I wasn't supposed to see what's going on. Aren't private schools regulated by the state? Are they allowed to just do whatever they want to the students?" Carrie keeps her tone somewhat hysterical.

"Of course not." Randy jots down a few notes. "When did this happen? What exactly did you see?"

"Yesterday. One of the girls was being beaten by a teacher in front of the other students. I'm sure if you go to the school you'll see the girl. She was badly bruised."

"I'd like to get some more information from you–" Randy realizes he's talking to a dial tone. He calls across the room to another reporter. "Hey, didn't you work on that Briar Hill story last year? The school where one of the students was murdered? I just got a tip that something going's on there."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Disclosure**  
Veronica struggles on the hike; Leo investigates  
Kendall's murder; Logan reluctantly does his job.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Klein: Clancy Brown. Carrie: Amber Heard.  
Maria: Gina Mantegna. Kavner: Eric Bana.  
Tara: Kirsten Prout. Tony: Romany Malco.  
Dr. Kinny: Dan Castellaneta. Megan: Anna  
Lynn McCord. Alyssa: Christina Hendricks.  
Alan: Ned Vaughan. Dave: Jason Wiles.  
Agent Lynley: James Badge Dale. Tina: Anna  
Campbell. Desk Clerk: Rebecca Rhae Larsen.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER SEVENTY-NINE: "DISCLOSURE"

Fri. 3/13/09 afternoon: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica lags slightly behind the other girls. Alyssa is behind her and occasionally barks, "Let's go." Her shoulder aches with every step, and, this time, Veronica doesn't have to pretend to be having trouble keeping up on the hike. She's breathing through her mouth after just a few minutes; she tries to stabilize her arm by putting her hand in the waistband of her sweatpants, but it's not enough to relieve the pain. Her headache is starting to come back as well. _What were you thinking, Veronica?_ Without making a sound, she mouths the word 'California', trying to imagine what would happen if she gave up and used the code. She pictures federal agents in windbreakers with large lettering reading 'FBI' emerging with guns drawn from behind the trees. Then she realizes: she's all alone. There's no way that her bug will be heard from the woods, and Kavner and Logan aren't here to watch over her. _Gotta get through this, Veronica. Fuck...gotta get back to the school._

Her foot missteps slightly, and she lurches to the right. The pain in her shoulder increases exponentially as her body twists. She thinks about one of the senior girls on pep squad in her freshman year; Claire Bennett was always dislocating her shoulder. After the first few times when she was rushed to the emergency room, Claire would just grit her teeth and try to pop her own shoulder back in. '_Being a cheerleader is hard work. Hard, treacherous work,_' she said ruefully as Veronica tried not to watch.

Veronica tries to picture how Claire used to do it. She grabs her right wrist with her left hand, holds it firmly, and takes a deep breath. She pulls on her arm and feels the bone move slightly in the socket. Gasping against the pain, she maneuvers her arm that way Claire did and manages to get her arm bone resituated in her shoulder socket. It still hurts like hell, but the pain is more manageable. Maria looks back at Veronica, annoyed because Veronica has fallen behind again.

"What is the problem here?" Alyssa says from behind Veronica.

"You know, I'm just, you know, like Mr. Klein said...I'm thinking about all the people I've hurt," Veronica mumbles.

"Get it in gear, Connie! I'm sick of you lagging behind. I think you're just lazy and used to everyone coddling you," Alyssa says. She shoves Veronica in the back, and Veronica winces, the tears coming to her eyes. Her shoulder might be back in its socket, but it's definitely badly injured.

Alyssa takes out her walkie-talkie and calls ahead to Dave at the front of the group. "Let's pick up the pace." Veronica hears a burst of static in response. The group begins to move faster through the woods, and Veronica really has to concentrate to keep her footing. As the tree cover gets more dense, they are dealing with more and more snow on the ground.

After an hour, they reach a small clearing, and Dave calls a halt. The girls wearily brush the snow off rocks or logs and sit down for a brief break.

Alyssa says, "Connie!" and Veronica turns around.

"Stand in the middle of the group. You said you were thinking about the people you've hurt. Let's hear about it."

_Fuck._ Veronica stares at Alyssa, thinking. Her mind is a blank; all the crazy stories of drinking and drugging that she prepared elude her in her tiredness. Finally in desperation she says, "I told my best friend that her boyfriend was cheating on her. It's the worst thing I ever did."

Alyssa laughs scornfully. "Wait...that's what you think we're talking about when we discuss how we hurt the people around us? You have a long way to go, Connie, if you think–"

Veronica interrupts her. "She died because of it. It was my fault. I was interfering. I should have stayed out of it. Do you hear what I'm saying? She _died_." Veronica realizes she sounds a little hysterical and shuts her mouth._ Fuck...I'm getting really tired. Try to focus, Veronica._ She tries to push aside the remnants of last night's nightmare; all day she's been remembering Logan's bitter words to her. '_All you ever do is use the people around you, then you turn on them when it's convenient. I'm sick of it, Veronica._' _It's not true, I don't use people. I didn't... _She shakes her head, trying desperately to clear her thoughts to concentrate on the problem of Alyssa's probing.

Alyssa stares at her. "I suppose you were drinking and drugging at the time? Was she one of your druggie friends? What about the boy?"

_What about the boy..._Veronica muses. She observes that all the girls are looking at her curiously. She drops her eyes and says, "Yeah, we all drank a lot. We were a mess. Parties on the beach...kegs...people would hook up..." _Careful, Veronica! Beach–you're supposed to be from Boston._ She thinks for a second and improvises, "You know, summer parties on Cape Cod. We used to shoplift dresses from one of the stores and then return them for the cash. Then we'd buy kegs with the money." _Pretty tame, Veronica; they're going to want more._

"How did your friend die?" Alyssa presses.

Veronica sighs. "She was killed by..." she swallows, "by her older lover."

"Oh, so you're saying she was a slut? Sleeping around?"

"No! He took advantage of her!" Veronica replies angrily. "He was...you don't understand!"

"No, actually I do understand. Teenagers drinking, drugging, out of control...having sex with whoever they feel like. It's not surprising when someone dies because of it."

_Oh you fucking bitch,_ Veronica seethes. Then she remembers where she is...far away from the cavalry, injured and exhausted. As she thinks about it, her headache begins to pound again. She mutters, "You're right. We were out of control." _Fucking leave me alone. Damn it..._

Alyssa turns to the other girls. "What do you think?"

"It's bullshit," Maria says quickly.

Megan laughs. "She's not digging deep at all. I think she's making it up."

Tara says quietly, "She's not being honest with us. Come on, Connie."

Alyssa says sternly, "You're going to have to do better. Everybody up, let's go. I think we're going to pick up the pace a little more, because _Connie_ needs to work a little harder on her honesty."

When Maria stands up, she accidentally-on-purpose bumps into Veronica's bad shoulder, saying, "Oh sorry," and then sotto voce, "_you fucking cunt_."

_Right back at you, Maria darling,_ Veronica thinks, wincing. She notices that all the girls are staring at her angrily.

Fri. 3/13/09 afternoon: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

Keith and the rest of the monitoring team are gathered around the computer, listening to the wire tap on Klein's phone that the feds installed.

CARL BEHR: IT'S ME.

KLEIN: I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU NOT TO CALL–

BEHR: SOME TV STATION CALLED ASKING FOR A QUOTE ABOUT THE SCHOOL. APPARENTLY, SOMEONE CALLED IN A TIP ABOUT A STUDENT BEING ABUSED.

KLEIN: WHAT?

BEHR: ONE OF THE INSPECTORS AND I ARE HEADING DOWN THERE RIGHT NOW TO PERFORM A 'SURPRISE' INSPECTION. I THINK YOU BETTER BE PREPARED FOR A MEDIA STORM. GET THE STUDENTS UNDER CONTROL.

KLEIN: FUCK.

The room is filled with the sound of a dial tone as Klein hangs up.

Lynley does a happy dance. "This is great. We got them both. Combined with your photos that document a financial link, we got 'em."

"And in the meantime, they'll be on their best behavior, so we know Veronica will be safe," Keith comments. He hears something from the audio bug that Logan put in Klein's office, and Keith shushes everyone as he turns up the gain on that device.

_"Mobile One, this is home base. We're sending two of the jeeps. I want everyone back ASAP and on your best behavior...buzz of static...Don't argue with me. Meet up at Hilltop Road...clicking sound...Tony, get Oakley. Take two of the jeeps and pick up the girls on Hilltop Road. Bring them back to the school right away; we have a media situation."_

Keith nods at Carrie. "Good work."

Fri. 3/13/09 late afternoon: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

Sheriff D'Amato enters the hotel lobby and walks over to the front desk. He puts the enlarged photo from Katerina Beversdorf's passport picture on the counter. "I'm trying to trace the recent whereabouts of this person. By any chance, was she staying at this hotel?"

The woman behind the counter looks at the photo and then at Leo's serious expression. "Uh, let me get our manager." She picks up the extension and says, "Tina...Sheriff D'Amato's here; you need to speak to him."

A young woman approaches the desk and extends her hand. "Hi, I'm Tina, I'm the manager here. Why don't you come back to my office? I'd be happy to help you."

In Tina's office, she picks up the photo and stares at it. "Yes, she's been a guest here, for about four weeks I'd say." She clicks a few keys on her computer. "She checked in on February 2."

"And you didn't think it would be appropriate to call the Sheriff's Department when the news of her murder hit the papers?" Leo asks.

"I've actually just returned from vacation this morning. I wasn't aware of a murder."

_Then why aren't you surprised to hear about it?_ Leo thinks. "So what name was she using here at the hotel? Her passport says Katerina Beversdorf, but her birth name was Priscilla Banks. And of course, if you have a chance to check the papers, you'll see that she's much more famous in this town as Kendall Casablancas. Practically notorious, you might say."

Tina flushes. "She used a credit card for her deposit in the name of Pamela Hollister. But she paid cash for the room, two weeks in advance always."

"Cash? That's unusual. That didn't raise an alarm for you?"

"It's still not illegal, as far as I know," Tina says defensively. "We sometimes get Hollywood stars recuperating from plastic surgery here. We have a reputation for protecting the privacy of our guests."

"So Tina, is there anything you want to volunteer at this point about Katerina's stay at the hotel? Or Pamela or Kendall, or however you'd like to think of her," Leo adds.

"She definitely kept to herself. She only allowed housekeeping to make up her room once a week, and I'm pretty sure she used room service for almost all her meals," Tina explains.

"I'll need to see her room of course. Did she have any visitors?" Leo presses.

"We don't keep track of that," Tina replies.

"You do have security, though, right? Do you keep video of any surveillance footage?"

"Yes, of course, our insurance requires it. I'll have our head of security make you a copy of the footage during the time of Ms. Hollister's stay here," Tina promises.

"And I'd like to speak to your housekeeping and room service staff," Leo says.

"Certainly. We'd like to cooperate with your investigation in every way. Is there anything else?"

"I'm going to need a list of everyone who was staying here when Ms...uh...Hollister was registered here," Leo requests.

"I'll have the front desk print that out for you. In the meantime, let's take a walk to our security office. I'll get them to make up that video footage for you and deliver it to the sheriff's department." Tina stands up and escorts Leo down the hall. "And I'll set you up in a conference room to talk to our employees."

"I appreciate it, Tina. I'll get our crime scene technicians over to process her room immediately."

Fri. 3/13/09 late afternoon: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Logan pulls up behind Tony's jeep at the parking spot on Hilltop Road. He steps out to wait with Tony. "What's going on?"

"I'm not sure. Klein just said that he wanted the girls back early for some reason," Tony says evasively.

Logan watches the girls approaching on the rough trail. They are hustling; Dave is setting a very fast pace, and Alyssa is sweeping at the rear, just behind Veronica. _Haven't seen her since...last night, the Lifeboat exercise, _he thinks, trying to sort out the days in his head. Last night's dream, with Hannah, and then Veronica, in the restraints was so realistic that it's been haunting him the whole day. Veronica sees him and refuses to look at him. _Okay; it's okay...she's just being cautious._

Tony says, "Okay, everyone in the jeeps, let's go. You five with Dave and me. The rest of you with Alyssa and Roger in the other jeep." Veronica is directed to go into Logan's jeep. The girls squeeze into the back. Veronica's face is pale, and she's sweating. Logan notices that she winces when another girl presses up against her, although she is taking pains to hide it. He slams the rear door; Alyssa gets in the passenger seat, and Logan starts up the jeep and follows Tony back to the school.

He adjusts the rear-view mirror, hoping to catch Veronica's eye. She sees him and immediately closes her eyes. As he drives cautiously down the rutted road, he keeps looking at her, wishing she'd open her eyes. When Keith talked to him and Kavner, he mentioned that Veronica might have been injured when the girls took her down before the hike. _Open your eyes, goddammit! How am I supposed to see if you're okay if you won't try to communicate with me? Come on, Veronica!_

His first response to Keith's news about Veronica's violent takedown was, "If she's hurt, let's end it. Come on. That's your daughter! What the hell is wrong with you?" They argued back and forth for ten minutes, with Keith stressing that Veronica was very adamant about continuing, based on her use of the code words. The familiar anger at her recklessness asserted itself, and Logan had to catch himself before he started yelling at Keith again. He finally agreed to keep going, but Logan swore to himself that he didn't care if he jeopardized the mission; _I am going to make sure she's all right._ He accidentally hits a deep rut in the road and the jeep lurches sideways; when Logan checks the mirror, he is certain that Veronica is really hurting from her facial expression.

When they reach the school, Logan walks around to the back of the jeep and helps the girls get out. As he hoped, Veronica is last. He gets right in front of her and whispers, "_Stop this._" She shakes her head at him and avoids looking at him again. She pushes past; he touches her arm lightly, and she flinches. "_Please..._" he mutters under his breath. She walks away, following the other girls into the main building.

The girls are told to get cleaned up as quickly as possible and then are ushered into the group therapy room. The girls know that something is going on; they all appear nervous. Alyssa starts abruptly. "I'm only going to say this once. You all know this. Anyone who speaks to a reporter without an employee present automatically gets six months added to your program. I don't care if you tell them that this is the best thing that's ever happened to you or if you say that this is the biggest hellhole on earth; the consequences will be the same. You keep your mouths shut."

Veronica wonders if her dad is involved; _did he arrange this to get me back from the hike?_ She doesn't dare look at Logan, leaning against the wall off to the side of the room.

Alyssa walks over to Veronica. "Come up front, Connie. Let's continue what we started on the hike."

Logan suddenly feels scared. Kavner reported what Tony had said to him: '_Klein's concerned about the new girl. He's worried that she's not responding well to treatment.'_

_Fuck! They are targeting her. Goddamn it._ He watches as Veronica makes her way up to the front. She's moving slowly; Logan's quite certain that she's not just tired but in actual physical pain. She turns toward the other girls, and Logan moves to the back wall of the room so that she can't avoid looking at him.

_Damn you,_ she thinks. _This is hard enough._ The image from her dream of Logan ratting her out to Klein is still vivid and disturbing.

He feels her thought like a punch to the gut. He stares at her, trying to make her understand, trying to make her give this up, before she is really hurt, before _they_ are really hurt.

She stares back, determined; then she breaks away from his gaze, looking at Alyssa for instruction.

"Connie, tell us more about your friend who died. You said you told her that her boyfriend was cheating on her, and then you said that led to her death," Alyssa prompts.

_No, you fucking did not tell them about Lilly,_ Logan thinks, suddenly filled with rage. _You fucking did NOT tell these lunatics about her!_

Veronica looks at the floor to avoid looking at Logan. "He, uh, was frustrated with her, because she took him for granted. And he was just...he just kissed a girl because he was lonely and upset. My friend was cheating on him too, and blowing him off whenever she felt like it."

"Sounds like your friends had a pretty loose moral code," Alyssa jeers. "Is that the way you think people should behave? If you're not happy, you just have sex with someone new?"

"Of course not. It's not that simple," Veronica says before she can think.

Megan pumps her arms in the air, and Alyssa recognizes her. She jumps to her feet and says, "It's actually an act of kindness to tell people about their moral failings."

"Continue, Megan."

"You have to help people face their flaws so they can get better. That's what we're doing here," Megan says smugly. "You shouldn't feel guilty about trying to help your friends behave in a moral way."

"Except that if I hadn't broken them up, they would have been together that day, and she wouldn't have had her head bashed in by an ashtray," Veronica retorts. "You don't know the situation."

"Well, maybe you should have told them to stop fucking around earlier than you did. Maybe you're right. You _were_ a shitty friend." Megan sits down.

Alyssa says, "I think the point is that none of you were behaving morally. You said you all were doing a lot of drinking? Avoiding acting responsibly right?"

Logan can't believe this. The conversation is insane and incredibly hurtful. _Why is she doing this? Why would Veronica talk about Lilly?_

Veronica mumbles, "Yeah. We were screwing around. Just kid stuff." _I gotta get them off this. Why did I talk about Lilly?_

"You made it sound like your friend was a slut...sleeping around on her boyfriend. Why would you be friends with someone like that? Did you want to be like her?"

"No!...I mean, I loved her, she was my best friend, she was crazy but–"

"What about her boyfriend? Were you trying to get him for yourself? That's a pretty crappy thing to do to your friend. And then she got killed because of it."

Veronica's heart pounds. "No, it's not true. I didn't know what to do, I screwed up." For just a second, she catches Logan's eye. He stares at her, and she drops her eyes to the floor again.

"Sounds like you don't have any kind of moral code at all, Connie...Come on, tell us about the drugs now."

The abrupt change in topic throws Veronica for a loop. "What?"

"I _know_ you were doing drugs with your friends. I want to know what kind of drugs you were using."

"Uh, ecstasy. And weed. A lot of weed. Sometimes there was coke, but I never wanted to try it."

"Bullshit, Connie," Alyssa says scornfully. "I think you wanted to try everything for yourself."

"No!" Veronica counts to five before continuing. _Remember, they think what you admit willingly is false, what has to be pulled out is true; don't admit anything!_ She takes a breath and says, "I didn't want to do anything more than a little pot. So I didn't." Suddenly she feels a little stronger; she knows they think they are in control of this, but she knows what they want. _So bring it on, Alyssa. I'm ready now._

"Tell me what it feels like when you get high, Connie."

_Whoops. Guess I should've indulged more._ "I like feeling a little out of control, like maybe things are going to get a little crazy. It's exciting...and you know...you think differently. You see people differently, you get out of yourself a little."

Several people enter the back of room. One man holds a video camera. Alyssa smiles and says, "Welcome to Briar Hill. This is our group therapy session. Connie, why don't you take your seat. We'll continue this later. Maria, can you come up front please?"

As Veronica walks back to her seat, she feels Logan's eyes on her. For a second, she imagines that he's going to walk up to Alyssa and tell her _everything_, and Veronica stumbles as she tries to sit down without looking at him.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Guilty Party**  
Leo investigates; Duncan reaches out  
to Wallace; Connie works on her program.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Duncan 2.0: Chris  
Carmack. Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
Candice Pauling: Toy Connor. Klein: Clancy  
Brown. Epstein: Scott Grimes. Megan: Anna  
Lynn McCord. Alyssa: Christina Hendricks.  
Shari: Jessalyn Gilsig. Jim: Adrian Quinones.  
Housekeeper: Jenny O'Hara. Coach: Richard  
T. Jones. Randy Winsome: Mark Valley.  
Deputy Sacks: Brandon Hillock.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER EIGHTY: "GUILTY PARTY"

Fri. 3/13/09 early evening: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

Leo surveys Kendall Casablancas' hotel room. After going back and forth with the other deputies about calling her Priscilla Banks, or Katerina Beversdorf, Leo finally issued a directive that, for the sake of simplicity, all communications should refer to her by the name she used while living in Neptune. The head housekeeper stands in the doorway fidgeting. Leo turns to her and asks, "When was this room cleaned last?"

"Yesterday. She almost always had the 'Do Not Disturb' sign on the door. She usually only allowed us to clean up once a week or so. We had to try to take advantage of an opportunity to do our job. Miss Tina is insistent that we don't bother the guests, but we still have to make sure the rooms are clean."

"And how was the room yesterday?"

The housekeeper says nervously, "It was a mess."

"Was she usually a messy guest?"

"No, not at all. The bed was usually made, and everything was put away. We don't go into the drawers or the closets if they're shut. We ask the guests to put their dirty towels in the tub if they want more."

Leo presses, "So yesterday...which was after she was found dead...her room was a mess, which was unusual."

"Yes, but we didn't know–"

"Of course. Tell me about the mess."

The housekeeper describes a room that has been thoroughly searched; all the contents of the drawers and the closets were rifled through, with the drawers and closet doors left ajar. The housekeeper admits that all the cosmetics and lotions had been poured into the drain, with the empty containers strewn on the bathroom floor.

_Looking for something small,_ Leo thinks. "Anything missing that you had noticed before?"

The housekeeper replies hesitantly, "Her computer."

"Why didn't you report this?"

"It's not my business to keep track of the guests, and they're certainly allowed to take their personal possessions out of the room," she answers nervously.

_And you didn't want to be accused of stealing it._ Leo surveys the room which is now crawling with evidence techs searching for clues. _It's probably hopeless. This room was completely cleaned yesterday. And...I don't think she was killed here anyways._

Deputy Sacks comes into the room. "Here's that list of everyone who was registered here since Katerina...I mean Priscilla...oh hell. Since Kendall checked in," he finally finishes triumphantly.

Leo quickly scans the list. No name strikes him immediately, and he sighs. _This is going to be a lot of work._

Fri. 3/13/09 early evening: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

_My dad is a genius,_ Veronica thinks. The tension that usually permeates the school has had a brief respite with the presence of the media. The television crew is interviewing Klein and another man while the girls eat dinner. A few phrases waft her way: "The plain food here, presented without options, is purposely designed to meet the girls' nutritional needs." The reporter asks why there is no choice, and Klein reiterates the standard line. "The girls are here to escape a world in which there's too many options; too many choices and too many decisions lead to the wrong path far too often. The outside world is far too complicated, with drugs and sexualized entertainment and the easy access to immorality through the internet. We keep it simple at Briar Hill, so they can concentrate on making their lives better when they graduate." Veronica laughs a little under her breath; _yeah, my simple peanut butter sandwich is the only thing standing between me and the inevitable degradation of becoming the next Playboy centerfold._

The main thing is that the incessant rhetoric aimed at her has eased up for a short time. _ I can't let them beat me,_ she vows again. She's completely exhausted; the hike took the last bit of energy she had. She puts the sandwich down between bites to rest a little. Her shoulder is still incredibly painful. If she hadn't had this respite, Veronica thinks she might have had to end the mission. _But I really want to document whatever Klein is going to try next...I want that fucker in jail for the rest of his life._

She leans her head on her left hand and looks around at the other girls. Maria seems a lost cause; the combination of whatever horrible abuse occurred to her with the years of inhumane treatment here appear to be irreversible. Still...Veronica wouldn't want her to have to go to Serenity Bay. The stories of children spending days or weeks on end in doghouse sized cages in the hot sun still make her shiver when she lets herself think about it.

Megan...well, Megan probably _was_ a juvenile delinquent. She might have even needed some type of residential treatment, and Veronica doesn't doubt that Megan was using drugs. But her experience here has apparently exaggerated Megan's natural inclination to tattle and lie and fueled her tendency to aggrandize her life experiences.

Tara is the girl that Veronica thinks can still be saved from her experience at Briar Hill. Her heart breaks every time Tara regurgitates the twelve-step philosophies that are hammered into the girls' heads twenty-four hours a day; but Veronica sees that Tara is not a true believer...yet.

The other girls are a mix; certainly most of the girls were in serious trouble before coming here, and their parents probably agonized over the right course of action. But some of the girls, like Maria, seem to have committed nothing wrong other than the sin of having parents who lacked parenting skills and the desire to improve them, and the school appeared to be an easy way to dispose of inconveniently misbehaving teenagers for those with the resources to afford such a program.

Veronica picks up the peanut butter sandwich left-handed and takes another bite before putting it down again. She forces down more of the disgusting 'bug juice', worrying that she got even more dehydrated on the hike. She still feels feverish and wishes she could see a doctor. For just a moment, she considers going up to Klein, who is still speaking with the reporter, and asking for a doctor. It would certainly lead to a doctor's visit, but she knows her dad would end the operation immediately.

Veronica sets her jaw. She really wants to face off against Klein, and she knows..._it's coming._

Fri. 3/13/09 evening: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

The announcer says gleefully, "Fennel, shooting 85 percent from the stripe, sinks the shot! Hearst wins, 81 to 80 on the back of Wallace Fennel, our player of the game."

The coach pats Wallace on the back, saying, "Good job on that last free throw."

"Thanks, Coach," Wallace replies. Several of the players congratulate him as the crowd begins to leave the arena. Wallace notices a young man in a baseball cap trying to catch his eye. _Duncan Kane. He looks...well, he looks really stressed out compared to the last time I saw him, when we talked to Lizzie at San Diego State._ Wallace heads over to the bleachers. "What's up?"

"Need to talk to you," Duncan replies shortly.

"My girlfriend and I are getting something to eat. You want to join us?" Wallace nods at Candice sitting a short distance away.

"Okay," Duncan agrees.

Calling good night to the other players, Wallace meets up with Candice and Duncan outside the locker room. He introduces them to each other, telling Candice only that Duncan is another old friend from Neptune High. _Really, Veronica's friend, _ he thinks to himself.

Wallace skips over the details with Candice, but in his head, he'll always think of Duncan as the guy who froze out Veronica junior year. He's somehow forgiven Logan all his misdeeds, but Duncan Kane... The guy fled the country two times to escape his problems, and Wallace has never really wanted to get to know this guy who can't seem to face the music and always left Veronica behind to take the heat. He thinks about coming back from Chicago to a Veronica Mars who had once again subtly reinforced her tough-as-nails exterior to try to cope with the revelation of Meg's pregnancy.

"Really great game, Wallace," Duncan comments. Candice holds onto Wallace's hand as they walk toward the parking lot. Duncan follows as Wallace drives to a restaurant not far away. Once in the restaurant, Wallace fields the inevitable high-fives and hearty congratulations on Hearst's first trip to the finals of their division in recent memory. They make small talk and place their order with the waitress.

"So what's going on, Duncan?" Wallace asks when they are served their burgers and fries.

"I need to get in touch with Veronica," Duncan says abruptly.

"If this is about the subpoena, I told Keith about it already. He'll make sure that Veronica's there for the hearing."

"Where is she?" Duncan asks impatiently. His voice rises. "I really need to talk to her. Can you get in touch with her?"

_Once again, Veronica's supposed to clean up all his messes for him,_ Wallace thinks bitterly. He remembers, _Duncan's the reason that Keith was digging up graveyards, so it's not just Veronica taking chances to save his ass._ His voice takes on an angry edge. "She's on an important undercover operation, and she can't be disturbed until it's over. Keith assured me that your custody hearing won't be a problem. If necessary, he'll end her undercover status early to comply with the subpoena. In the meantime...well, she could be in danger if she's distracted. She needs to concentrate on what she's doing."

Candice looks at him with surprise, wondering at his attitude toward someone who's supposed to be his friend. She turns to Duncan and asks, "Is everything okay? Is there something that we can help you with?"

Duncan sighs. "It's not just the custody hearing. There's something else that I really need to talk to her about. Wallace, I know...I know you're pissed that Veronica is involved in my problems."

Wallace stares at him impassively, then shrugs. "Girl's a marshmallow; she's always had a soft spot for you. I just don't want her to get hurt."

"I know that. I don't want her to get hurt either. That's just it; I don't understand what's going on, and I'm worried it will hurt her."

"All I can do is talk to Keith right now. Duncan, what I'm worried about right now is the Mackenzie funeral. I know Veronica would be really upset if she wasn't there for Mac. But I know Keith hasn't even told her what happened. What she's doing...it's really dangerous, that's all I can say, and she has to be on her game. She can't be distracted by anything right now. I'm hoping the undercover operation will be over soon."

Embarrassed, Duncan replies, "Shit, I didn't even think about Mac." _What kind of friend am I...I've been so upset about Kendall that I didn't even realize Veronica would be worrying about her friend who lost her whole family._ Duncan stands up. "You're right, it'll have to wait. Just...when she gets back and has a moment...just tell her I need to talk to her. When you talk to Keith, tell him I'm worried about Veronica too."

"Duncan, don't go. Stay and finish your burger," Candice says.

"No, I've lost my appetite." He takes out his wallet and puts two twenties on the table. "Dinner's on me."

"Can't accept that," Wallace says, pushing the money back at Duncan.

Duncan grimaces, then takes the money, nods, and walks out of the restaurant.

Candice looks at Wallace questioningly, and he fills her in on a little more of the history of Neptune High School.

Fri. 3/13/09 late: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

The television crew continues to film and the Education Department inspectors observe as the girls go to their evening classes. Shari, the teacher, subtly guides the crew to focus their attention on the more compliant students by remarking on their achievements. The reporter interviews two of the oldcomers, who talk about the progress they've made since they came to Briar Hill. "The teachers have been really great here," Veronica overhears Megan saying enthusiastically. "They always encourage us to look up any words we don't know. I never used to do that. And because we all work at our own pace, I never feel frustrated because another girl is doing better than me. I always feel a real sense of accomplishment when I finish a worksheet." Veronica keeps her head down and works hard on her own sheets.

The reporter wraps up his interviews. He moves to the hallway and films a tagline to his report. "This is Randy Winsome for Action News, reporting from Manchester Center on an alternative education system that really works." _There's going to be egg on your face in a few days, Randy, _Veronica thinks.

Once the reporters have left, Shari beckons one of the guards, Jim, and tells him to take Veronica to Alyssa's office. Veronica is halfway through a worksheet on photosynthesis; she puts down her pencil and follows Jim without an argument. _Hmm, photosynthesis–I wonder how it all turns out...oh wait, I remember now, glucose plus oxygen plus water. Now that's a happy ending._

Veronica sits down across from Alyssa. The counselor opens a desk drawer and puts a stack of lined notebook paper and a pencil in front of Veronica. Alyssa says to Jim, "You know we had an incident with this one with a pen her first day. I need you to watch her."

Veronica feels perversely proud of her hard-earned reputation but keeps her mouth shut.

Alyssa continues, "So tonight we're going to work on your first guilt letter. We've talked about working the steps, and we've done a little work on Step Four, your moral inventory, in group. Your guilt letters are part of Step Nine, making amends. We're going to write down an admission of your flaws, and you will take responsibility for all your past bad actions; then you're going to beg the person you injured for forgiveness and hope to hell they grant it to you. We find that the guilt letters often clarify the work of the program for our students."

Veronica stares back at Alyssa. _I can do this. This is no big deal,_ she thinks. _Bring it on._

Alyssa says, "We're going to write a letter to the mother of the girl whose death you caused...the girl you talked about in group today."

_No fucking way,_ Veronica thinks. _Fuck!_

"What's her name? You never said. The girl you didn't give a shit about, that you didn't call on her bad behavior until it was too late. Good job helping your friends, Connie."

"You don't know a fucking thing about Li-" Veronica stops and takes a breath. "I loved...Linda."

"I guess you need more specific instructions, Connie. I want you to write, Dear Mrs..." Alyssa prompts.

Veronica wants to write '_Dear Mrs. Bitch Cuntwad_', but she writes '_Dear Mrs. Ka_' instead before stopping to reconsider. She hesitates and then finishes, '_Dear Mrs. Kahan_.'

Alyssa dictates, "I'm writing this letter to beg for your forgiveness. My actions have hurt the people around me, and I'm hoping that by writing down the terrible things I've done I might begin to become a better person."

Veronica writes:

'Dear Mrs. Kahan,

Your daughter was the most beautiful person I ever knew. I loved her with all my heart. I don't know why you treated her the way you did.'

Alyssa stands up and walks around behind Veronica to read what she has written. "What the hell is your problem? Write what I'm telling you!"

"I thought it was _my_ guilt letter. Aren't I allowed to express my feelings?" Veronica retorts.

"Scratch that last sentence and write what I said," Alyssa yells.

Veronica revises.

'Dear Mrs. Kahan,

Your daughter was the most beautiful person I ever knew. I loved her with all my heart.

I'm writing this letter to beg you for forgiveness. I did a terrible thing, and I hurt everyone around me with my actions. I'm trying to become a better person by admitting my guilt.'

Alyssa says, "Better. Now write down exactly what happened."

'I saw Linda's boyfriend kissing another girl. I told Linda about it, and she broke up with him.'

"Continue," Alyssa prompts when Veronica pauses.

"I don't know how to say it. I...I know it was..." Veronica replies.

"Just write the truth."

'If I hadn't broken them up, they would have been together that day, and Linda wouldn't have been killed. I'll never forgive myself for that.'

"You're not stressing the important part," Alyssa says impatiently. "That you should have called Linda on her promiscuity and drugging and helped her to live a moral life."

_I'd like to have seen you try to get Lilly to behave. If Celeste couldn't make her into a Stepford wife, no one could._ Veronica asks, "Aren't we supposed to be responsible for ourselves? 'Let go, and let God,' and all that. I don't understand how that means that we're supposed to tell other people how to behave."

Sarcastically, Alyssa responds, "Listen, Miss Denial, you don't get to pick and choose which parts of the program you get to utilize. You accept all of it, or you die. You don't question the program. You open yourself to the help that we give you, and that's how you get better."

_Right. It's all clear to me now,_ Veronica thinks.

Alyssa continues, "You need to list your own moral flaws that prevented you from helping your friend."

Veronica pretends to think a minute and writes some more.

'I was wrong to let Linda do the things she did without telling her that she should stop. I wanted to drink and drug with her and sleep around the way she did, so I never did the right thing. I never tried to get Linda to stop all the terrible things she did.'

_I never...considered that it was my responsibility to make Lilly behave. I never...wanted to punish her for being a free spirit. _Then Veronica has a moment of doubt. _I never...broke up Lilly and Logan because I wanted him for myself. I never...caused the death of my best friend because I secretly loved her boyfriend...No, I didn't! I couldn't have done that._ Her expression betrays her uncertainty.

Alyssa pounces. "What are you thinking?"

"Nothing!" Veronica lies. "I'm just trying to get it right. I'm really trying!" Jim looks at her curiously as well.

"I think there's something you're still not telling us. Connie, you are not going to get better if you keep hiding from the truth about yourself. Take another piece of paper. Write down as many of your flaws as you can. Let's go! You're obviously not ready to write a guilt letter yet, Connie. We're going have to spend a lot more time looking at your bad behavior." She pulls out a copy of the moral inventory sheet and gives it to Veronica as a template.

Veronica starts listing her flaws. _Well, this is easy. I just have to write down everything Logan ever accused me of,_ she thinks half-sarcastically.

'Reckless  
Dishonest  
Sarcastic  
Judgmental  
Liar  
Self-righteous  
Justifying  
Critical  
Suspicious'

Alyssa looks at her list and says, "Okay. That's a good start. Now, I'd like you to write down an incident from your life that demonstrates each of these flaws."

For the next two hours, Veronica tries to satisfy Alyssa's demands. Her shoulder begins to ache again from all the writing. Each time she tries to fudge a description from her real past, Alyssa somehow sees through the lie and insists that Veronica revise it. Finally, Veronica writes:

'Suspicious: I accused my boyfriend of murdering my best friend. I didn't have faith in him even though I loved him, and he loved me. I didn't trust him. I assumed he cheated on me to hurt me.'

Alyssa remains doubtful. "I don't know, Connie...I really don't know how you managed to survive up until now when all you do is lie to yourself. We're going to be doing this a lot, Connie. You've got a lot to answer for. Jim, you can take her now." The guard leads her to the sleeping room, where the other girls are already getting ready for bed.

Veronica crawls into her upper bunk. _I don't think I've ever been so tired in my life. _The effort of trying to satisfy Alyssa and keeping all the various subterfuges and tales of debauchery straight in her head has exhausted her. Even though she intellectually knows that Alyssa's techniques are evil, she is completely disheartened by her self-examination. She keeps remembering Logan's fury on the beach when he confronted her about her accusation that he had killed Lilly, and those old nightmares of Logan balancing on the bridge while Weevil interrogates him keep playing whenever she tries to close her eyes. She hears him begging for her forgiveness for sleeping with Madison: '_She meant less than nothing to me...I wasn't trying to hurt you_,' and she hears herself, replying coldly and viciously, '_Imagine if you tried_.'

Veronica wishes she could excise the memories or block them out with alcohol or drugs._ I guess that's what you call a denial problem_, she thinks._ If only I could deny my character flaws by getting high...yeah, I'm getting much better here at Briar Hill._ She tosses and turns, attempting to think of anything but her relationship with Logan and all the mistakes she's made in her life.

Her shoulder begins to bother her intensely as she tries to get comfortable in the narrow bunk. She turns over onto her back and stretches her arm over her head, which is far worse. Veronica tries lying on her left side, but no matter what position she puts her right arm in, it throbs painfully. Finally, she puts the pillow under her back and leans her right side against it; the pillow supports her arm enough that its twinges diminish slightly.

Unfortunately, her contortions to try to get comfortable accidentally unhook the bug in her bra from the transmitting wire concealed as an underwire, and the audio transmitter goes silent.

Fri. 3/13/09 late: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

Keith and the others listen to the scuffling sounds of the girls getting ready for bed. There is no talking, no laughter or jokes about cute boys, and Keith always finds it depressing and unnatural. The audio feed goes silent, and they assume that Veronica has fallen asleep. Epstein volunteers to take the first four-hour shift, and the others go to bed.

The guilt-letter session with Alyssa really bothered Keith; when he heard Veronica say 'ashtray' in this afternoon's group therapy, he immediately realized that she was incorporating real-life details in her answers. He tries to reassure himself; he always trained her to stick to the truth as much as possible when employing a ruse in order to help keep her story straight. He tells himself that that's what's going on here. Keith worries about her until he finally falls asleep.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Disintegration**  
A witness comes forward; Veronica is  
stressed; technical difficulties.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Carrie: Amber Heard.  
Klein: Clancy Brown. Maria: Gina Mantegna.  
Kavner: Eric Bana. Dr. Kinny: Dan Castellaneta.  
Alyssa: Christina Hendricks. Agent Lynley:  
James Badge Dale. Oswaldo: Frankie Rodriguez.  
Guard: Kevin Rankin.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER EIGHTY-ONE: "DISINTEGRATION"

Fri. 3/13/09 late: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

Leo has been interviewing employees on the night shift in one of the Neptune Grand's conference rooms. Each employee seems to have the same story: yes, they remember Kendall; no, they never saw her with anyone. Kendall kept to herself, didn't want her room cleaned very often, and seemed to have room service every night. A few of the staff from the kitchen mention that she was a lousy tipper. Leo motions one of the deputies to bring in the last employee for the shift.

"Oswaldo Cortez?" Leo asks, and the young man nods. Leo scans the paper summarizing Oswaldo's employment history at the hotel and notes that he's been working maintenance at the hotel for the last four years. "So, Mr. Cortez, I'm sure you've heard that we're investigating the murder of one of the guests. She was registered as Katerina Beversdorf, room 214. But her real name was–"

"Kendall Casablancas. Yeah, I can read the newspaper," Oswaldo interrupts.

Surprised, Leo asks, "Were you aware that she was Kendall before she was killed?"

"No. But I remember her from before," Oswaldo replies suggestively.

"Before?"

"Listen, I know something about Kendall from a few years ago. I didn't see it in the paper. I bet I know who killed that bitch." Oswaldo pauses.

"So? Let's hear it," Leo prods.

"You know, Sheriff, I'm trying to get out from under a bullshit assault charge right now. If that goes away, I might just remember who Kendall used to hang out with here at the hotel three years ago. But, you know, I can't quite put my finger on it, who it was. If only I could remember," Oswaldo says sarcastically.

Leo leans back in his chair, trying to assess if this guy actually has worthwhile information. He says, "Cortez, huh. You any relation to Hector Cortez?"

"My cousin."

"You're certain you saw Kendall with someone?"

"Yeah. Someone she wasn't supposed to be with. His name slips my mind at present. I'm a little distracted though, worrying about that assault charge."

"So three years ago you saw Kendall with this guy. What does that have to do with now?"

"He's been here since then...while Kendall was here. I saw him getting into the elevator late one night...maybe about two weeks ago."

"If you have information, you need to tell us what you know," Leo says forcefully.

"Unh-unh. I want that assault charge to go away. And then, I feel certain I'll be able to remember," Oswaldo responds emphatically. He leaves the conference room. Once he's in the hallway, he pulls out his cell phone and dials a number. He says quietly, "Ya viene la tormenta."

Fri. 3/13/09 very late: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica is woken up by someone shaking her roughly. The room is still dark, and she is uncertain what's going on. Maria says quietly, "Get out of bed now, and don't wake up any of the other girls."

Veronica scrambles out of the top bunk, suppressing a moan when she knocks her shoulder against the bed frame. Maria and an unfamiliar guard take her to the exercise room. Veronica, still half-asleep, is pushed to the center of the room. As an exercise room, it's barely equipped. There are no free weights or Nautilus machines; Veronica assumes that anything that could be used as a weapon has been banished from this room. There are two fixed slanted crunch boards in one corner with no other exercise equipment in sight. _So much for the vaunted physical education advertised in the brochure._ There are no mirrors; again, Veronica assumes this is to prevent a broken mirror from being used as a weapon. The walls have ragged posters depicting calisthenic type exercises. Veronica turns around and faces Maria and the guard.

Maria says, "Two hundred jumping jacks. Let's go."

_What the hell? I've completely behaved myself since the hike. I did the fucking guilt letter with Alyssa. I wrote down all my flaws._ Veronica takes one look at Maria's bitter face, and she keeps silent and tries to do a jumping jack. When she raises her arms over her head, she cries out, "Ah," and bends over in pain, cradling her shoulder. "I can't, Maria. My shoulder...I'm sorry," Veronica says quietly. "Please."

"Would you rather do fifty push-ups?" the guard says sarcastically. "Stop faking. Let's go." He approaches, and Veronica realizes he might strike her if she refuses to do the exercises.

She tries again and manages a slow jumping jack; she doesn't put her arms all the way over her head, and she jumps as lightly as possible to avoid jarring her shoulder. With each repetition, Veronica feels her shoulder rip a little more, and the pain increases. At 117, she has to stop; she collapses on the ground, trying to roll away from her shoulder. She's covered with sweat and shaking from the ordeal, but the guard leans over her and begins to scream at her to keep going.

_I can't. I can't! _She whispers, "California." In a slightly stronger voice, she says, "I really wish I was in California."_ I'm sorry, Daddy._

Maria looks at the guard. "She's fucking nuts." She reaches down to pull Veronica up to her feet; Veronica flinches and pulls away. Maria yells, "Get the fuck up! Let's go!"

Veronica pushes herself off the floor slowly. _They're going to come in. It's going to be Logan coming through the door, any minute now._ She pictures his determined face as he pounded his fist into Gory's nose. She starts jumping again, expecting a commotion at any second. She completes a few more and stops again, listening in vain for pounding on the front door of the main building or maybe an approaching siren. _Something's wrong! What's happening? Maybe I'm dreaming._ She shakes her head and thinks, _wake up, wake up, wake up, this can't be happening._

Veronica is beginning to completely panic; she's never felt so alone. The guard and Maria stare at her as she jumps; her shoulder throbs viciously with each movement of her arm, and the tears begin to stream down her face. She finally manages to complete the two hundred repetitions, hoping desperately all the while that somehow her dad will break down the door to stop this. She clasps her arm to her body, trying to mitigate the burning pain in her arm socket, as Maria and the guard lead her back to bed.

Veronica lies on the bed, her shoulder screaming and her brain flailing around for possible explanations. _Where are you, Dad? Why didn't you come to get me?_ Finally, her exhaustion overtakes her, and she falls into a restless sleep.

Two hours later, she is woken again. This time, it's Alyssa shaking her awake. Alyssa leads her to the meager library adjacent to the classroom. The counselor pulls all the books off the shelves into a big pile in the center of the room. "You'll be allowed to go back to bed when the books are back on the shelves. And I'll be checking to make sure they're in order. If they're in the wrong order, we'll start over." Alyssa sits down to watch Veronica work.

Veronica thinks, _WHY? WHY? Why are you doing this? I was good. I didn't say a word today. I participated in your fucked-up group therapy; I didn't resist or act out even after you threw me to the ground. I wrote your fucking list!! I did the jumping jacks!! Why isn't Dad stopping this? I can't do this anymore._ Using her left hand, she starts to put the books on the shelves as Alyssa observes her. Her right arm brushing against her body is agonizing; the only good thing about the pain is it helps keep her alert and awake enough to try to do the job right. She debates saying "California" again, but the lack of response so far has her completely unnerved. _Come on, Veronica, try to...try to get through this. He's on his way, I know he is._

She attempts to work as efficiently as possible and keeps completely quiet. Veronica keeps expecting her dad and Logan to rush in to get her out; she listens for the slightest sound that wil tell her that they're coming. _It's not going to be long now_, she tries to reassure herself._ Logan was willing to get himself arrested to beat up Mercer; there's no way he'd...he hasn't stopped..._ Every time she looks at Alyssa, the counselor stares back as if Veronica is an interesting lab experiment, not a tired, worn-out girl with an injured arm, and Veronica gets more and more terrified.

Fri. 3/13/09 very late: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Logan can't sleep. He wonders if it's his brain refusing to deal with any more nightmares about Veronica and Hannah. In any case, he's been staring at the ceiling for hours. He gets up and throws on some clothes and a warm jacket.

Logan walks around the campus. It's snowing lightly. He reflects that the snow is so different from the powdery-white stuff he is most familiar with from his trips to Aspen. Vermont always seems to be gray and cloudy, even in the middle of the night, and the cold and damp seep into his body. He suppresses a shiver as he meanders around.

He sees someone approaching. It's Alyssa; Logan checks his watch and thinks, _What the hell is she doing up at 4 a.m.?_ When she passes by, he nods to her. She acknowledges his greeting silently and walks on by.

_I've got a bad feeling about this._ When he's certain that Alyssa has gone into the employees' quarters, he pulls out his cell phone and dials Keith's number.

"Agent Lynley here."

"Uh, hi. This is Logan. Is Keith around?" Logan says.

"He's sleeping. What's going on?"

"Are you...are you monitoring Veronica now?" Logan asks.

"She's sleeping. There's been no audio from her bug since bedtime," Lynley responds.

"Are you sure? I just saw the counselor, Alyssa, walking back from the main building to the employees' quarters. I think something's up."

Lynley replies, "Let me double-check. I'll run back the recording from Veronica's audio feed." There are a few moments of silence, then he continues, "Nothing. Just keep alert."

"We're going to end this soon, right? I mean, we've got enough, don't we?"

"I think so. You're doing a great job. I'm sure Veronica is safe, Logan," Lynley reassures him.

Logan doesn't say anything, worrying silently. _Something's wrong. I know it._

"Try to get some sleep, Logan. She's all right, I promise you."

Logan terminates the call and heads back to his room. He lies down and stares at the ceiling again, trying to figure out just what feels wrong to him.

Sat. 3/14/09 early morning: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Veronica finally is allowed to go back to bed and sleeps heavily for an hour before the girls are woken for breakfast. _Still no sign of Dad. What the hell is going on?_ She plays a little with her oatmeal, wishing for something a little more substantial, and she longs for a large cup of coffee, preferably a Joltin' Java from the Hut. She reminisces about the double shot of espresso that used to get her through senior year's sex ed class. _Only Mrs. Hauser could make oral sex boring._ Her head continues to pound, and her shoulder is making her completely miserable. When she touches her forehead, she feels certain that she's running a fever.

Maria seems to be extra bitchy today. _I guess my jumping jacks wore her out,_ Veronica thinks bitterly.

_Maybe...maybe they didn't hear me last night. Maybe the repeater doesn't work in that room. That's it, that's gotta be it._ She decides to try to send a message again.

She looks at Maria and says, "My dad and I were supposed to take a vacation in California for spring break. He promised me at Christmas. You know, Disneyland, Paramount Studios, and Grauman's Chinese Theater. And then a trip up the California coastline on the Pacific Coast Highway to San Francisco...everything that California's famous for. But he sent me here instead. So, fuck him. I don't want to talk to my dad ever again." _Do you get it, Dad? Come on! California! California! I even reversed the code that means I'm okay._

"What the fuck are you talking about? California, California. You've finally lost it, Connie." Maria, who was given an apple in addition to her oatmeal, takes a big bite ostentatiously. "Mmm, this apple's good. Do you think you'll ever earn the right to more food, Connie? I don't think so. I think you'll be stuck on newcomer phase for the next five years."

"Five years? What the hell are you talking about? I'm out of here when I turn eighteen. Screw my dad," Veronica retorts.

"Not if you don't graduate. Now, I'm going to be graduating in three months. I'll be free. You can think about me this summer when you're doing hikes and rotting away in Observation Placement," Maria taunts.

"What makes you think they're going to let you graduate?" Veronica replies.

"I've earned it! I've worked hard to change myself. You don't know anything. I'm out of here in June," Maria retorts. "Shut up!"

Veronica goes back to eating her oatmeal. _I'm too tired to try to fight with you today._ She listens for a sound that will tell her that her dad is on the way: a siren or a commotion in the hallway, anything. _Kavner's not here either. Did they just...leave me here? What the hell is going on?_ She tries to control her panic. _It's just something with the court case, they're just waiting for something, it's going to be all right, it's going to be all right. I can go on. I'll be okay._ She takes a breath and thinks, _Keep your head down, Veronica. Don't give 'em a reason..._

Sat. 3/14/09 early morning: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

Dr. Kinny checks his watch and frowns. He turns up the gain on Veronica's microphone and listens. He goes into one of the bedrooms and wakes up Lynley. "Something's wrong," he says pointedly.

"What? What are you talking about?"

"It's eight a.m. The girls are usually at breakfast by seven thirty, but I haven't heard anything from Veronica's bug this morning." Both men are immediately seized by the possibility that her bug was discovered and removed from her.

Lynley asks, "Are you sure? Did you try turning up the volume?"

"Of course."

"Are Keith and Epstein gone already?"

Kinny sighs. "Yeah, they left about an hour ago for Albany."

Lynley follows Kinny back out to the living room. Lynley plays with the controls on the Sonic Snoop program. He rubs his forehead and says, "I think the bug's not working. I'm not picking up any ambient noise either." He opens up a second window and displays the wave form from the surveillance of the day before. "See? In the track we recorded yesterday, there's always a small amount of static; the wave form is never completely flat." When he increases the volume on yesterday's track, they hear a low hum and occasional rustling noises.

Carrie wanders into the living room, sleepily rubbing her eyes. "What's going on?"

Lynley replies, "We think something's wrong with Veronica's bug."

"Should we call Keith and tell him to get back here?" Kinny asks.

"Yeah, I think we have to. Last night, Logan called around four a.m. He saw Alyssa coming back to the employees' quarters from the main building. And he had a feeling something was going on."

Lynley dials Keith's cell. He gets a message that the party he is trying to reach is out of range. Lynley drums his fingers on the table, trying to decide whether to send in the local police. He calls Kavner to see if he knows anything.

Kavner says worriedly, "I'm not on campus. Tony sent me up to White River Junction on an errand first thing. I'm on my way back, but see if Logan can check on her in the meantime."

Just then, the video bug in the group therapy room shows the girls entering. There is a backup audio bug in this room as well, and Lynley quickly turns up the sound.

Kinny points to the screen. "There she is." Carrie peers over his shoulder at the display and watches intently.

From the phone, Kavner says, "What's going on?"

Lynley replies, "The girls are going into group therapy."

"They're not doing chores?"

"No. Veronica looks okay. She looks tired, but she's all right," Lynley observes. "There must be something wrong with her bug."

"I'll hurry back to the school. I'll make contact and let her know," Kavner responds.

Sat. 3/14/09 morning: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

After breakfast, the girls are led to the group room and listen to a long lecture from Alyssa about everything happening for a reason. Peter Klein unobtrusively takes a seat in the back of the room to observe. Veronica begins to nod off after her sleepless night. She finds that it is impossible to pay attention to the convoluted reasoning and eventually gives up. She stares into space, her eyes unfocused.

Veronica begins to hallucinate that she's somehow back in a classroom at Neptune High. The faces of the girls around her are replaced by those of her enemies, both old and new: Madison, Kendall, Shelly Pomroy, Ashley Banks, Carrie Bishop, Caitlin Ford, Fern Delgado; even Carrie Murray the reporter is skulking in the corner. Veronica imagines that they are secretly plotting against her and knows it has something to do with why she hasn't been allowed to sleep and why her dad hasn't come to rescue her. _I thought Carrie was with my dad; what the hell is she doing here?_ She stares at Carrie, daring her to cause some trouble. Out of the corner of her eye, she thinks she sees Shelly passing a note to Madison, and Veronica whirls around. "Eyes front!" Alyssa shouts at her. Veronica realizes that she's dreaming, and she shakes her head to try to clear it; she tries desperately to focus on the interminable lecture.

Finally, the lecture concludes and the girls are instructed to pull the chairs into a circle. The girls, working in an eerie silence, quickly assemble the chairs and sit down. Alyssa points at Veronica. "It's time for you to get honest. Bring your chair into the center of the circle." Veronica looks around and sees that everyone is looking at her. She drags her chair to the center of the circle. She sits down and waits for her next instruction. She tries to conceal her trembling, but the counselor notices and smiles disingenuously, saying, "Don't worry, Connie. You know we love you here. You just need to accept it."

Peter Klein, smiling widely, walks up to the front of the room to join Alyssa. He brings a chair into the center of the circle. He sits in the chair facing Veronica and says, "Hello, Connie. You really don't have to be afraid of us. We only have your best interests at heart. Love you, Connie."

The other girls repeat, "Love you, Connie."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Unraveling**  
Keith and Epstein meet with the Guardian  
Angel; Klein increases the pressure on Connie.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Klein: Clancy Brown. Epstein: Scott Grimes.  
Michelle Weisz: Winona Ryder.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER EIGHTY-TWO: "UNRAVELING"

Sat. 3/14/09 morning: Apartment building, just outside of Albany, NY

"This must be it," Keith comments, looking at the printed driving instructions from MapQuest. Epstein pulls into the parking lot and shuts off the car. They go into the lobby of the apartment building and ring a buzzer for one of the apartments. They are buzzed into the lobby and take the elevator to the third floor.

A woman about thirty, thin and physically fit, with her dark hair pulled back into a ponytail, answers the door. Epstein asks, "Michelle Weisz? I'm James Epstein. This is Keith Mars."

"James, it's nice to meet you. I've followed your work on the lawsuits against the schools on the internet," Michelle says, shaking Epstein's hand. "Keith Mars?" She turns to Epstein and asks, "This is the private detective?" Epstein nods. "Come on in. I have coffee if you'd like."

The apartment is sparsely furnished with threadbare furniture. There are a few boxes lying around; in the adjoining room, they see an inexpensive laptop on the dining room table, connected to a phone jack. They sit down in the living room, and Michelle brings in a pot of coffee, three cups, and cream and sugar. She pours three cups of coffee and sits back, waiting. No one seems to know how to start this conversation.

Keith takes a sip of his coffee and puts the cup down on the table. He plunges in. "Michelle–it's okay to call you Michelle?"

She nods, and he continues, "Jim told you we've been investigating Briar Hill. We discovered your name in the Workers' Compensation database. The dates you were employed at Briar Hill Academy overlap with the time that a student named Hannah Griffith was at the school."

Michelle hesitates. "Do you have some identification? How do I know you're not working for the school?"

Keith opens his wallet and passes his California private investigator's license toward her. "You can call Hannah's mother, Ms. Denenberg, and she can confirm that we are working for her. Here's her phone number." Keith takes out a pen and scrawls Ms. Denenberg's number on a business card.

"If you don't mind, I'll look up her phone number for myself. Please excuse me." Michelle goes into the dining room and taps some keys on the laptop computer. She uses a cell phone to quietly place a call.

"She's pretty nervous," Keith remarks under his breath.

"If what I've heard is true, the schools have vowed to find her and stop her. She's put herself in danger trying to rescue these kids," Epstein explains.

Michelle walks back into the room. "All right, she confirmed your story. What is it you'd like to know?"

Keith pulls out a yellow legal pad from his briefcase to take notes. "Did you help Hannah escape from the school?"

"Yes. I told Hannah's oldcomer that the counselor wanted to speak to her, then I told Hannah to hit me in the face, as hard as she could, and then to hurry outside and get in the trunk of my car. Hannah surprised me; she hit me in the mouth quite hard, and my lip started to bleed. I waited as long as I dared, then I called for help. The school raised the alarm, and all the employees fanned out to search the grounds. Of course I pretended to help with the search. Several hours later, they called off the search until morning, and I drove off the campus. I took Hannah to the bus station in Montpelier and gave her 200. The hardest part was going back to the school the next day; Klein called me in his office and went over the incident repeatedly. He's not quite sane, you know."

"We've surmised as much," Keith notes. "But why did you help Hannah? Did something in particular happen?"

Michelle sighs. "I have a masters in social work as well as an undergraduate degree in education. I've always been interested in working with troubled youth. And, at first, I thought Briar Hill was excellent. All the group therapy seemed to be producing results; most of the girls were testifying that they had learned the error of their ways. But I thought the education methods were completely useless. Kids need stimulation to learn, not repetitive drills and a mindless focus on tests. I went to Klein with my observations and begged for permission to try to teach some subjects as a seminar, with students contributing their observations and having real discussions about the topics. He absolutely refused, saying that these kids were not like normal kids and you couldn't expect to use normal teaching methods with them. Klein basically said that the girls needed to be reprogrammed to be compliant in order to allow them to function in society."

"Reprogrammed is an appropriate description," Keith remarks.

"Some of the girls were violent and obviously needed to be at the school. One girl in particular, Maria, was constantly being assigned to Observation Placement..." she pauses, and Keith and Epstein nod that they are familiar with the term. "She would act out, strike one of the guards or the counselor, and then be confined for days on end. I'm ashamed to say that she scared me. She seemed almost schizophrenic, with wild tales of her father impregnating her and forcing her to get an abortion. It was apparent to me that she was severely disturbed. She had been at the school for almost a year, but still seemed to show little improvement in her behavior."

"We actually think that Maria's stories are true," Keith says. "Her father is a prominent politician in California, and one of our undercover operatives saw a scar that he believes was caused by a cigarette burn."

"Oh my god," Michelle replies, shocked. She stands up and starts pacing around the room. "I never believed Maria. Klein always said her father was a doctor and that she was a pathological liar. Maria's behavior was completely erratic; she hit some of the guards and never stopped cursing at them. I got her assigned to Observation Placement several times for acting out in class. I assumed...I assumed that she was one of the girls who truly needed some kind of residential treatment." She sits down heavily and drops her head into her hands. "I don't know why I trusted Klein about anything. I should have...I wish I had paid more attention to her. Poor Maria...if even a tenth of what she said was true, then her father should be in prison. Of _course_ she was acting out, and then that bastard Klein was always confronting her in group about her 'lies,'" she ends bitterly. She stares off into space, trying to reconcile this new information. Michelle wipes the corner of her eye, obviously distressed.

"What about Hannah? Did you feel that she was benefiting from the treatment she was receiving?"

"What?" Michelle replies, startled out of her preoccupation with Maria. "Oh. Right." She sighs. "The point I was trying to make was that Hannah was not like the other girls at the school. She was obviously well-educated and emotionally well-adjusted. I observed her in group, and I believed her, that she hadn't done anything. Her story was consistent and reasonable. I took my concerns to Klein, and he was furious with me. He told me that I needed to stay out of the therapy sessions and concentrate on my responsibilities in the classroom. By this point, I was becoming very disturbed by my observations. I called my thesis advisor and described the situation; my professor said that this was clearly an abusive situation, and he directed me to some research about drug rehab facilities in the eighties. Some of the first-person accounts sounded like what I was observing at the school. I became convinced that the school was destructive and harmful to the girls, and I decided to leave."

Epstein asks, "But then you decided to help Hannah first?"

"Hannah and one other girl who appeared to be there for no reason. I realized that I couldn't leave them there to be abused by Klein's sick program. I had the opportunity to help Hannah first. She didn't hesitate when I told her to go; she was very brave."

"What happened with the other girl?" Keith asks curiously.

"It was about six weeks later. I couldn't use the same scenario again. I got her away from her oldcomer by lying and saying that her oldcomer had stolen food. That's a big no-no for Klein; he loves to make the girls compliant be restricting their food and their sleep. But when I approached the girl, she refused to run. The school had added some guard dogs to their security because of Hannah's successful escape, and this girl was deathly afraid of them. I'm afraid she wasn't as strong as Hannah; she broke down in group therapy on a regular basis. It almost seemed like Klein was enjoying her discomfort, and he would take charge of attacking her in group."

Michelle sighs before continuing. "I decided I couldn't take the chance of staying at the school any longer; it was likely she would eventually tell someone that I had offered to help her escape. I felt badly about abandoning her, but Klein scared me. Every time he looked at me, I thought, _he knows._ I resigned a few days later. I called the girl's parents and tried to convince them the school was harming her, but they were adamant that the school was the right treatment for her. I told them everything that was going on, and they told me that their daughter was a con artist who could convince anyone of anything. I still feel incredibly guilty that I couldn't get her out of there."

"Still, that was very brave to try to help these girls," Epstein comments.

"You don't understand. That was the girl who was murdered last year. Two of the girls got together and killed her to try to force the authorities to shut the school down."

Keith nods. "But nothing happened. The girls were sent to prison, but the school stayed open. And almost all of the parents insisted on returning their daughters to the school after the investigation was concluded."

"Klein's a real bastard. He has those parents convinced that he's the only thing standing between the girls and certain death. He lies through his teeth, and the parents eat it up. I should have tried harder to save that girl," Michelle says regretfully.

"That's why we're doing this undercover investigation. He won't be able to get out from under the abuse charges we're planning on filing. We have him on tape telling me that of course my daughter can see a nurse if necessary just a few minutes after my daughter was denied permission to see a doctor. And my daughter managed to get herself placed in restraints as well."

"Your daughter?" Michelle asks, horrified.

"She's a professional investigator too," Keith explains.

"You know, the restraints are no joke. I saw some very tough girls, girls who had been to juvenile detention, completely broken by that punishment."

Keith nods solemnly. "I think the operation's going to end today. Michelle, did you hear what happened to Hannah? Her murder?"

"Yes, it was utterly heartbreaking after what she went through at the school," Michelle replies.

"We're fairly certain Hannah wasn't killed by a serial murderer, and my daughter thinks that she was killed because of something that happened at the school. We've found some evidence that Klein is paying off the Vermont Department of Education commissioner. And it's possible that he's taking payoffs from Maria's father as well. Could Hannah have witnessed something at the school?" Keith hesitates. "Was there any sexual abuse going on? Could Hannah have seen something like that?"

Michelle stares at him, completely shocked. "Sexual abuse? No, I don't think so." She thinks for a moment. "I'm not surprised to hear that there might be payoffs going on. I do remember an inspection; we knew about it ahead of time, and the whole day seemed very scripted to give a good impression...I have to tell you, I can't imagine one of the students witnessing anything like a payoff. They are so controlled. Every movement they make is observed by their oldcomers, by the guards and the other staff." She turns to Epstein. "And you know as well as I...a threat by one of the girls to expose the school is just not a credible scenario. The court cases against the schools are never successful. When the girls testify about their experiences, it's hard to make the juries see how abusive it is. The schools bring up the girls' history and denounce them as lying addicts. And the girls are traumatized emotionally. They can't give compelling testimony; it all becomes jumbled in their heads, and their stories don't make sense. I think Hannah would have wanted to just get away from the school and try to forget about it."

Keith asks, "Do you know where Hannah went after you left her at the bus station? Did you ever hear from her again?"

"Yes, I got a postcard. She didn't sign it, but I'm sure it was from her. Let me get it for you." Michelle walks over to some boxes stacked against the wall. She rummages through one of them and presents a postcard to Keith. He looks at the front, which is a peaceful scene of a meadow, then turns it over. It's postmarked 'Rio Linda, CA, August 5, 2006.' The text says merely, 'Thank you for everything. I am safe and happy because of you.'

"How do you know this is from Hannah?" Keith asks.

"It was sent to a post office box I rented to give her a way to contact me if she needed help. And she talked about a meadow when we were driving to the bus depot. She said that she used to imagine herself running through a meadow, completely free and happy, whenever she was being attacked or punished at the school. When I said goodbye, Hannah said, 'I'll be looking for that meadow. I'll let you know when I find it.' I told her not to use her real name and never to tell anyone her true story, or the school would find her and drag her back."

"Yes, they apparently did try quite vigorously to find her. They also searched for you after you resigned. You're lucky they've never found you. You've been helping other kids get out of the schools, too, Epstein said," Keith comments.

"Well, I don't stay anyplace for longer than a few weeks. I had a pretty close call with some goons from a school in Mississippi about six months after I helped Hannah. I use cash and prepaid cell phones, and I've gotten quite good at staying under the radar. I've become quite adept at covering up my tracks on the internet as well," Michelle replies. "As soon as I've earned a little money, working in a restaurant or something, I pick another school and scout it to try to get another child out. Unfortunately, it seems like my work will never be done."

Epstein asks, "Michelle, is there any chance you'd be willing to testify in our lawsuit?"

She hesitates. "I don't think so. I think you've got a good chance of being successful without me. And...if you're not, I want to be able to keep doing what I'm doing."

Keith gives Michelle another business card. "That's my number, if you think of anything else." He considers for a moment, then takes out his wallet. He pulls out the majority of his cash, about four hundred dollars, and presses it into her palm. "I'd like to help. And...if you do have to keep going, helping kids escape, I'd like to offer to help you with finding places for the kids to live until they turn eighteen."

Michelle looks at the cash, then back at Keith's face. "Thank you, Mr. Mars. Please tell your daughter she's doing an incredible thing. And...make sure you take care of her when your investigation is over."

Keith and Epstein return to the car. They are both silent, reflecting that every day brings a new understanding of the problem of these schools. Before Keith starts the car, he pulls out his laptop. "Hmm, not a great signal around here," he comments as he starts up the wireless cell modem. He looks up a map of California, then rotates the screen so Epstein can see it. Rio Linda is a small town near Sacramento, the state capital of California.

Sat. 3/14/09 morning: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Klein sits with his knees brushing against Veronica's, completely violating her personal space. He leans forward and takes her hands into his own. "Connie...I wish I could make you see that there's nothing to be frightened of. We truly love you here." His unblinking eyes, cold and hard, are inexorably focused on her face, drilling into her eyes with icy steel.

Veronica stares back, completely frozen by fear.

"We want to restore you to sanity. Your life has been one lie after another until now, and we want to help you get honest. The first step is to admit that you have a problem. Connie, can you at least be that honest with us? Can you admit that you have a problem?"

Klein pats the back of her hand, and Veronica feels her skin crawl. She pulls her eyes away from his face, looking down into her lap, and says quietly, "I have a problem."

"Good girl. Tell us about your problem," he prompts.

_Fuck._

"Come on, Connie."

She glances at Klein's crazed face and is completely consumed by the thought, _Dad, please come, come NOW, please Daddy..._

"Connie, do you think you might be an alcoholic? You've been learning a lot about that disease here."

_He's not going to stop until I say it._ "I'm an alcoholic. I'm a drug addict."

Klein continues to stroke her hands as he talks. "What do you think about God? Do you believe in Him?"

Veronica shakes her head 'no', then reconsiders. "I...I'm not sure what I believe."

"Okay. Well, we talk a lot about a Higher Power here. There's a lot of different names that you can use, if you don't want to talk about God. But even if you are a skeptic, you need to accept what we're teaching you here. If you are willing to let your intellectual doubts about God prevent you from accepting a program that could save your life, then I truly feel sorry for you."

"Higher Power," Veronica repeats._ Damn, my head hurts. I can't even understand what he's talking about. Why can't he leave me ALONE??_ She tries to pull her hands out of Klein's, but he grasps her tighter.

"You see, the program never fails, people just fail at the program. You need to let go of your old ideas; they weren't working for you, because all they did is get you here. Right now, you're thinking, I can't possibly tell them my secrets. You're thinking, they can't understand, I don't want them to know about me. But the truth is, we're all _here_, because We're. Not. All. There. We are all just as sick and diseased as you are, and that's why we can help you. We can help you, Connie. We are here for you."

Klein puts her hands back in her lap and stands up to pace around. He stops behind her and places his hands on her shoulders. She winces a little at the pressure of his touch on her injured shoulder. "I want you to tell us about the first time you got high. Not the first time you tried drugs...the first time that you really got high."

Veronica stays completely silent, praying to the God she doesn't believe in to end this. Klein massages her shoulders a little, and she sucks in a breath, _please stop._ Klein says, "Come on, Connie. We love you. Tell us."

After a minute, Veronica takes a deep breath and plunges in. Her voice is shaky and weak. "It was at the beach. We had some kegs, and I had a lot to drink." She looks around the circle. The faces of the other girls are suspicious and accusing. "I...I didn't realize how much I had to drink, I wasn't really _aware_, and then someone passed me a joint. When I first tried to inhale, it was...I was coughing and choking. And he took the joint, let me get my breath, and then he gave it back to me. It was different; I felt a little like I was going to throw up. He...he rubbed my back, and he took a hit. He started kissing my neck, and it was...I felt so relaxed and I wasn't scared at all and it just seemed...I don't know. I was out of it, I know."

Klein removes his hands from her shoulders and says harshly, "I don't believe you. You're telling us what you think we want to hear. Let go of the bullshit, Connie. Stop thinking and start talking."

Veronica wildly tries to come up with a new scenario. She stalls a little. "I don't know why you won't believe me. That really happened."

"A couple tokes is not getting high. I know you're hiding something from us, and I want to know what it is."

"I'm not hiding anything! I'm admitting it, I'm fucked up, okay?" she replies desperately.

"No doubt you're fucked up, Connie. But I know I still haven't heard the truth come out of your mouth yet. I _know_ you're lying to me. And you're quite good at it. You've obviously been practicing. I bet the people around you have no idea how good you are at telling lies. But I'm sure they know that there's something deeply wrong with you." He moves in front of her and yells into her face, "They just haven't been able to penetrate your FUCKED-UP BULLSHIT! You live your life resenting everyone and everything. You think you're allowed to do whatever you want because the whole world has treated you badly. Well, guess what? Addicts and alcoholics can't afford resentments. You need to get it through your head that you can't trust your thinking. Stop thinking and start talking. Let's go!"

He grabs her by the shoulders and shakes her; she moans aloud from the pain in her arm. "Are you hurting, Connie? That's what it feels like to everyone around you who loves you when you use them and lie and cheat and drug your way through your life. Even your dad can't love you anymore. He can't stand to see what you're doing to your life."

He shakes her again making her gasp and close her eyes. "Please, my shoulder, please don't," she begs him. The pain in her arm is vile and angry; it clouds her vision and threatens to turn her inside out. For a second she thinks, _code word, say the code word again,_ but the thought eludes her; she can't remember what she's supposed to say, and she can only focus on trying to make the pain _stop_.

"Tell me! I want you to use the pain to help you break through! I want to hear about the first time you really lost control doing drugs!" He squeezes her shoulder harder, and she tries to bend away from him. Klein takes her right arm and viciously twists it behind her back, and Veronica screams.

_Stop stop stop fuck where's Dad say anything sayanything make him stop I don't understand why he's not coming Daddy please stop stop FUCK stop Daddy don't you still loveme loveme_

She whispers in desperation, "I was roofied and raped. That's the first time I...I ever blacked out. Please, I'll tell you, just...please let go of my arm."

Klein releases her arm. He strokes her head. "I believe you, Connie. You just took your first step toward sanity. Now we can start our work. Love you, Connie."

The girls repeat, "Love you, Connie."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Crucible**  
Kinny steps up; Oswaldo tells his  
story; Klein faces off with Connie;  
Leo gets confirmation.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Klein: Clancy Brown.  
Kavner: Eric Bana. Dr. Kinny: Dan Castellaneta.  
Epstein: Scott Grimes. Alyssa: Christina Hendricks.  
Agent Lynley: James Badge Dale. Oswaldo:  
Frankie Rodriguez. Paramedic: J.P. Hubbell.  
Special guest: ??  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER EIGHTY-THREE: "THE CRUCIBLE"

Sat. 3/14/09 morning: Rented house, Manchester Center, VT

Dr. Kinny turns to Agent Lynley angrily. "Call in the feds. I'm stopping this."

"She didn't use the code words!" Lynley argues. "I think she's acting. You heard her dad, she can take on a persona at the drop of a hat."

"I don't think she can use the code words. I'm seeing a dissociative state. She's been stressed beyond the breaking point. And you notice that she didn't say that she wants to call her dad."

Lynley says, "That's because he's not giving her an opportunity to say it. She is a professional, and she's trying not to jeopardize the operation."

"God damn it, Lynley! It's enough!" Kinny yells. "I'm quite sure she's losing touch with the reality of the situation. I think that last part about being roofied and raped might have been the truth. I don't think she's capable of pretending any more."

"Call Keith first," Lynley suggests. "See if he's aware of a rape in her past. I don't think he would have allowed her to go undercover if she'd had a trauma like that. I'm seeing a professional working the situation, and it's brilliant."

Kinny dials Keith's cell phone and gets a message that the person he is trying to reach is out of range. "Fuck!" Kinny swears, uncharacteristically. He turns to Lynley and says, "Will you at least send a text to Logan? I want him to go in and see what he thinks. I have a very bad feeling about this. You have enough; send in the feds."

Lynley hesitates, and Kinny, frustrated with Lynley's obstinacy, begins fumbling with the phone. "Damn it!" he curses as he hits the wrong keys.

"Give it here," Lynley barks. "I think this is premature." He sends a brief message to Logan asking him to assess Veronica's status in the group therapy ASAP.

"And I think you're wrong." Kinny puts out his hand for the phone as Lynley finishes texting. He redials Keith's number, hoping that he will come back in range.

Sat. 3/14/09 morning: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Oswaldo Cortez, accompanied by his lawyer, enters Sheriff D'Amato's office. Leo hands some paperwork to the attorney who carefully reads through the legalese before nodding to his client to sign. Oswaldo picks up the offered pen and signs the immunity agreement in the indicated spaces.

"Let's hear it," Leo says brusquely.

"About three years ago, Kendall Casablancas was having an affair with Logan Echolls. I saw them together at the Neptune Grand maybe twenty times over six, seven months," Oswaldo says.

"Logan Echolls, a high school student? And why would you have noticed this? What do you care about either of them?" Leo asks dubiously.

"One night at the end of my shift, I saw Eli Navarro coming out of Echolls' room. And they were supposed to be sworn enemies. The PCHers wanted that prick Echolls to go down for murdering Felix Toombs. So when I told my cousin what I saw, he told me to keep my eye on Echolls."

"Eli Navarro? Weevil? Weevil was hanging out with Echolls," Leo repeats incredulously. "What the hell would an 09er be doing with Weevil Navarro?"

"You tell me. So I was watching Echolls to see what he was up to with Weevil. And he was banging Kendall. I don't blame the fucker, she's a hot lay," Oswaldo comments.

"So that's three years ago."

"Yeah. And then about two weeks ago, I saw Echolls with that blonde cunt he goes with in the elevator," Oswaldo explains.

Leo frowns. He shuffles some papers on his desk and finds the list of registered guests at the Neptune Grand. He quickly skims the list. "He's not listed on the register."

Oswaldo laughs. "Yeah, well, Tina's hot for him. She always used to kiss his ass when he lived there. She'd spread her legs for him in a second if he snapped his fingers. And, you know, she told us that she wanted the employees to keep their mouths shut about the guests. Tina's a real starfucker; she's always hoping one of these Hollywood types will take her away from all this."

"So you saw Echolls two weeks ago? Do you remember which day this was?"

Oswaldo ponders. "I think it was Saturday night. Yeah...I'm sure it was Saturday, I had a date with my girl Rosa that night."

Leo stands up, ending the interview. "I'll be in touch if I have any more questions. Thanks for being cooperative."

"No, thank you, Sheriff," Oswaldo says sarcastically, waving his immunity agreement.

Leo hits the intercom. "Sacks, can you bring in the DVDs of the security footage from the elevator at the Neptune Grand?"

Sat. 3/14/09 morning: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Logan is in his room when he gets the text from Lynley.

ASSESS V'S CONDITION IN GRP THERAPY ASAP. LYNLEY

He grabs his shoes and heads over to the main building. He looks around to see if anyone is watching, then he uses his keycard to unlock the front door and enter. The double doors at the entrance of the group therapy room are shut. Logan quietly engages the handle and cracks open the door. He peers into the room.

The girls are in a circle, and Veronica and Klein are in the center. Logan can only hear a murmur of voices, with an occasional word heard clearly. He chances opening the door a little more, and he sees that two of the toughest guards on the staff are watching the session.

He tries to focus on Veronica. Her head is bent down, and Klein takes her chin and raises her head. She is talking quietly, and Klein appears to be prompting her.

Logan quietly closes the door and exits the main building. He finds a secluded spot and calls Lynley.

"What's going on?" he asks the moment Lynley picks up.

"How does she look?" Lynley asks.

"I can't tell. She's sitting in the middle of a circle with that fucker Klein. What's going on?" he repeats.

He hears scuffling noises on the other end, and Kinny comes on the phone. "I'm worried about her. I want to shut it down. I can't get in touch with Keith."

"Did she use the code words?" Logan asks nervously.

"No, but we think something might be wrong with her wire."

"Fuck! So she might have been calling for help for a while now?" he says, thinking about seeing Alyssa returning to her room at four in the morning.

"Can you get her out of there?" Kinny asks.

"There's two guards plus Klein and Alyssa. And the girls. I don't know what Maria would do if I went in there and tried to bust heads. What about Kavner? Where the hell is he?"

"Tony sent him on an errand first thing. Kavner didn't know about the surprise group therapy," Kinny replies.

"Yeah, he didn't know about the hike yesterday either," Logan says.

"Kavner's on his way back," Kinny says. Muffled, he continues, "What? Yeah, he said two guards plus Klein and Alyssa."

Logan hears a muted conversation, and Lynley comes back on the phone.

Lynley says, "Kinny's convinced she's in trouble. Without Kavner there to intercede on her behalf, I don't think we have any choice. I'm going to call in the feds. If Kavner gets there in the meantime, he can get his weapon and go in with you to get her out. Otherwise, I don't want you going in alone. I don't want to have to rescue you too. The feds can be on campus on twenty minutes."

"Oh, you fucker," Logan says bitterly. "What the hell is she saying that you're stopping it?" When Lynley doesn't respond, Logan repeats, "WHAT IS SHE SAYING?"

"Wait for the feds or for Kavner. That's an order," Lynley says.

"I don't take orders from you, dickhead," Logan says, terminating the call.

Sat. 3/14/09 morning: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Hesitantly, Veronica begins. "It was the end of the year party. I wasn't going to go. I didn't have anyone to go with. But...at the last minute I decided I wasn't going to stay home moping."

"Moping?" Klein repeats.

"My boyfriend dumped me...and some of the kids at school had been...targeting me. Calling me a slut and..." Veronica's voice trails off.

"So you went to the party to prove them wrong," Klein suggests. "What were you wearing?"

"It was a white dress, it had thin straps and...I don't know. What does it matter?" she asks.

"You were trying to look good. You were showing them that you weren't a piece of trash." She nods, and he suggests, "When you got to the party, you started drinking."

She nods again and adds, "Someone gave me a drink. I found out later...someone put GHB in the drink."

"You took a drink from someone without watching it being poured? Surely your father told you never to do that? Pretty careless, don't you think?"

Veronica drops her eyes and shrugs. "I don't know. I wasn't thinking." _How could I have done that? Dad told me over and over..._

"Exactly. So then what happened?"

"I don't remember," she lies.

"Bullshit. Tell me what happened."

_Tell him something, tell him anything... _"Someone told me I was...making out with everyone. I don't remember it," she repeats. She flashes on laying on top of Dick, with him saying, _'You like grabbing hair, huh? That's nice, huh.'_ Veronica shudders, trying to erase the memory.

"What?" Klein probes. "Tell me."

"I guess I was making out with someone who...who I don't like very much. I really don't remember, and people told me later what happened, I don't really know, I don't really know," she protests. "Everyone said something different, I don't know what I really did."

Veronica rubs her eyes. When she opens them again, Klein is staring at her intensely. "We don't do anything when we're high that we don't secretly want to do when we're sober."

"No! I would never have done that," she protests, shaking her head. "No, they drugged me. I mean, _she_ drugged me."

"She?"

"It was a mixup. Logan and Luke and Sean got the drugs, and Luke gave it to Dick, and then Dick tried to get Madison to drink it, and she gave it to–" Veronica stops short._ I just said everyone's real name. What am I doing?_ She looks around, worrying that Logan is listening. _Oh please, PLEASE don't tell him...PLEASE don't tell Klein..._

Klein snaps his fingers in her face. "Pay attention, Connie. Nice friends you hang out with, huh? Do you think that's an okay way to behave?"

"No, of course not. I told you, they drugged me. And after that, I don't really remember what happened..."

Klein sighs. "Tell me exactly what happened after you were given the drink."

"I didn't feel good, I tried to get away...Chinese lanterns, by the pool...pretty. Then someone was licking my neck, and it was...it didn't feel bad, it was..." her voice trails off again. "They were drinking and laughing. I was laughing too. It tickled."

"You were enjoying it," he encourages her.

"They were laughing, I thought maybe...maybe they didn't hate me anymore," she admits.

"It felt good to be so out of control."

She nods.

"Maybe you thought it would feel even better if you had sex with someone," he suggests.

"No. I _know_ I didn't think that. I don't..." she protests. She clearly remembers walking by Duncan when she got to the party, a girl hanging onto him and kissing his neck; Duncan acting like nothing mattered, nothing had happened. She had looked at him and thought, _'How can you smile? How can you act like we never...I'll show you. I'll show you what you're missing.' _ Then later that night, when she was completely out of it, she had sat on Casey's lap and trailed her fingers down his chest, hoping that Duncan was watching. _Wait...did I do that? We don't do anything when we're high that we don't wish we could do when we're sober,_ she thinks and feels a little sick.

"You had a few drinks, because it made it a lot easier to go after what you wanted."

"No," she responds, shaking her head.

"You were going to show your boyfriend that he was wrong, that he was a fool to let you go, so you got drunk and had sex with the first willing guy."

"No!"

"And then when you realized what you had done, you said 'rape'. You refused to take responsibility for your actions. Come on, Connie, you're never going to get better if you don't admit it."

"There's nothing to admit," she whispers.

"Tell me about this rape you say happened."

"I don't remember it. I was drugged," she replies.

"You mean you don't want to remember it. You don't want to admit that you're a slut."

"No!" she cries. "He...I don't know...he..."

All of a sudden, she remembers something; it's vague and dreamlike, confused and stuttering in and out of focus.

_FLASHBACK: Beaver is on top of her, her dress pushed up and her panties around her feet. He's trying to put himself in her, cursing, stroking himself, desperately trying to make an erection happen. He's still too soft, but he pushes in anyways, trying to force himself in her. Beaver fondles her breast roughly, saying, 'Dammit, dammit.' He rips off the condom he's wearing and tries again, finally succeeding in entering her, but only briefly before he loses his erection again. He gives up and pulls out._

_He sits on the bed crying, and Veronica sits up sleepily and hugs him. 'What's the matter, Beaver?'_

_Beaver starts in surprise and says, 'Fuck!' He quickly gets dressed, then he pushes her back down on the bed and pulls her underwear up and her dress down. He tries to straighten her clothes while she props herself up on her shoulders and smiles giddily. 'You're all right, Veronica, just go back to sleep,' he tries to reassure her._

_Veronica says, 'Don't go, Beaver...what's the matter?' But he runs out of the room without saying another word. The room is spinning, and Veronica shuts her eyes and lays back down._

Veronica rocks back and forth. _No...no...  
_  
"What are you remembering? Tell me! I want to help you," Klein insists.

"No, you don't," Veronica replies. "You're evil. I hate you. I want my dad." _Wait, that's not right. I do want my dad, I just..._ She drops her face in her hands, crying.

"Connie, we love you here. You're never going to be able to live a moral life if you don't admit you're a slut and an addict. You're still not able to be honest with yourself. Why won't you let us help you?"

Sat. 3/14/09 morning: Briar Hill Academy, Employees' Quarters, Manchester Center, VT

Logan dials Kavner's cell phone. "Where the hell are you?"

"I'm five minutes out. What's going on?"

"I'm not sure...they're...fuck, they're doing something to Veronica in group therapy. Bob and Mike are guarding and Klein and Alyssa are doing...I don't what they're..." Logan says frantically. "We've got to get her out. Lynley is sending the feds in, but who knows when they'll get here."

"Calm down. You're not any good to her if you're upset and out of control," Kavner orders.

Logan grips the phone tightly.

"I'm turning onto route 30 now. Wait for me by my room. I want to get my weapon. Don't do anything until I get there. Promise me!" Kavner says urgently.

"I know. Just...hurry." He terminates the call and paces as he waits.

Sat. 3/14/09 morning: Route 7, near Arlington, VT

Keith's phone beeps, and he looks at the screen. '4 missed calls' He hits send twice and waits for Lynley to pick up.

"It's Keith. What's going on?"

"I've called in the feds," Lynley reports. "We think there's a problem with Veronica's wire, and Kinny's convinced that Veronica needs help."

"Are any of the bugs working?" Keith asks.

"Yes, we're watching them in the group therapy room."

"They're doing therapy now?"

"Klein is definitely targeting her for intensive therapy."

"Put Kinny on, now," Keith barks.

After a second, Kinny says nervously, "Keith–"

"What's happening? What's she saying? Has she used the code words?"

"No. I don't think she's able to. I think they were stressing her during the night. She's been talking about a rape. Was Veronica ever assaulted? I don't think she's making it up. Somebody with that background shouldn't have been put in this situation."

"I don't think–" Keith stops short, remembering Veronica's surprising chlamydia diagnosis. _Veronica...no..._

He hears a rustling sound, then Lynley is back on the phone. "The agents are going to be there in about fifteen minutes. Logan's been apprised. Kavner was off campus; he should be there before the feds, and he and Logan can get control of the situation."

"Call 911 and report a fire with injuries. They'll get there before the federal agents do, and if Veronica needs an ambulance, they'll already be on the scene," Keith orders tersely.

"All right," Lynley agrees.

"I'm going to call you back in two minutes. I want to know everything that's going on." Keith stabs at the 'end' button to terminate the call. He quickly pulls the car to the side of the road and looks at Epstein as he exits the vehicle. "Drive. I need to be making phone calls."

Keith hustles around to the passenger side as Epstein slides over to the driver's seat. Keith slams the car door, and Epstein guns it. Keith looks up a name in the contact menu and hits 'send'. "Wallace. No bullshit now. Was Veronica ever raped? We have an emergency situation here."

Wallace only hesitates for a moment. "Yes, sophomore year. Shelly Pomroy's party. Someone gave her a spiked drink."

"Who was it?" Keith asks furiously.

"Beaver...and Duncan. Duncan was drugged too. It was a mess, Mr. Mars. She's been okay about it lately," Wallace says lamely. "She didn't know how to tell you. I'm sorry...I didn't want to break her confidence."

Keith rubs his forehead. "Damn it. Wallace, I'll be in touch."

"Keith...wait! Is she all right?" Wallace asks quickly.

"I don't know." Keith ends the call and closes his eyes for a moment. Epstein glances over. Keith calls Lynley again. "Lynley, did you call 911?"

"Yeah, they're on their way."

"I talked to Veronica's best friend. She was raped five years ago; Kinny was right. You said the bug in the group therapy is still working right? Turn up the gain and keep the line open so I can hear what's going on."

Sat. 3/14/09 morning: Briar Hill Academy, Manchester Center, VT

Logan is waiting outside the group therapy room. He cracks the door again; he thinks he can hear Veronica crying. Her back is to the doorway; it looks as if several girls are holding Veronica's upper body, and Alyssa is doing something to her face. _What the fuck are they doing?_ He breathes out heavily, his nerves completely on edge. He looks at his watch and thinks, _Two more minutes, and I'm going in. I don't give a shit what happens to me. I'll kill that fucker with my bare hands._

Kavner enters the lobby and hisses, "I thought I told you to wait by my room." He cracks the door open and looks at the situation for himself. He lets the door close silently and passes Logan a taser. "Do you know how to..." Logan nods. Kavner holds up a second taser and then shows Logan a holstered gun under his jacket. "We're going to go in. You're going to take Bob, and I'll take Mike. The taser's already set to the proper voltage. Don't. Fuck. With it," he adds sternly, looking at Logan's expression. "When they go down, we head for Veronica. I'll take Klein, and you take charge of Veronica. I don't want anyone to get hurt. On three." He motions with his fingers, one, two, three, and he bursts through the door with Logan directly behind him.

Bob and Mike turn around, startled; they've obviously been absorbed in the sick drama in front of them. They go down quickly when they are tasered, and Logan and Kavner head for the front of the room.

"What the hell is going on?" Klein shouts at them. He strides toward them angrily.

"We're stopping you, you sick fuck. Get your hands off her!" Logan cries.

Kavner unholsters his weapon and points it at Klein. "Put your hands above your head. Alyssa, get away from her. Now." He nods at Logan, who runs to Veronica. Klein stops short, glaring at them; Kavner motions with the gun, and Klein reluctantly puts his hands up. Alyssa slinks off to the side; she and the girls huddle together, uncertain and disoriented.

"Veronica, it's okay, it's over." Logan hears sirens in the distance, and they're the most beautiful music he's ever heard. He walks in front of her and almost vomits. They've applied thick, garish makeup to her face; heavy rouge, dark blue eye shadow, and bright red lipstick. On her forehead, they're used the lipstick to write 'S L U T'.

Veronica cringes, pulling away from him. "Go away. Leave me alone." She slips off the chair and curls into a fetal position on the floor as he watches helplessly._ No...don't look at me, don't touch me._

"Veronica, it's all right, I'm here, it's over. It's over, Veronica. I'm sorry," he babbles. _oh god oh god is she...is she ever going to be okay again oh fuck fuck fuckfuckfuck_

Klein says imperiously, "You don't know what you're doing. This girl was about to have a breakthrough. The efficacy of the therapeutic methods we're using here is well-documented, even if they're not pleasant for laypersons who are unfamiliar with them."

Logan kneels down beside her and tries to caress her, but she skitters away, frightened and sobbing, more scared than he's ever seen her. She looks at him blankly, apparently not recognizing him; then, with a desperate gasp, she _knows_ him.

Veronica exhales a quiet scream and tries to scramble to her feet to run away. _He's going to take me back to the restraints, he's going to...please don't, I'm sorry I didn't behave...PLEASE don't tell them what you know about me, I'm sorry for everything..._ He grabs her hands; she shakes her head and mutters, "No, no, no, please stop...please don't!"

Logan holds on to her as she thrashes in fear. He's nauseous and furious and overwhelmed by panic all at once, faced with this remnant of the strongest girl he's ever known.

Firemen burst through the back door, followed closely by paramedics. Kavner, still holding his weapon trained on Klein, says, "Over here. This girl needs attention right away."

Klein is still talking. "This is completely outrageous. This is an accredited school that passed an inspection by the State Department of Education just yesterday. And the inspection was documented by a television crew. We have a proven record of successful drug and alcohol treatment programs." He continues to ramble on about the wonders of the school.

The paramedics kneel beside Veronica; one touches Logan on the shoulder and says, "Sir, let us work here." Logan stares at him blankly, and the paramedic repeats, "Let us do our job. Can you step back?" Logan lets go of her and rocks back on his heels. He watches intently as one paramedic takes her vital signs while the other begins to assess her injuries. He examines Veronica's right arm, and Logan feels sick again when he sees that her shoulder is visibly out of place, with Veronica clearly in severe pain from the injury. Veronica fights against them, trying to push them away.

Klein says, "This girl has a severe addiction problem and was just begining to make progress in her program. Your ignorance is tragic and will certainly lead to a relapse."

Logan suddenly stands up and walks over to Klein. He punches him viciously in the face, and Klein is knocked off balance. Logan pulls back and throws another punch at Klein's gut. Klein falls to the floor, and Logan leans over and begins to slap his face repeatedly. "You fucker, beating up on young girls! What the fuck is wrong with you?" Klein tries to protect his face, but Logan slaps his hands away and punches him in the mouth. Two of the firemen grab Logan and stop him, but not before Logan manages to kick Klein forcefully in the kidneys.

Kavner yells, "Logan! Go to Veronica, now. She needs you. Stop!"

Logan shakes his head; the adrenaline is as intense as he's ever felt. He breathes in and out, and he just wants to rip Klein's limbs from his body. With difficulty, he gets himself under control and returns to Veronica. The paramedics are administering something with a hypodermic needle. Logan asks worriedly, "Is she going to be all right? She didn't know me! I'm her boyfriend...what the _hell_ did he do to her?"

"She has a temperature of 103, and she's severely dehydrated. Her shoulder's been dislocated. Her mental status is pretty altered, and we've given her a sedative to calm her down," the paramedic answers.

Logan kneels down. Veronica is too out of it to move away now, but she still looks terrified of him. He takes her hand, and she tries to pull it away weakly before her eyes stop focusing and her eyelids flutter and close. He strokes her hair, sickened by the writing on her face. _I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry_

Federal agents enter the room, and all hell breaks loose. Alyssa begins to protest that she was just doing her job, and Klein yells that he wants Logan and Kavner to be arrested for assault and impersonating police officers. The girls are herded into a corner by two female agents. The federal agent in charge walks over to Klein and says, "You have the right to an attorney. Do us a favor and keep your mouth shut until you talk to one." He roughly hauls Klein up from the floor and handcuffs his hands behind his back. The two guards and Alyssa are handcuffed as well, and Kavner accompanies several agents who go to arrest the other employees of the school.

The paramedics strap Veronica onto a stretcher, making sure to immobilize her right arm, and wheel her out to the ambulance. Logan walks with them and gets in the ambulance without asking permission. When the doors are shut, he says, "Can you give me something to clean her face?"

"No...we can't do that. This looks like a criminal case; they'll need to document it at the hospital," the paramedic responds.

"THERE WAS A VIDEO CAMERA IN THERE TAPING EVERYTHING. There's enough fucking evidence to convict him twenty times over! Give me something, goddammit!" Logan's face contorts in anger; it's the very least he can do when what he really wants is to burn the school down, to take on every employee at the school one by one and make them pay...make them pay. _MY fault...I should have stopped her, should have bundled her over my shoulder and run with her, even if she never forgave me._

The paramedics take a look at his face and decide to cooperate. They give Logan some sterile wipes and saline solution, and he begins to tenderly clean the writing and makeup off her face. Logan tries to ignore the panic and rage that are consuming him._ What have we done...god what have we done... Veronica, please, Veronica, please be okay._ He begins to cry, the tears streaming down unchecked as he tries to remove the evidence of Briar Hill from her face. The lipsticked lettering on her forehead smears into an angry red mark, and he chokes back a bitter sob.

Sat. 3/14/09 morning: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Sheriff D'Amato rewinds the video and watches again.

Logan Echolls and Veronica Mars enter the elevator. The date stamp in the lower left hand corner reads 2/28/09 23:49. Echolls presses the top button on the panel and turns to Veronica. He whispers, "Do you want to give the security guards a show?" He bends down and begins to kiss her neck.

Veronica replies, "Stop it. Do you have to be a bad boy all the time?"

Echolls says, "Yes, I do," and begins to kiss her mouth.

_Pretty hot stuff,_ Leo thinks. _Not quite as valuable as, say, the Lilly Kane-Aaron Echolls sex tapes, but pretty racy all the same. Guess it runs in the family._

They continue to make out in the elevator. The elevator stops with a quiet 'ding', and Veronica says, "Oh...there's definitely something about a bad boy." Echolls grabs her hand and leads her out of the elevator.

_Yeah, I wonder just how a bad a boy Echolls was. Do you think Veronica knew about Kendall? What the hell do these girls see in this loser?_

Leo thinks about that humiliating phone call to the district attorney three weeks ago when he had to admit that he had been 'completely wrong' about the evidence that pointed to Keith Mars' guilt in the arson case. The innuendos about his incompetency are still rampant at the county courthouse, and Leo has overheard more than one nasty joke at his expense. _One moment of temptation...the payday that would have meant I never had to worry about my sister again...and Echolls, that smug fucker Logan Echolls, calling me a pretty boy, threatening to expose me..._ He flushes again in anger watching Echolls work his magic on Veronica in the video. _'Nobody forced you to take Aaron Echolls' money to steal the tapes, Leo.'_ On the video, she's whispering sweet nothings in Echolls' ear, but Leo can only hear her accusations ringing in his ears.

Leo pauses the video and pulls up some of the news stories about Logan Echolls from shortly after Hannah Griffith's murder. One extremely detailed story with the byline 'Carrie Murray' features a long interview with Madison Sinclair. In the article, Madison stated, "Logan Echolls was involved romantically with his best friend's stepmother. He was an emancipated minor living alone in the Neptune Grand Hotel, with no parental supervision." Leo makes a note to track down Ms. Sinclair and find out what she knows about Echolls' affair with Kendall Casablancas.

Leo picks up the phone to call Judge Cramer_._ He discusses the evidence in detail, and the judge agrees to issue a subpoena for Logan Echolls' financial records.

Leo hits the intercom and says, "Sacks. I want you to pick up Dick Casablancas Jr. for questioning." He leans back in his chair twirling his pen in his fingers and thinking about videos.

* * *

Ya viene la tormenta-Here comes the (shit)storm

Stepford wife-'The Stepford Wives' is a book by Ira Levin where the husbands replace their wives with robots who love to clean house and are sexually submissive. It was made into movies in 1975 and 2004.

* * *

A/N: If you have comments or complaints about the timeline I've used for Veronica's rape (after wearing out my DVDs and somewhat heated discussions with my betas), please contact:

RThomasATslaverats•com

Nitpicks not welcome on this topic. The exact timeline is so NOT the point. Thank you to my betas for their input.

* * *


	27. Chapters 84 to 87

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall and Sobertears. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

* * *

**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from chapters 77-83:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/61213•html )

Veronica wakes up with a headache and a fever. She asks for a doctor, but Maria refuses. Veronica vows to keep going. The monitoring team debates ending the operation, but they are told that a judge believes what they have documented is not yet proof of abuse, and they decide to continue for a short time. Keith, as Mr. Morris, calls the school, and Klein updates him on 'Connie's' progress.

Mac's family meets with US Marshals prior to entering Witness Protection. A federal agent, Brenda, will take Mac's place at her family's fake funeral.

Duncan reads about a renewed investigation into the Casablancas real estate swindle; most of the funds were not recovered. He deletes the photo of Kendall from his phone.

Klein, dissatisfied with Connie's compliance, has her taken down again, and Veronica's shoulder is injured; she is infuriated and refuses to quit. The girls are taken on another hike; it is terminated abruptly when Carrie, under the supervision of the monitoring team, calls in a tip to a local news station, who quickly arrive to investigate possible abuse at the school. Veronica gets a brief respite while the media is there.

Logan tries to get Veronica to stop the operation unsuccessfully. While being attacked in group therapy, Veronica begins to incorporate real-life details about Lilly. Logan is upset and angered, and Veronica sees it. Veronica is forced to write a 'guilt letter' to Celeste and to document the details of her moral flaws. Late at night, Veronica is prevented from sleeping. She is forced to do 200 jumping jacks, which are excruciating due to her shoulder injury, and she finally breaks down and calls for help. However, her bug has ceased functioning, and the monitoring team does not hear. Logan however has a feeling that something has gone wrong and tries to convince Lynley to stop the operation. Veronica is further stressed by the seemingly innocuous task of reshelving books; she is scared and confused because federal agents have not arrived.

In the morning, Keith and Epstein visit the Guardian Angel, Michelle Weisz, who tells them details of Hannah's time at and escape from Briar Hill. She tells them that she believes Hannah was living in Rio Linda, a small town near Sacramento (the capital of California). The interview with Weisz takes Keith and Epstein an hour and a half's drive from the school. Kavner is sent on an errand off campus. Lynley and Kinny are left to monitor Veronica; Kinny realizes there's no audio coming from her bug. Kinny and Lynley argue about stopping the operation.

The girls are herded into a special group therapy session. Klein takes charge and begins to attack Veronica. Veronica is completely stressed and exhausted, and Klein twists her arm, aggravating her dislocated shoulder beyond bearing. To stop the abuse, she admits she was roofied and raped and tells Klein some of the details that she can remember. For the first time, Veronica remembers Beaver molesting her, and she has a complete breakdown. Kinny finally convinces Lynley to stop the operation, and the feds are called in. In the meantime, Logan and Kavner storm the session; Logan punches out Klein when he discovers Veronica is made up like a whore with 'SLUT' written on her forehead. Veronica is taken to the hospital, and federal agents arrest Klein and the other employees and shut down the school.

Sheriff D'Amato finds out that Kendall was staying at the Neptune Grand. Housekeeping reports that her room was searched thoroughly by an unknown person. An employee comes forward with a tip that three years ago Kendall was having an affair with Logan Echolls. Leo gets security footage and discovers a video of Logan and Veronica making out in the elevator.

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Dislocation**  
Veronica wakes up in the hospital; Leo  
questions Dick.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Dick: Ryan Hansen. Dr. Arthurs: Glenne Headly.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER EIGHTY-FOUR: "DISLOCATION"

Sat. 3/14/09 evening: Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, VT

**LOGAN**

Logan sits watching her breathe. In and out, in and out...eleven, no, twelve times per minute according to the monitor. All of Veronica's readings are perfectly normal, according to the doctor who checks in every hour. But Veronica just sleeps. Dr. Arthurs reassures Keith and Logan that her heavy sleep is due to her exhaustion and the sedation given to her, but Logan still counts her breaths and worries.

Dr. Arthurs went over Veronica's condition thoroughly with Logan and Keith. Her dislocated shoulder has been stabilized and will require surgery when she is stronger. Her fever is due to a minor kidney infection, presumably from the bathroom restrictions Veronica had been subject to, and Dr. Arthurs predicts that her temperature will return to normal rather quickly with IV antibiotics. Neither Keith nor Logan ask the questions that preoccupy them about Veronica's mental status.

It took only twenty-five minutes to ride to the hospital in Bennington from Manchester Center. It felt like hours to Logan. He had a million questions for the paramedics but couldn't form the words to ask them. He watched as they took her vitals; he listened as they called in a report to the hospital detailing the situation. When the ambulance reached the hospital, Keith jumped out of his car directly behind them in the ambulance bay and ran over to the stretcher as they wheeled her into the emergency room. Logan recognized the nauseous expression on Keith's face as the mirror image of his own.

A short while after they arrived, the emergency room doctors briefed Keith on Veronica's condition. Logan overheard the phrases from a short distance away– _'dehydration...exhaustion...kidney infection...anterior subcoracoid dislocation... closed reduction and pain management...consult with an orthopedic surgeon'_–with each word causing him more and more distress as the doctors calmly discussed the medical options. Keith succinctly summarized for the doctors what Veronica had been doing for the past week, and the doctors assimilated the information and reassured Keith that his daughter appeared to be strong and was likely to have a complete recovery. They admitted Veronica to a private room, and Keith and Logan settled in for a vigil.

At one point, Keith urged Logan to get some dinner and promised to page him immediately if she woke. Logan found the cafeteria and tried to swallow a tasteless burger; he managed a few bites before pushing the food aside. He wandered into the pharmacy next to the cafeteria; he looked at balloons that trumpeted 'Get Well Soon!' and brightly wrapped boxes of chocolates and dismissed them as too little, not enough, and completely besides the point. In the toiletry aisle, he picked up a small can of shaving cream and a pack of disposable razors. In the fluorescent glare of Veronica's bathroom, he carefully shaved off the hated beard and mustache, recalling despondently his decision to change his appearance to hide from her. Keith looked at his clean-shaven face and made no comment as he pretended to thumb through a worn copy of 'People' magazine.

After a brief and sickening conversation about the group therapy session, they mutually decided not to discuss the operation. Logan waited with his guts twisted into a knot, expecting Keith to berate him for his part in Veronica's rape and his negligence in guarding her during the undercover operation, but Keith just seems lost and completely devastated; _time enough for recriminations later_, he supposes. Keith told him about the explosion that killed Mac's family, and Logan wondered how the hell they would tell Veronica.

Keith's cell phone has vibrated with call after call for the entire afternoon. At intervals, he left the room, and Logan assumed he was getting updates from Lynley and letting Wallace know that she was all right. At one point, Logan turned on the television with the sound muted and saw Carrie Murray shoving a microphone in Vincenzo Frazzino's face at his Sacramento home. _She must have jumped on a plane as soon as she knew the operation was over,_ he muses. _The shit is definitely going to hit the fan._ He clicked through a few channels and saw that Klein's arrest and the closing of the school was the lead story on every local newscast.

Dr. Arthurs comes into the room and examines Veronica again. She is no-nonsense, yet somehow compassionate and empathetic, and appears to be a woman who likes her job and her patients. She smiles and nods reassuringly at Logan and asks Keith to come into the hallway to discuss Veronica's condition. Logan listens to their murmuring conversation without being able to distinguish the words. He pulls his chair closer to the bed and takes her left hand in his for perhaps the hundredth time that day, he supposes. He caresses her fingers gently, avoiding the IV coming out of the back of her hand. _This is what it was like for her last fall, when I was lying unconscious, _he realizes.

He looks up at her face and notices with a shock that her eyes are open. "Veronica..." he whispers. His voice fades away as he comprehends that she is terrified. "I'll get your dad," he chokes out. Logan releases her hand and gets Keith from the hallway.

**KEITH**

_FLASHBACK TO THE MORNING: Epstein takes a curve a little too fast, and the car fishtails a little before he gets it under control. Keith listens to the group therapy session over his cell phone._

_KLEIN: TELL ME ABOUT THIS RAPE YOU SAY HAPPENED._

_VERONICA: I DON'T REMEMBER IT. I WAS DRUGGED._

_KLEIN: YOU MEAN YOU DON'T WANT TO REMEMBER IT. YOU DON'T WANT TO ADMIT THAT YOU'RE A SLUT._

_VERONICA: NO! HE...I DON'T KNOW...HE..._

_KLEIN: WHAT ARE YOU REMEMBERING? TELL ME! I WANT TO HELP YOU._

_VERONICA: NO, YOU DON'T. YOU'RE EVIL. I HATE YOU. I WANT MY DAD._

_KLEIN: CONNIE, WE LOVE YOU HERE. YOU'RE NEVER GOING TO BE ABLE TO LIVE A MORAL LIFE IF YOU DON'T ADMIT YOU'RE A SLUT AND AN ADDICT. YOU'RE STILL NOT ABLE TO BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF. WHY WON'T YOU LET US HELP YOU?_

_Keith grips the phone with aching fingers, as if his tight grasp might somehow allow him to control this situation. He stops breathing, waiting...waiting for what Klein might try next with his daughter._

_VERONICA: NO...WHAT ARE YOU DOING? PLEASE, DON'T. I WANT MY DAD, PLEASE, WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?_

_KLEIN: YOU NEED TO CONFRONT YOUR PAST. YOU CAN'T MOVE ON UNTIL YOU ADMIT YOUR MISTAKES, CONNIE. YOU KNOW YOU WERE ASKING FOR TROUBLE THAT NIGHT...AND YOU GOT IT._

_She is crying and protesting incoherently. Keith closes his eyes, then asks Epstein where they are. Epstein replies tersely, 'fifteen minutes,' and Keith nods. Veronica is repeating over and over that she wants her dad, and Keith knows, without a shadow of a doubt, that she is not using the code. In his mental scrapbook, he pictures every scraped knee that he bandaged and kissed; he remembers every girlish bout of tears when a supposed friend gossiped about her behind her back; and, overwhelmingly, he hears her desperate screams coming unbelievably, nightmarishly, from within a freezer engulfed in flames. He didn't hesitate for a moment that night, and he rushed into the fire without a thought for his own safety._

_Epstein looks over and says, 'She'll be all right."_

_Keith nods and listens again._

_KLEIN: WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?_

_LOGAN: WE'RE STOPPING YOU, YOU SICK FUCK. GET YOUR HANDS OFF HER!_

_KAVNER: PUT YOUR HANDS ABOVE YOUR HEAD. ALYSSA, GET AWAY FROM HER. NOW._

_LOGAN: ...VERONICA, IT'S OKAY, IT'S OVER._

_VERONICA: GO AWAY. LEAVE ME ALONE._

_LOGAN: VERONICA, IT'S ALL RIGHT, I'M HERE, IT'S OVER. IT'S OVER, VERONICA. I'M SORRY._

_KLEIN: YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING. THIS GIRL WAS ABOUT TO HAVE A BREAKTHROUGH. THE EFFICACY OF THE THERAPEUTIC METHODS WE'RE USING HERE IS WELL-DOCUMENTED, EVEN IF THEY'RE NOT PLEASANT FOR LAY PERSONS WHO ARE UNFAMILIAR WITH THEM._

_Keith is enraged; every muscle in his body is tense and screaming. He listens as Logan lays into Klein, the sounds of the scuffle bitter and unmistakable._  
_  
KAVNER: LOGAN! GO TO VERONICA, NOW. SHE NEEDS YOU. STOP!_

_LOGAN: ...IS SHE GOING TO BE ALL RIGHT? SHE DIDN'T KNOW ME! I'M HER BOYFRIEND...WHAT THE HELL DID HE DO TO HER?_

_PARAMEDIC: SHE HAS A TEMPERATURE OF 103, AND SHE'S SEVERELY DEHYDRATED. HER SHOULDER'S BEEN DISLOCATED. HER MENTAL STATUS IS PRETTY ALTERED, AND WE'VE GIVEN HER A SEDATIVE TO CALM HER DOWN._

_Altered...she's altered, he thinks._

_They pull up to the main building, finally, just as an ambulance drives off. Keith jumps out of the car before it stops moving and finds Lynley._

_"She's all right, they're taking her to the hospital in Bennington. She's going to be fine," Lynley reassures him._

_Keith nods, unable to form coherent words. Epstein volunteers to stay at the school to help with any questions and hands Keith the car keys. Keith gets back in the car and heads for Bennington. He catches up to the ambulance quickly and stays on its tail._

_FLASHBACK TO SEVERAL HOURS AGO: Once Veronica is settled into her room and appears to be resting comfortably, Keith checks in with Lynley. Klein, Alyssa, and the other employees have been taken to the county jail to be questioned and charged. Lynley is overseeing the local sheriff's department and coordinating with the FBI._

_Lynley says, "They don't know what to do with the students. None of them are talking."_

_Keith replies, "They're worried about what will happen to them when this is over. When the girl was murdered last year, most of the students were returned to the school, and there were dire consequences for any student who had talked to the police."_

_"We've assured them that the school will not be reopened," Lynley protests._

_"They've seen evidence to the contrary. Their reality is that the school is in control of their lives," Keith responds. "Their parents didn't believe them before when they told tales of being abused; they're not going to take the chance that we won't believe them again."_

_Lynley sighs. "We don't know what to do with them. For instance, Maria...she's clearly guilty of assaulting Veronica, but at the same time, she's a victim as well. The Department of Child and Family Services has been arguing with the county sheriff's department. Family Services usually would return a child to their own family, but so far every parent we've contacted has sworn that the school saved their child's life and has stated that they will find a new residential program if Briar Hill is closed. We've asked for an emergency hearing with a family court judge. I have an agent working to compile the video evidence you collected to present at the hearing. Epstein told me to expect vigorous protests from the parents if the girls are placed in foster care."_

_Keith muses, "The parents are victims too. They were trying to do the right thing."_

_"Most of them," Lynley comments. "I talked to Frazzino's chief of staff, and he denied that Frazzino's daughter was even at Briar Hill. He claimed that she's studying abroad."_

_"How the hell does Frazzino think he's going to spin this?" Keith says angrily._

_Lynley says, "I don't know. You know, Carrie's on her way to California already. She's practically salivating at the chance to nail him."_

_"I don't doubt it."_

_Hesitantly, Lynley asks, "How's Logan doing?"_

_"He's barely said two words. I think he blames himself. But you know there's plenty of blame to go around," Keith replies._

_"I should have listened to him last night. He had a feeling–" Lynley starts._

_"There's plenty of blame to go around," Keith repeats. "My daughter should never have been there at all. Period. Listen, I'll talk to you later."_

**VERONICA**

_I'm so tired. I don't feel...right. I feel weird. Floaty. My shoulder is numb. What happened to it? When I try to move it, it's...I don't know._

_What are they doing to me now?_

_Open your eyes, just...just look and see. Don't let them see you're awake. I don't want them to know I'm awake. Maybe they'll...maybe they'll stop._

_Oh god, he's looking at my hand. He's going to...they must be thinking about putting me back in restraints. He must have told them...everything. What's different about his face? I don't understand...I'm so confused. God...there's an IV in me!! What are they doing now?!_

_Please...I'm so ashamed of myself. I know I have a lot of work to do. I promise to work hard on my program. Please...I promise!_

Sat. 3/14/09 evening: Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, VT

Keith rushes back into the room followed by the doctor. "Honey, it's all right. Veronica, you're okay, it's all over now."

She stares back blankly, not comprehending.

The doctor gently pushes Keith aside and moves to the bed to evaluate her. "So you've decided to wake up, I see. Can you tell me your name?"

_It's a trick._ "Connie Morris," she whispers.

"Veronica, honey, it's over. We've shut down the school–" Keith starts, but Dr. Arthurs turns to him and with a look asks him to be silent.

"You're in a hospital in Bennington, Vermont," the doctor explains. "Do you remember why you came to Vermont?"

Veronica looks at her dad. Suddenly she realizes that she's not wearing a bra. She touches her chest and knows that the bug is gone. _I'm so confused._ She remembers the code words and says, "I'd really like to be in California," and she watches her dad for his reaction. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees _him_ across the room. He is watching her intensely, and she shivers.

"That's right," her dad says encouragingly. "I'd really like to be in California right now too. You have no idea, honey." He looks to the doctor for permission and continues. "Veronica, the undercover operation is over. Klein is behind bars. You're going to be just fine."

She whispers, "Why didn't you come? I said 'California' so many times. I'm...I'm so confused. It's not really over, is it?" She glances at Logan momentarily. "He told them what they wanted to know, didn't he? I promise I'll try harder. Please don't... I'm going to work hard. I'm so...tired..." She closes her eyes again and slips back into a deep sleep.

Dr. Arthurs sees Keith's pained expression and quickly reassures him. "She's still quite feverish. And the sedatives we gave her are very strong. You can't expect her to be completely coherent until they wear off. I'm going to ask our psychiatrist to evaluate her condition in the morning. I'll have him speak to you about the particulars of her situation. Please don't worry, Mr. Mars. She's young and healthy; she'll get through this."

Logan forces himself to breathe again. _It's not possible to bear this_, he broods. Awkwardly, he sits down, compelling his limbs to move and fold into position. He watches her sleep and tries to drive out every foreboding thought by counting her breaths.

Sat. 3/14/09 evening: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Sacks escorts Dick Casablancas to Sheriff D'Amato's office. "Come in, Mr. Casablancas."

Dick walks in hesitantly and sits down opposite Leo. "What'd I do now, Sheriff? You talked to Jennie Budosh, right?"

"Yes, Ms. Budosh reluctantly confirmed that she was with you the night that your stepmother was killed," Leo replies.

"Reluctantly? I don't think so. I left Jennie begging for more, the way I remember it."

"Uh-huh. Some new information has come to my attention, Mr. Casablancas. What was the relationship between your stepmother and your friend Logan Echolls?" Leo asks.

Dick stares at Leo. "That was a long time ago. And it didn't mean anything."

"What didn't mean anything, Dick? I'm asking you what their relationship was."

"Okay, Logan was boffing her. The guy was lonely, and she was hot. And willing. Extremely willing, if you know what I mean."

"I'm still a little confused why a woman like Kendall would have had an affair with a high school boy. Make me understand, Dick. How is it that your best friend came to be Kendall's lover?"

"Logan's always been...advanced in his sack skills. And Kendall wanted to tap that, along with a lot of other girls. That's all there is to know," Dick explains.

"When did the affair start?"

"I don't know. Maybe the beginning of senior year? After Veronica dumped him," Dick muses.

"You sure it wasn't _why_ Veronica dumped him?" Leo presses.

"You don't know Logan very well if you think that he would cheat on her. He's always been completely messed up about Veronica. He would never–" Dick stops short.

_FLASHBACK: Veronica and Dick are sitting on a stone bench at Hearst College. Veronica says, "Logan slept with Madison when you guys were in Aspen."_

_Dick is surprisingly hurt by this information. It's been a long time since he and Madison were involved, but still... He is also shocked that Logan would sleep with Madison, for whom Veronica appeared to have a completely obsessive hatred ever since Shelly Pomroy's party, and he wonders, not for the first time, about their fucked-up relationship. Love 'em and leave 'em is one thing, but love 'em and torture 'em–that's just sick._

_Dick tries to pretend that Ms. Rich-Dude-Kryptonite has not just rocked his world. He shrugs and replies, "And?" trying for indifferent, but not quite succeeding._

_Veronica tries to backpedal. "Sorry, Dick, I probably shouldn't have..."_

_Dick says carelessly, "Wot, me worry? Can we be done? I've got things to do."_

_Later that day, he finds Logan in his suite and confronts him. "Did you hook up with Madison?"_

_Logan nods and admits, "I did. It just happened, you know. I didn't think you had any feelings left over her."_

_Dick replies, "It's still uncool. You don't do that to a buddy."_

Leo stares at Dick, waiting for an explanation.

Dick finishes lamely, "Logan would never cheat on Veronica. Kendall was just a rebound chick. Logan treated her like shit, and she kept coming back for more."

"And you weren't mad at him for sleeping with your stepmother?"

"Come on, she was like five years older than us."

"Try twelve years older, according to her birth certificate."

"Well, then she was doing a spectacular job as a trophy wife. She had an awesome bikini collection, and let's just say she filled them out magnificently," Dick muses. "And stepmother? That's really stretching it. I don't think 'mother' was in Kendall's vocabulary. It's not like me perving on Logan's mom," he adds. _Which of course I totally did._

"Okay, so Logan and Kendall got together the beginning of senior year. How long did the affair last?"

"I don't know...off and on through that year? Why aren't you asking Logan these questions?" Dick realizes.

"Where is Logan Echolls right now?"

Dick pauses, then says, "I think there was a video of him partying in Madeira a while back. And then I heard he hooked up with Mischa Barton in Paris about a week ago."

"Yeah...I don't think so." Leo picks up a remote control and points it at the television in the corner of his office.

Dick watches as Logan and Veronica make out in the elevator of the Neptune Grand Hotel. Leo keeps his eyes on Dick's face as he watches; he notes that Dick looks more and more nervous as he watches.

Leo remarks, "You notice the time stamp, right?" He pauses the video and reads aloud, "2/28/09 23:49. That's just a few weeks ago. It's proof that Logan Echolls was in Neptune while he was supposedly in Europe playing the bad boy for the paparazzi. I'm wondering why he went to all that trouble to make sure that everyone thought he was out of the country. Have you talked to him since January?"

Dick stares at Leo. _Damn. Where are you, Logan? This guy wants to put your balls in a vise._ He finds his voice and says evasively, "If I hear from him, I'll let you know. Is there anything else, Sheriff?"

"Just this: Kendall was staying at the Neptune Grand the night this video was taken. Wouldn't that have been a coincidence if they ran into each other that night?" Leo suggests. "See if you can get in touch with Echolls. If not, I'm going to get a material witness warrant and get to the bottom of this. Sacks will give you a ride home," he says dismissively, looking down at the paperwork on his desk.

Dick, somewhat off-balance, stands up and leaves. He thinks, _What the hell is going on?_

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Disorganized Thinking**  
Wallace updates Weevil on Veronica's  
condition and tries a new tactic;  
Veronica attempts to sort it all out;  
Leo gets Logan's financial records.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Eli: Francis Capra.  
Sacks: Brandon Hillock. Dr. Arthurs: Glenne  
Headly. Dr. McCoy: Bruce Davison.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER EIGHTY-FIVE: "DISORGANIZED THINKING"

Sat. 3/14/09 evening: Hearst College, Neptune, CA

"Yo, it's me," Wallace says on his cell.

On the other end, Weevil replies, "Yeah, what's up."

"I heard from Keith. The undercover operation is over, and Veronica's out of there. She got hurt, and she's in the hospital, but Keith says she's going to be okay. It's on the news: Briar Hill Academy in Vermont. You can probably find it online."

"She got hurt? What happened?" Weevil asks.

Wallace explains, "Her shoulder was dislocated, and she has a kidney infection. Keith says she's mostly exhausted."

"Damn."

"Yeah...damn."

After a moment, Weevil asks, "What's happening with that yahoo address? Any ideas how to trace it?"

"No, I'm waiting for Keith to get back, to see if he has any ideas."

"Well, why don't we try another stakeout, see what those fuckers are up to–"

"No," Wallace interrupts. "Lookit; I made a promise to Candice to leave it alone."

"Oh man, you are completely whipped. You've been hanging out with Veronica too long and turned into a little girl." In a high voice, Weevil mocks, "Oh, the big bad micks are going to huff and puff and blow my house down."

"More like cap my ass, pendejo. How is you and me getting jacked up by the Fitzpatricks going to make the world a better place?" Wallace retorts. "She's got a point."

Weevil snorts. "Who you calling pendejo, ese? If the micks didn't kill me yet, they're not gonna. Hope you don't mind, I'm going to keep my eye on them. They're going to make a mistake one of these days."

"Yeah, if you don't make one first. I'll let you know how Vee's doing," Wallace says, disconnecting.

Wallace drums his fingers on his desk. Weevil's words cut more than he let on. He reflects that if Veronica was here right now, she'd probably be jumping on the back of Weevil's bike and staking out the Fitzpatricks herself while he was feebly protesting that it was too dangerous.

_Maybe there's something I can do without breaking my promise to Candice._ He remembers that in the Harmony case last fall, he had helped out by digging out all the real-life clients that resembled the characters in Keith's novel. _Of course, that wasn't the real answer, but it led to the information that broke the case._

Wallace takes a sheet of paper and labels it 'FITZPATRICK CRIME FAMILY - ORGANIZATIONAL CHART'. At the top, he writes, MARY MCDONALD. He leaves room for her children and their spouses. Then across the page, he writes LIAM, CORMAC, PATRICK, CIARAN, PADRAIG, allowing space for the other eight siblings. On the next line, he writes MOLLY, leaving plenty of room for this generation's progeny. Using the Mars Investigation account, he logs into the PryingEyez database and begins to fill in the spaces on his chart.

Sun. 3/15/09 morning: Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, VT

A nurse is checking on Veronica as Keith and Logan are dozing. Veronica opens her eyes and looks around the room. She sees her dad sleeping soundly in a chair near the bed. _Dad..._ she thinks. She closes her eyes again, trying to decide what was really a memory and what was just a nightmare.

The nurse asks, "How are you feeling today, Ms. Mars?"

_Ms. Mars...oh that sounds very good._ "I'm thirsty," she croaks. The nurse pours a glass of water from a pitcher on the bedside table.

Logan stirs. He looks over at Veronica and meets her gaze. The nurse adjusts the bed a little and helps Veronica to sit up; she hands her the glass of water, and Veronica drains the glass. The nurse leaves the room, and Logan walks over to the bed.

"Veronica." He watches for any sign of the terror that gripped her yesterday. She appears apprehensive but something of the old Veronica has returned.

"Hey," she replies quietly.

"We've been so worried about you," he says. "How do you feel?"

"A little confused," she admits. "How did I get here?"

"You don't remember?" he asks.

"I remember group therapy after breakfast, and Klein sitting down, asking me..." she starts hesitantly. "I'm not sure after that."

"Veronica?" Keith says, rubbing his eyes and joining them. "Honey, how are you feeling?"

"My shoulder feels funny, but it's not hurting the way it was before...I had such a headache."

"Your shoulder was dislocated, and you're going to need surgery to repair it. The doctors said you have a kidney infection, probably from all the bathroom restrictions, and you had a pretty high fever when you were admitted," Keith explains. He puts the back of his hand to her forehead, the way that he used to, when she stayed home from school. "I think your fever broke."

"Dad, I'm sorry...I'm so sorry I screwed up," she says suddenly.

"What do you mean, screwed up? You did a great job; Klein's going to prison for sure," Keith replies.

"We're the ones who screwed up," Logan adds.

"No, I pushed back too hard, and then I let him break me, and..." she says with a catch in her voice. "I thought I was strong enough for this, but..."

Logan glances at Keith. Keith pulls his chair over so he can sit next to her bed. "Veronica, honey, your bug stopped working after you were writing the guilt letters with Alyssa. We didn't realize because it was bedtime, and we thought you had just gone to sleep."

"At bedtime?" she asks puzzled. She remembers being exhausted, tossing and turning in the bed, unable to get comfortable with her shoulder aching and throbbing.

"When the hospital gave me your clothes, the transmitting wire had come loose from the bug," Keith explains.

"So...you didn't hear what happened during the night?" she says tentatively.

Keith shakes his head 'no'. Hesitantly, he asks, "Do you want to talk about it?"

"They...they woke me up two times. Oh, it sounds so stupid," she realizes suddenly. _Jumping jacks and shelving books; it sounds like nothing, it sounds like...I just crumpled up and sobbed like a little baby._ Her eyes well up, and she stops talking.

"It's okay, you don't have to talk about it," Keith says.

An unfamiliar doctor enters the room. "Mr. Mars? I'm Dr. McCoy; I'm one of the psychiatrists here. Dr. Arthurs asked me to check in on Veronica today." He turns to Veronica. "Hello, Veronica. Do you feel up to talking with me?"

She nods, taking a deep breath to try to compose herself.

"Tell me your name."

"Veronica Mars."

"Do you know where you are?" he asks.

"In the hospital. In Vermont I guess."

"Good. Do you remember what day it is?"

She thinks for a minute and shakes her head. "No, I'm not sure. March...twelfth, thirteenth maybe? 2009," she concludes firmly.

"Okay, that's pretty close. It's Sunday, the fifteenth." Dr. McCoy makes a note then continues, "Do you remember why you're here in Vermont?"

"I'm a private investigator. I'm working with my dad. We're collecting evidence on Briar Hill Academy for a lawsuit," she says. With each word, her voice gains confidence. Veronica concludes, "I was undercover, pretending to be a student at the school, and my uh,...friend, Logan, " she nods at him, "was undercover as well, with another professional investigator."

Logan lets out the breath that he didn't realize he was holding.

Dr. McCoy smiles. "It sounds like you were very brave."

Veronica pretends to smile back. _No, actually...I let them break me. I'm not brave at all._

McCoy continues, "If you're hungry, we'd like you to get you off that IV and give you a good breakfast."

She nods, and Dr. McCoy leaves to find a nurse. On his way out, he explains, "I'll check back in on you later. We'll talk a little bit more and see how you're doing. Just take it easy for now."

Logan whispers in Keith's ear; Keith nods, and Logan leaves.

Dr. Arthurs comes in and checks over Veronica again; she orders the IV removed and changes Veronica to oral medication. "Now, listen to me, young lady; your job for the next twenty-four hours is to sleep. No stress. No getting out of bed. Understood? And if you continue to improve, in the morning we can discuss your options for your shoulder. I'm not worried at all about your infection; the antibiotics are working, and I'm sure you're going to be just fine, Veronica."

"Thank you, Dr. Arthurs," Veronica replies, smiling wanly. _I really had my heart set on another all-day hike, but I think a day in bed sounds just fine._

Keith follows the doctor out to the hallway. "The FBI agent in charge of this case urgently needs to speak with Veronica," he explains. "The employees of the school where Veronica was undercover are being arraigned tomorrow morning, and her statement will be crucial. Do you think Veronica is up to it? I know she would be upset if the prosecution was not successful because she couldn't give a statement."

Dr. Arthurs sighs. "Stress is her biggest enemy right now, Mr. Mars." She lowers her voice. "I'm still quite concerned over her disorientation yesterday. Any interview needs to be very short. Let's say later this afternoon, after she's had a couple good meals and rested a bit more."

"Of course. What about..." Keith's voice trails off. He rubs his forehead worriedly and continues. "Veronica's best friend...well, her whole family was tragically killed in a terrible accident since we've been here in Vermont on this investigation. We haven't even told Veronica yet. The funeral is on Tuesday, and I know Veronica would want to be there for her friend."

"Back in California?" the doctor says quizzically.

Keith nods.

"You're making my job very difficult, Mr. Mars. Hold off on telling her until tomorrow, all right? Giving a statement to the FBI is enough stress for one day. We'll see how she's doing tomorrow."

Keith nods again and goes back into Veronica's room. He fusses over her, fluffing her pillows, pouring her another glass of water, and asking if she wants the television on. She shakes her head, "No, just...I don't know. I'm just tired." Veronica shuts her eyes again, and her dad feels completely useless.

A short while later, Logan returns bearing three large styrofoam containers. Trying to sound casual, he announces, "Hey, Veronica. I couldn't bear to make you eat hospital food. Scrambled eggs, pancakes, or french toast?"

Veronica suddenly realizes that she's ravenous. "French toast." She smiles a little, and he feels slightly hopeful for the first time in a week.

Logan wheels the table over and opens the container. He uses the plastic utensils to cut the french toast and sausage into bite-sized pieces; he looks at her and asks, "You want syrup on everything right? And a lot of it, I assume?"

"Of course," she answers. Keith smothers a quiet chuckle, happy to see a glimpse of the old Veronica.

He opens two large containers of 'real Vermont maple syrup', saying, "I told them, only the good stuff, Grade A, 100 percent real maple syrup, and jumbo size." Logan sneaks a glance at her again, and Veronica is still smiling. "You want me to feed you?"

She stares at him; her smile is still frozen on her face, but her eyes well up with tears. "You don't have to feed me."

_I said something wrong._ "I know. You don't need me to. But I'd like to. You took care of me when my leg was broken, and I want to take care of you. But if you want, you can do it." He puts the fork on the left side of her styrofoam container and places a couple napkins within easy reach.

She picks up the fork a little clumsily with her left hand and tries to stab a bite of the french toast. After failing twice, she begins to sob and drops the fork into the container.

"Honey," Keith says. He goes to her and cautiously hugs her. She leans her head on his shoulder and lets the tears flow. He lightly pats her on the back and mutters, "It's okay, it's okay; you're just tired. It's going to be fine. I'm so sorry, honey."

She opens her eyes and sees Logan looking at her with concern. "Don't look at me like that!" She begins to cry even harder.

After a moment, Logan says, "I'll be back in a little while," and leaves the room.

Keith rocks his daughter, completely at a loss how to help her.

Sun. 3/15/09 morning: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Deputy Sacks knocks on the doorframe to Leo's office.

"Yeah, Sacks, what do you got?" Leo asks.

"It's that financial information on Logan Echolls that you requested. Bank statements and credit card receipts." Sacks places the papers on Leo's desk and turns to leave.

"Hey, Sacks, you know that partial fingerprint we got in Kendall's room?"

"Yeah, Sheriff...the one from inside the drawer, I remember. The crime scene techs haven't been able to match it with anybody in the databases."

"Which only means that they don't have enough points of comparison to get an absolute match through IAFIS. Can you ask them to review that fingerprint to see if it's consistent with Logan Echolls' prints? Or Veronica Mars?"

"Veronica?" Sacks asks, dubiously. "You don't really think Veronica had something to do with this?"

"Just see if it's possible that it's one of theirs, okay, Sacks?" Leo replies. "I'd like a report by the morning."

Sacks leaves, shutting the door behind him. Leo spreads Logan Echolls' financial records on his desk. All the credit cards except one have been unused since January 25, 2009. That card lists two charges to KLM Airlines and various restaurant and hotel charges in Europe. When Leo compares the receipts from before January 25 and after, he notes that there is a slight discrepancy in Logan Echolls' signature, and he decides that Echolls gave one of his credit cards to the impostor who showed up on the paparazzi videos. He turns to his computer screen and pulls up the video showing 'Echolls' club-hopping in Madeira; Leo thinks that if the State Department hadn't confirmed that Logan Echolls had never left the country, he himself might have been fooled into believing that was Echolls doing shots with various B-list celebrities.

_Of course we know he was right here in my office, twisting the knife, on February 26th. _On the day when Echolls and Veronica were telling him their theory about the Lilly Kane sex tapes, Echolls' credit card receipts have him buying dinner in the casino in Funchal. _Pretty ballsy to confront a cop when your fake alibi is plastered all over Youtube, but then again he's relying on me never wanting to reveal what we talked about that day._ Leo clicks on another link, and a video of a Gracie Jane interview starts to play. Gracie Jane smarmily discusses the Echolls' family legacy of statutory rape and murder, and for just a moment, Leo feels sorry for Logan Echolls. Then he thinks about Echolls angrily saying, _'The only reason to steal all the copies was to destroy the evidence against Aaron,'_ and Leo shuts down the video, pushing away all his doubts and deciding that where there's smoke, there's fire.

He turns to the other financial records. Echolls' bank account also appears to be dormant since January 27. Leo scrutinizes the transactions carefully. There is a check for 2000 dollars written to Robert Thomas and another made out to Harvey Greenblatt in the amount of 20,000 dollars. Most notably, there is a cash withdrawal of 50,000 dollars. From the reverse side of the check written to Harvey Greenblatt, Leo finds the bank tracking number for the party who deposited the check. He looks up the number in a financial database and determines that the bank is a Bank of America branch on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles. He googles 'Harvey Greenblatt Wilshire Los Angeles', and the first result is 'Greenblatt Talent Agency'. Leo clicks on the link and finds that Harvey Greenblatt is CEO. On the list of artists represented, he scrolls down and sees 'Aaron Echolls', but 'Logan Echolls' is not listed. When he clicks on 'Aaron Echolls', he learns that Aaron was Greenblatt's first major client. There are several photos of Aaron and Greenblatt with their arms around each other, posing at various red-carpet events.

_I can kill two birds with one stone; that woman, Madison Sinclair, who mentioned Logan's affair in the article, is in Los Angeles too. And of course I'd really like to know what Greenblatt did for the son of his most famous client._

He hits the intercom. "Sacks. I want you to cancel all my appointments for tomorrow. And then I'd like to arrange two meetings for me in Los Angeles." He gives Sacks the pertinent details and begins compiling notes for the two interviews.

Sun. 3/15/09 morning: Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, VT

Keith knocks on the passenger window of Logan's car, and Logan hits the button to unlock the doors. Keith slides in and shuts the door. "She fell asleep again."

"Uh-huh."

"Just been sitting out here the whole time?"

"Uh-huh."

"Did you get some breakfast? You need to eat too."

Logan shakes his head.

Keith says, "C'mon. My treat. I could use another cup of coffee."

Logan shrugs, and they walk across the street to a diner. Logan orders eggs and bacon. Keith sips his coffee and watches as Logan pushes his food around the plate.

Finally, Logan pushes the plate away, his eggs half-eaten. He avoids looking directly at Keith. "I've been thinking it might be better if I head back to Los Angeles. She's scared of me."

"She's scared of what happened," Keith corrects.

"Come on. It's like what was happening to me at the school. She can't tell what's real anymore. And we still don't know what happened Friday night." Logan looks up at Keith. "I want to know what Klein was saying to her in that last session."

Keith hesitates.

"Just tell me!" Logan says, his voice rising a little. A couple patrons look over at him, and he lowers his voice to an intense whisper. "What happened during that last group therapy session? I couldn't hear what that asshole was saying to her, and it fucking killed me to sit outside the door, waiting for backup to go in and stop him. You didn't see what he did to her face. It was...despicable, the most vile thing you could think of to do to a rape victim...They put makeup on her, like she was a whore, and wrote 'slut' on her forehead."

Keith closes his eyes. "Kinny told me some of it. Klein was saying that we don't do anything when we're high that we don't wish we could do when we're sober. He was pressing her for details on her rape, and Veronica kept saying she didn't remember."

"She doesn't remember most of that night at Shelly's. Fuck...you mean he was saying that she was _asking_ to be raped? That party was beyond crazy...we were all messed up that night. And Veronica accidentally got a drink with GHB in it." Logan swallows. "Mr. Mars?"

Keith looks up, realizing that this is the first time in perhaps four months that Logan has called him anything other than 'Keith'.

"I was one of the boys that brought the GHB to the party. I didn't give it to her, I swear. I swear I didn't mean for her to...it was...I swear it was a mistake that she got it in her drink," he finishes lamely. "I've begged her forgiveness..."

"Wallace said that it was Cassidy and Duncan who raped her. He didn't tell me the details but...Duncan Kane? Logan, I know Duncan pretty well, and I just can't see him–"

Logan laughs bitterly. "Yeah, well, that one's on me too. I gave Duncan some of the GHB, and I guess the GHB together with his epilepsy meds...Veronica said they ended up together at the end of the night, and Duncan was so screwed up he assumed that it was...consensual, I guess. Veronica was in really bad shape–"

"And Cassidy?" Keith asks sharply.

"Veronica doesn't remember anything about Beav– Cassidy." Logan remembers seeing Dick, Sean, and Beaver manhandling her and feeding her shots. _I...hated her so much then, for what her dad was doing, for supporting him instead of... I thought...she was just drunk and...No, I KNEW what was going on. And I let it happen. Hell, I was laughing about it._ "God, how can you even stand to look at me. I'm sorry for everything. I should have never..." He stands up to leave, pulling out his wallet and throwing a twenty on the table. Logan grabs his coat and hurries out of the coffee shop.

Keith catches up to him a half a block away. He puts his hand on Logan's arm. "Stop...Stop!" Logan stops walking and stands uncomfortably, unable to look Keith in the eye. Keith says, "I know things were very rough for you with Aaron, and I've tried to forget about the things you did when you were younger. But Logan, that's my baby you're talking about. And what you're saying...if you had ANYTHING to do with that–" He sighs heavily. "You don't know what it's like for a father to have to hear that his daughter was raped. And then to hear that her boyfriend, who I've accepted like a son, was involved in it...I'm having a lot of trouble understanding that. But what I keep coming back to is that Veronica, my bad-ass Veronica, who couldn't even forgive her own mother...Veronica somehow forgave you."

"Except she didn't." At Keith's look, Logan continues quietly, "Every time she's ever needed to trust me, she's never been able to. She's NEVER been able to completely trust me ever since. She never says it's because of her rape, but I think she blames me for it. It's why we always ended up breaking it off, because she couldn't trust me. And if Klein was torturing her, saying that she wanted to be raped...and I was right there while he was fucking with her mind, I was the guy who was manhandling her and forcing her to–" he drops his voice, "forcing her to pee in a bucket like an animal...she's never going to..."

Hesitantly, Keith reaches out and puts his hand on Logan's arm. "I don't believe that she blames you for her rape. Logan, she chased you halfway across the country! She trusted you to watch over her on the undercover operation."

"And look what a great job I did," he retorts.

They stand silently looking at each other for a minute. Finally Keith says, "I need you to stay with her. Lynley has asked if I want to sit in on Klein's questioning this afternoon. And I really want to ask him about Hannah for Ms. Denenberg. But I don't want to leave Veronica alone."

"What if she freaks out again?"

"Then I trust you to call the doctor and take care of her for me. Can I count on you?"

Logan finally nods in response.

"There's plenty of blame to go around here. I can't believe I let her talk me into this undercover operation in the first place. And then when we were planning this, we thought all the bugs were overkill; but now I can't believe we didn't have every inch of the school wired with duplicate video feeds. And once the FBI got involved...I was thinking it would help the case and get her out of there quicker, but I was kidding myself. We should have gotten her out when they pulled that surprise hike, no matter how many times Veronica used the code that she wanted to keep going. If I had known she was really hurt...Logan, I have to believe that we're going to get past this. I have to believe it. Somehow she's going to be all right."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Inquiries**  
Klein is questioned; Logan and Veronica  
start to talk.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Klein: Clancy Brown.  
Lynley: James Badge Dale. Attorney: Ray  
Wise. US Attorney Ruggerio: Nathan Fillion.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER EIGHTY-SIX: "INQUIRIES"

Sun. 3/15/09 afternoon: Manchester Center Police Department, VT

Lynley greets Keith with a handshake; he says quietly, "How's Veronica?"

Keith says, "She's okay. She'll be all right. She's mostly exhausted."

Lynley motions to the video screens. "I've been bringing the prosecutor up to speed; I've shown them a selection of the recordings. We're hoping to charge him on various state and local statutes for fraud and assault and battery as well as the racketeering and bribery charges. But of course the federal charges will take precedence."

"I'm concerned that Klein will cut a deal. I'd like to see him serve real jail time, and not in a cushy federal prison. Observation Placement would be too good for him."

Lynley nods. He points at a figure on the video screen. "The man on the left is US Attorney Don Ruggerio. He'll be running the interview. We can communicate with his assistant if we need to." They take their seats; Epstein joins them, a legal pad at the ready to take notes.

They watch as Klein is brought into the room in handcuffs. His attorney places his briefcase on the table, and Klein is released from the cuffs. They sit down; Keith, the veteran of numerous difficult interrogations, discovers that he's fuming at Klein's relaxed attitude.

Klein's attorney says, "Gentlemen, this is all a gross misunderstanding. A well-meaning parent, who is understandably distraught about her daughter's murder, is trying to find someone to blame. And the offenses committed by this private investigative firm certainly rise to the level of entrapment, and we will be seeking vigorous recompense for damages. My client is of course eager to cooperate with any investigation to prove that the school complies with all local and federal regulations."

Ruggerio shuffles some paperwork. "I'm glad to hear that Mr. Klein is interested in cooperating. We have documentary evidence of some unusual procedures at your school."

The attorney replies, "You do understand that, as a private school, Briar Hill Academy is allowed to set its own policies and procedures."

"As long as the minimum welfare of the students is guaranteed, yes, that's correct." Ruggerio looks down at his notes. "Let's talk about the intake procedure. Can you explain what the standard protocol is for a new student?"

Klein looks at his attorney, who nods. He says, "Our students usually don't come to the school voluntarily. We expect some resistance. Parents choose our school because of the secure environment."

"Resistance?"

"Most of the parents use a transport service which is not affiliated with the school in any way."

"But the transport service is recommended by you?" Ruggerio comments.

"No, actually by the education consultants who work directly with the parents," Klein explains. "And of course the education consultants are paid a standard fee, no matter what treatment they recommend."

"You're denying that these consultants are financed by your school?"

"They are independent consultants; their fee is paid directly by the parents," Klein says.

"Okay, so the students arrive. Now what happens?" Ruggerio asks.

"They are asked to remove their clothes. We search their belongings for contraband and issue them new clothes."

"What about a strip search?"

"Oh, that's definitely not standard procedure," Klein states.

"Really?" Ruggerio points a remote at a television screen. The video shows Veronica being forcibly stripped of her bra and panties; Ruggerio fast-forwards the video, then slows it down to show the girls fighting Veronica and forcing her down to the floor. He pauses the video for a moment on Maria striking Veronica in the face. Klein's attorney fidgets uncomfortably in his seat. Ruggerio starts the video again and shows the girls forcing Veronica into the stirrups on the table; he pauses it again on Maria, wearing a pair of surgical gloves, clearly moving to perform an invasive search.

Klein's attorney whispers in Klein's ear; he nods. "There are some very rough girls at the school. Clearly, they misunderstood what was expected of them and went too far. That video is absolutely not procedure. I think if you look in our student manual, you'll see the admission process outlined. If I had known what was happening, those girls would have been disciplined." The attorney whispers again, and Klein adds, "Was that not one of the private investigators watching that entire scene? One of our own employees would certainly have known to report that incident, and all the girls would have received consequences."

"I believe he actually did file a report on the incident," Ruggerio notes, pulling a piece of paper from his stack. "It's got your initials on it."

Klein flushes.

Ruggerio finds another piece of paper. "This is from Connie Morris' file. It's a psychologist report...dated the day she was admitted. I don't see a psychologist in the room here." He uses the remote to fast forward.

Klein says, "That's a clerical error. The psychologist actually reviewed the notes from our group therapy professional and made his assessment one day later."

"So Connie was not actually seen by this psychologist?"

"No, we usually only have cases reviewed by our psychologist, who is on call, but usually not at the school."

Ruggerio comments, "That's funny, because Mr. Morris was assured when he placed his daughter in your care that she would be evaluated–"

"And placed in appropriate treatment," Klein finishes. "And that's exactly what happened. She was evaluated by our staff; her treatment plan was reviewed and approved by our psychologist."

_Bastard,_ Keith thinks. He remembers how difficult it was to get Dr. Castro to guarantee a psychiatrist's evaluation for his 'daughter'.

"And what would trigger an actual visit from your psychologist? What particular behaviors would alarm you enough to seek professional assistance?" Ruggerio presses.

Klein consults with his attorney again and responds, "Any situation that our staff was not able to handle, or a student who clearly needed medication."

"What about general medical attention? Ms. Morris asked for a doctor several times and was not seen by a doctor or a nurse," Ruggerio asks.

"Her claims were not credible. Many of our students are accomplished liars when they first start their programs," Klein responds.

"Yet you assured Mr. Morris that she could see a nurse if she wanted. Note my emphasis–if she wanted. This was not thirty minutes after Connie was denied access to medical care."

"By her oldcomer, who clearly was deviating from our accepted standards. I feel quite badly that Maria was treating Connie like that. If I had known, I would have stopped that immediately."

Keith muses that this could go on for hours; Klein, the veteran of numerous lawsuits, is immensely skilled at twisting the words of his accusers and at protecting himself by having students and lowly employees perform the majority of his unscrupulous 'treatments'. But he knows, from Epstein's experience, Veronica's experiences documented on video and audio are among the best evidence ever assembled against one of these tough-love programs.

Ruggerio asks, "So are your older students, your 'oldcomers', trained how to treat the newer students? Are they trained in restraint techniques? We witnessed Ms. Morris being restrained by both your students and your employees."

"We believe in experiential training," Klein states. "The students learn by observing the older students, and as they are able, they are given more responsibility to assist the newer students with their programs."

"So the training consists of watching other students who themselves were never trained in restraint techniques?"

"That's a gross oversimplification," Klein huffs. "These students are supervised very carefully by our employees. The student to faculty ratio is quite low, making for a very safe environment. You're suffering from a basic misconception about our use of restraints. Only students who have progressed satisfactorily in their program are given the privilege of restraining other students, and we find that they are grateful for the opportunity of helping others who are struggling."

"Privilege, I see. Okay, how about the training for your employees? And what about qualifications and credentials? What are the minimum requirements?"

"There is no one set requirement for all the positions; each employee is carefully selected for their position."

"Even the two investigators who were hired as guards without a background check and no training?" Ruggerio asks.

"Of course they received training; as they were assigned tasks, they were instructed in the proper performance of their duties and were given more responsibility as they earned it," Klein replies indignantly.

"Hmm. The investigators indicate that they were expected to help restrain girls in stress positions on their first day of work and received no instructions other than 'assist the older students, you'll see what's necessary,'" Ruggerio says, reading off a sheet of paper.

"Again, this is a clear case of entrapment. Most new employees have the common sense to ask questions in order to perform their job correctly. If these two men restrained girls improperly, it was of their own volition. There was clearly an agenda being pursued in this investigation, and several of the events during the past week appear to have been staged in order to cast the school in a poor light."

Keith is dismayed; he didn't expect Klein to crumble under questioning, but he is starting to doubt that the evidence they collected at such a great cost to Veronica will even be enough.

Klein's attorney says, "I'd like for us to take a short break now. I need to confer with my client."

Keith thinks, _You bastard, you never gave Veronica a break. You made her wait to go to the bathroom for hours, caused her infection, allowed the girls to dislocate her shoulder..._ He begins to shake with anger and regret.

Epstein touches Keith on the shoulder. "Don't worry. He's good, but what we've got is better. We have a preponderance of evidence. He can try to explain it away, but no jury will acquit him. I swear to you: Veronica didn't do this for nothing. No one's ever had evidence like this before, and when the students see what we have, they'll be lining up to testify against him."

Ruggerio comes out of the room to talk to Keith. "A regular stone-cold bastard, huh? I'm not surprised that he's never been convicted before. But I'm impressed with the quality of the evidence you collected, Mr. Mars. It's very comprehensive; your daughter did an amazing job. He can dance around the facts all he wants, but the destructive nature of the school is clear to see. Agent Lynley said you also had a few questions about a related matter."

Keith summarizes what he knows about Hannah Griffith. He gives Ruggerio a copy of his own file on Hannah along with the file Logan had copied from Klein's office. Ruggerio looks at him questioningly. "What are you thinking?"

Keith explains, "It's a long shot. There's some evidence in Hannah's case that seems contradictory and possibly points to some sort of copycat murder. Hannah could have witnessed something at the school, perhaps Assemblyman Frazzino or the Education Commissioner making a payoff. Or maybe she remembered Maria Frazzino's crazy stories of being abused by her father and realized they weren't so crazy after all. We recently located a witness who puts Hannah in a town near Sacramento where Frazzino lives."

"Blackmail?" Ruggerio surmises.

"Yes. What if Hannah stumbled upon something that made her realize that Maria was telling the truth, and she decided to try to make Klein or Frazzino or both pay for it?"

Ruggerio taps the autopsy report on Hannah. "But this looks like whoever murdered her was familiar with the modus operandi of the true serial killer..."

"...Indicating somebody who has connections to the government, perhaps an ambitious state assemblyman with a reputation for being tough on crime," Keith concludes, nodding. "And I'm thinking some questions on Hannah's death might rattle Klein a bit. If he thinks you're pursuing him on that–"

"He might be more cooperative on some of the other issues," Ruggerio finishes. "Okay. I'll start with that when we come back."

Sun. 3/15/09 afternoon: Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, VT

On his way back to Veronica's room, Logan checks in at the nurse's station and asks for an update on her condition. The nurses reassure him that she's doing fine. When he enters the room, she's sleeping again. Logan quietly sits down in the chair next to the bed and watches her. Her face is relaxed and peaceful, not betraying the inner turmoil she was exhibiting earlier. He hates the red hair and unfamiliar hair style; even the temporary tattoos that seemed exotic and sexy when she got them now just appear grotesque and strange. Her arm is strapped to her chest, immobilizing it, and he wishes he could somehow make it all better.

Not for the first time, he thinks how gutsy she was to keep going after her injury. There's something about her strength and single-mindedness–no, bullheadedness–that are still capable of surprising him after all this time. And the thought that that bastard–_prick motherfucker cocksuckingSONOFABITCH_–might have broken her, might have driven that out of her forever...right now, he'd gladly go back to those vicious arguments when he was berating her for taking too many risks if it meant that she would be _strong_ again, that she would be _Veronica_ again.

He's so lost in thought that he doesn't realize she's opened her eyes and is looking at him again. "What happened to your beard?"

Startled, he stutters, "Wh-what?"

"You shaved," she replies.

He rubs his chin. "Couldn't stand it any more...looking in the mirror and seeing someone else staring back at me. I want to get my old hair back too." He ruffles his hair, in the old familiar gesture, and he's surprised when she smiles a little.

"You always do that, you always mess with your hair, especially when you don't know what to say. Or when you're nervous..." she muses.

"I don't think nervous is the right word...scared to death, maybe," he admits.

"Scared?" she asks, completely flummoxed.

"Of course, I'm scared that...I'm scared that he hurt you and..." He can't express it. "I was terrified the whole time," he admits. _You don't know how terrified I was._

"You were scared?" she asks hesitantly. "You didn't act...terrified. You acted...like one of them." Her voice becomes completely inaudible by the last word.

"That's what scared me the most. Veronica, I almost had a nervous breakdown at one point; I almost beat the shit out of Carrie when she–" he stops short. _She's not ready to talk about this. Stop...stop!!_

"What did Carrie do?" she says curiously. "I mean, I know she's done plenty already."

"She just saw me...when I was upset about something," he finishes lamely.

"What?"

He knows he shouldn't say it, and he stays silent.

She repeats, "What were you upset about?"

He says it, almost against his will, "Do you think it was easy for me to hurt you? And then..." He can't say it.

She looks at him in shock. "What? Logan, what?"

"I was upset because I was acting like one of them, I was...Veronica, goddammit, I kept feeling like I was turning into my dad," he says, the words spilling out helplessly. _Stop, you've got to stop, she's not ready to talk about this!_ "Veronica, please, let's not talk about this–"

"I just thought...I don't know...I thought you were mad at me, for making you be there, for not giving up this stupid operation, for everything I've ever done to you, all the things I ever accused you of, and really it's just that I'm a rotten person" she chokes back a sob, _black hole black hole,_ "and I know you and Dad can't really love me because of the way I am. I thought...I thought you told them about all the horrible things I've done. I'm so sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she babbles.

"Veronica, please, you've got to calm down," he says anxiously. "Please, it's all right, it's going to be fine, dammit, please stop crying." _It's a good thing Klein isn't here right now, because I would go to the electric chair to beat the crap out of him, if only he was here right this fucking minute._

"How can you even stand to be in the room with me? I'm just a disgusting piece of filth. There's nothing worth saving!" she cries hysterically. "I know that's why you didn't come when I called for help."

"Oh..._fuck!!_" _She called for help, and we didn't hear it. What the fuck happened on Friday night...and what the fuck happened in that group therapy? _He cautiously sits on the bed next to her. "Veronica, please, just let me hold you. I swear to you, I _swear_ that I would have been there in one second if I had known you wanted help. You _know_ I would have been there. Please."

He gently puts his arms around her, gingerly avoiding her right shoulder. She resists, pushing him away weakly, but he hangs on until she gives up and lets him hold her. She weeps as he tells her over and over again that he loves her. She cries, with great gasping hiccups and sobs, her words incoherent and jumbled and her face wet with tears. "Please don't...please..."

Logan says 'I love you, Veronica, you're safe now' so many times that it becomes a mantra with a rhythm all its own. He hopes that the words are penetrating her hysteria and panic.

At last, she seems to exhaust her supply of tears; with a few shuddering sighs, she gradually calms down, and he pulls back to look at her. She closes her eyes, still unable to look at him. He wants to kiss her, somehow make her forget everything; he wants it with every cell of his body, but he is afraid. He recognizes that same terror and confusion that had gripped him until he somehow managed to pull back and regain control._ How do I help her?_ He feels inadequate and overwhelmingly guilty–for letting this happen, for somehow giving her the idea this was the way to help him. _Veronica...please be okay. Please tell me how to help you._

He moves to the chair beside the bed. "Try to sleep, Veronica. I'll be right here the whole time." Logan slips his hand, palm up, underneath hers, giving her the option of holding his hand. He waits, fiercely hoping she'll take his hand; he forces his muscles to stay completely immobile even though he wants nothing more than to squeeze her hand tightly, so that she knows, really _knows,_ that he is there for her. But he waits: somehow he knows instinctively that she needs to feel even a little bit in control, and she must make the decision that she wants his support. Finally, tentatively, she gently curls her fingers around his and chooses to hold on, and he suppresses a sigh of relief.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Defensive Maneuvers**  
Klein is questioned about Hannah; Mac  
takes a chance; Veronica discloses.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Klein: Clancy Brown. Attorney: Ray Wise.  
US Attorney Ruggerio: Nathan Fillion. Lynley:  
James Badge Dale. Dr. Arthurs: Glenne Headly.  
Alan: Ned Vaughn. Brenda: Katherine Bailess.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER EIGHTY-SEVEN: "DEFENSIVE MANEUVERS"

Sun. 3/15/09 afternoon: Manchester Center Police Department, VT

Ruggerio sits back down at the table and regards Klein and his attorney. He aimlessly taps the folder in front of him with his pencil, as if deciding how to begin. From the viewing area, Keith watches, anticipating a battle of wits between the tough prosecuting attorney and the smooth con artist. Epstein and Lynley are observing as well.

Finally, Ruggerio says, "Do you remember a student from a few years ago named Hannah Griffith?"

Klein looks startled. "Of course I remember Hannah. I remember every student, but I consider her to be my worst failure."

"How so?"

Klein sighs. His attorney taps him on the arm and gives him a look, trying to advise caution. Klein says, "Hannah was only a student for a short time. She came under the influence of one of our employees, who did not approve of our treatment methods and took it upon herself to help Hannah run away from the school. Hannah was dangerously unstable, and I wasn't surprised to find out earlier this year that she turned to prostitution and drugs after leaving us and had been murdered by a serial killer in Los Angeles. I feel certain that if Hannah had stayed at the school and graduated, she might have avoided that fate. So I feel responsible for not realizing that my employee was short-sighted and foolish."

"Tell me about Hannah's instability. What was your treatment focusing on?" Ruggerio asks.

"Well, I'd have to see my notes, of course–"

Ruggerio pushes a folder across the table. Klein looks at the papers, which are copies of his notes. He takes a few minutes to review then begins. "Hannah's parents were concerned about her relationship with an older boy. The boy was on house arrest, awaiting trial for the murder of a gang member, and had a long history of drug and alcohol abuse and various misdemeanor convictions. Mr. Griffith noted that he had found a large quantity of cocaine hidden in his bathroom; his daughter claimed that it was evidence that Mr. Griffith himself was doing drugs, but Mr. Griffith suspected that it was planted by this boy named," Klein consults the file again, "Logan Echolls."

Klein pauses a moment before starting in again. "Hannah was caught by her father having sexual relations with Echolls after having been forbidden to associate with him. Combined with a precipitous drop in Hannah's grades and some evidence that she herself was using drugs, Mr. Griffith made the difficult decision to get some serious help for her problems." Klein looks at his notes and continues, "Mr. Griffith also explained that he and his wife had been going through a difficult divorce and custody mediation and they agreed that Hannah needed a break from the family drama."

Ruggerio asks, "What was your diagnosis of Hannah's condition, and what treatment did you prescribe?"

"Based on our evaluations, our psychologist diagnosed her with a sexual addiction secondary to a borderline personality disorder and drug addiction. It was clear based on her statements in group therapy that her father had sought help for her just in time. Hannah threatened to run away from the school and repeatedly swore that we couldn't keep her away from Logan. She repeated the claims that her father was involved with drugs, which were of course untrue. Her father is a respected plastic surgeon."

Klein sighs and continues. "None of these girls are easy to treat, but Hannah's denial of her problems was perhaps the most extreme I have ever seen. She claimed to be a virgin, yet her father caught her having sex with this character. She repeatedly claimed that her father was involved with criminals and was pursuing a vendetta against her boyfriend. We tried to convince her that her boyfriend was a user and a petty criminal by forcing her to read aloud the numerous newspaper stories that detailed his exploits. When she refused, we were forced to resort to Observation Placement numerous times. We find that that treatment encourages girls to examine the errors of their thinking."

Ruggerio takes the file back and looks for a particular paragraph. Pointing, he asks, "What's this about 'cutting'? And something about food punishment?"

"Oh, it was completely tragic. Hannah used silverware to cut herself, thinking that a doctor would believe her crazy stories about her father and arrange for her release. Of course, our doctor is experienced with the kind of stories these girls will make up for attention, and he reported them to us immediately. The incident was further proof that Hannah desperately needed residential placement. After she was treated, we had to take away the privilege of eating utensils until she demonstrated that she could be trusted again."

"You mean, she had to eat with her hands?"

"She was placed on a bread and water regimen for forty-eight hours to think about what she had done to herself, and then, yes, she had her normal diet restored and ate with her hands."

Keith is so repulsed by Klein's self-serving description of his treatments that he almost misses Ruggerio's next question.

Pointedly, Ruggerio asks, "Were her parents notified about this cutting incident?"

"Of course. We report any incident that involves violence."

"And were they allowed to speak with Hannah at that time?"

Klein replies, slightly sarcastically, "We don't allow students who act in this way to talk to their parents. Family contact is a privilege that is earned."

"I see, like silverware."

"Just because you are ignorant about tough-love programs doesn't mean that they are ineffective."

Klein's attorney breaks in. "You do know that past students and the parents of successful graduates have been contacting me all morning offering to testify on Mr. Klein's behalf."

"Yes, I am aware," Ruggerio comments. "So Hannah was now on food restrictions and had been sentenced to Observation Placement several times. Were you seeing any progress in her 'borderline personality disorder'? Did you consider any kind of psychotropic medication since you claimed that her denial was among the worst you'd ever encountered?"

"Replacing illicit drugs with legal drugs is not the answer. If we truly encounter a situation that requires medication, we ask the parents to find an alternate placement for their daughter."

"And how many times has that happened?" Ruggerio asks.

Klein looks at him then whispers in his attorney's ear.

Ruggerio says, "Well? How many times have you suggested alternate placement?"

The attorney nods, and Klein admits, "We have never needed to make that suggestion. We have always been able to provide appropriate treatment without medication here at the school. Our philosophy is–"

"What if you had a student with schizophrenia?" Ruggerio interrupts.

"That's never happened," Klein swears.

"That's funny that you say that. This student, Ms. Robin Finney, was diagnosed with schizophrenia after her parents took her out of your school. And she was supposedly 'seen' by your psychologist. It looks like your treatment plan for her was attack therapy and stress positions, even though she was clearly hallucinating." Ruggerio places another piece of paper in front of Klein. Keith knows this is one of Epstein's clients, the originator of their lawsuit.

"This is a witch hunt," Klein protests. "Our psychologist was certain that her condition was exaggerated."

"And he made this diagnosis in person? Or was it second-hand, based on the reports of your employees? Your employees who have no medical training?"

The attorney waves his hand, indicating that Klein should not respond, and Klein remains silent.

"Okay, let's get back to Hannah," Ruggerio says, swiftly changing the topic. "Did you have any contact with her after she ran away from the school? Any contact at all: over the phone, by a letter or email, or in person."

Klein, puzzled, shakes his head 'no'.

"I need a verbal response, please," Ruggerio says.

"No, I was never contacted by Hannah Griffith after she left the school."

"Was Hannah Griffith present when you were treating Maria Frazzino in group therapy?" Ruggerio asks.

"Yes. All the girls who were at the school participated in Maria's therapy."

Ruggerio leans in and says, "So Hannah heard the details of Ms. Frazzino's stories about her father's abuse?"

"If you mean the wild tales that Maria concocted during her early days at school, yes, Hannah heard those stories."

Ruggerio again shuffles through paperwork and finds a medical report. "Well, our doctor examined Ms. Frazzino. In addition to several cigarette burn scars and other marks believed to have been made by a belt, x-rays revealed that she's had quite a few fractures, including one that's almost exclusively seen in child abuse cases. Did your staff ever notice these scars and make a report of suspected child abuse?"

"Maria herself recanted her stories and explained that she had burned herself to get back at her father."

"Why would she do that?" Ruggerio asks, unable to hide his disbelief.

"We've seen this kind of compulsive lying many times over the years. It comes from a lack of structure and guidance in the home; sometimes children receive attention for an accident and get the impression that this is the way to behave."

"If she had burned herself, don't you believe that this is a symptom of a serious psychiatric disorder?"

"Yes, and we provided treatment that worked. Maria is now quite well-adjusted and participates extensively in assisting with treating the newer students," Klein says proudly.

Keith is sickened by Klein's statements; in his opinion, Maria's actions resembled those of a sociopath, and Klein's pride in her behavior is offensive in the extreme.

Ruggerio continues, "So you don't believe that Ms. Frazzino was ever a victim of child abuse?"

"Of course not. We would have reported it to the state immediately if we felt that she was being truthful."

Ruggerio stares at Klein. "So if Hannah Griffith found out at some point that Maria was a victim of child abuse and contacted you to see what you thought about that..." he says leadingly.

"What? What are you accusing me of?" Klein answers, outraged.

His attorney puts a hand on Klein's arm and says, "The interview's over. I'm advising my client not to answer any more questions. We've tried to cooperate, but this investigation is completely ridiculous. If you are foolish enough to pursue these charges, my client will be vindicated in court."

Keith is uncertain what to think. Klein is certainly rattled by this line of questioning. _Is it because he truly is surprised to be accused of being involved in Hannah's murder...or is he scared that we are getting close to the truth?_ He watches as a corrections officer places handcuffs on Klein and escorts him out of the room.

Ruggerio comes out to the viewing area. "What did you think?"

Keith says, "I don't know. He certainly was upset at your implication that he had some involvement in Hannah's death. You know, it doesn't have to be Klein that Hannah tried to blackmail. She might have been too afraid. Maybe she contacted Frazzino and blackmailed him. I'm certain a state assemblyman would have contacts in the FBI."

Ruggerio asks, "What about your other theory, that Hannah witnessed a payoff?"

Keith rubs his forehead. "The more I think about it, the more I believe that the girls are too supervised to accidentally see something like that." He carefully refrains from saying that it was Michelle Weisz, the guardian angel, who convinced him of this. _'If you're not successful, I want to be able to keep doing what I'm doing.'_ "We watched my daughter at the school for a week; her every move was controlled and monitored. I'll admit, I'd love to have rock-solid evidence that Klein was responsible for Hannah's murder, but I'm not seeing it here."

Lynley interrupts, "Do you think I'll be able talk to Veronica this afternoon? We need to find out if any physical abuse occurred during the time her bug was nonfunctional. I don't want to leave a possible assault charge out of the indictment. Something happened while we weren't able to listen, and I'm betting it was serious, given her condition the next morning. I don't want to let them get away with anything, Keith," he says strongly.

"We can try. But I don't want you upsetting her. I know she would want to give a statement, but she's been through a lot the last few days, and she needs to have rest and calm more than anything," Keith answers.

"Of course," Lynley replies. "I'll let you be the judge. If the questions are upsetting her, I'll stop immediately."

Sun. 3/15/09 afternoon: San Diego RCFL, San Diego, CA

Mac watches as Brenda, the agent charged with impersonating her, walks back and forth. Brenda converses with Alan as 'Mac', and Mac watches her smile shyly and toss her head in a completely plausible imitation of Mac. At first, Mac denied that the mannerisms that Brenda was employing were even close to her true behavior. But at one point, Brenda, her blonde hair now dyed brunette with blue streaks just like Mac's and wearing silicone cheek inserts that made her face round, not pointed, turned her head and spoke, and it actually gave Mac the chills.

"You missed your calling. Hollywood needs you," Mac comments.

"It's the makeup and the hair," Brenda says modestly.

"Nope, you've really impressed me, and that's not easy to do," Mac replies. "It's a lot of work for one performance."

Brenda smiles. "Well, hopefully we'll only need the one performance."

"Let's take a little break," Mac's handler Alan says.

Mac wanders over to a computer. "Okay if I check the news?" she asks.

Alan says warily, "No email, right?"

"I know. Don't worry, I'm not going to do anything to put my family in danger."

"All right," he agrees.

Mac clicks on the internet browser. She sneaks a surreptitious glance at Alan; he's not paying much attention and is discussing the details of Brenda's upcoming performance at the funeral for Mac's 'family'. Mac is certain that Mike Fields would have delivered her list of the FBI agents who had access to the Slasher case files to Veronica by now. But she hasn't heard back from Mike, although, since the bombing, her days have been filled with WitSec meetings and preparation for the fake funeral. Mac wonders if Mike has been trying unsuccessfully to get in touch with her. She types 'Hannah Griffith' into Google to see if there have been any new news stories on the case; she is surprised when a story on 'Briar Hill Academy' is the first result.

Mac reads the story and realizes this is the school where Hannah was sent. The story is vague, but mentions that several undercover operatives were instrumental in gathering evidence which led to the arrest of the school's headmaster, Peter Klein, and the closing of the school for alleged abuses against the students.

Mac smiles. _Sounds like Veronica to me_. She continues to read. The article mentions that the Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Education, Carl Behr, was under investigation for a possible payoff scheme. A sidebar mentions the girl who was murdered a year ago by two of the students and speculates on a culture of evil at the school.

She returns to the search results. The second article is entitled, 'California Assemblyman Implicated in East Coast School Scandal'. She clicks on it and is shocked to find that the byline reads 'By Carrie Murray'. She reads quickly; to Mac's relief, there is no mention of Logan or Veronica, but the article is certainly written in Carrie's typically scurrilous style and hints at incest, child abuse, and financial coverups.

Alan calls, "Let's get back to work, Mac!"

Mac memorizes the three names, Peter Klein, Carl Behr, and Vincenzo Frazzino, and determines to try to find a way to use the FBI databases to investigate a link between them and the agents who had access to the Slasher files before she is banished to her new identity in Whereverville, USA. _It's not going to be easy with Alan hovering over me. Now that I've tracked down that Russian server, they usually won't even let me get on the computer...all 'to protect me'. Taking the internet away after tempting me with FBI databases is cruel and unusual punishment. _She quickly erases her browser history and quits the program, thinking all the while how she can possibly get access to the FBI files.

She walks back over to the other agents. Mac notices Alan has removed his conservative suit jacket, and it is hanging over the back of a chair. He is leaning against a table with his shirt sleeves rolled up watching Brenda work. _Way to be wild, Alan baby,_ she thinks. Then she reconsiders. _Alan usually keeps his Blackberry in his jacket pocket_.

Mac slows her pace. She waits until all eyes are on Brenda, then Mac trips and falls to the floor near the chair where Alan's jacket is hanging.

"Hey, are you all right?" Brenda asks.

"Yeah, I just wounded my pride," she replies. As she stands up, she keeps her back to the others and casually grabs the Blackberry from Alan's jacket. She hides it in her jeans pocket, pretending to brush herself off as she smiles ruefully at her clumsiness. "Wow, I really am a dork," she says wryly.

Sun. 3/15/09 afternoon: Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, VT

Veronica opens her eyes. _I was sleeping again. I feel like I'm never going to get enough sleep_, she thinks. Veronica looks over at him; Logan is reading a magazine. She watches; he's not turning the pages but rather staring at the same page thinking. He feels her eyes on him, and he looks up.

"Hey, sleepyhead," he says quietly.

"What time is it?" she asks.

Logan checks his watch. "About five o'clock."

"Where's Dad?"

"He should be back soon." Logan pauses, considering what details to tell her. "Something with the case," he adds vaguely. "How are you feeling?"

"Tired...like I'm never going to get enough sleep."

"You haven't really slept since you left California," he reminds her.

"I...I should have asked you before, are you okay? I remember...there was a fight. You were yelling and..."

He flexes his fingers slightly. "My hand's a little sore. But I think Klein's face hurts worse," he can't help adding.

"Everything's so confused," she admits. "What Klein was saying–"

"You can't pay any attention to what he said, Veronica!" he replies quickly.

"No, I..." She lapses into silence, and Logan wishes desperately that Keith or Dr. Arthurs or even his own Dr. Friedman would come and tell him what to say to her. Veronica stares out the window at a mountain range in the distance. "It's actually beautiful here," she says wistfully. She turns to him again and asks, "What happened to the other girls at the school?"

"I'm not sure. There was an emergency hearing yesterday with the Department of Family and Child Services. I think the state wanted to put them in temporary foster care while they investigated the school."

"Good," she comments as she returns to staring back out the window.

Dr. Arthurs and Keith come into the room. The doctor notes, "Ms. Mars, you're looking a little better."

Keith adds, "Hi, honey. Did you get some more rest?"

She nods in response.

Logan pushes his chair out of the way and watches as the doctor checks Veronica's vital signs. He exchanges a glance with Keith.

Dr. Arthurs says, "Your dad brought somebody with him who wants to talk to you. Do you think you're up to talking with someone from the FBI? If you're not, it's okay. You've been through a lot, and I'll take the heat if you want to wait. I'm not afraid of the FBI." She makes a fist and demonstrates her bicep, and Veronica smiles wanly at this show of prowess.

"I guess it's okay," she mumbles.

The doctor nods and goes to check on other patients. She warns Veronica as she leaves, "Don't get too excited, okay? I'll be back to check on you again, Ms. Mars." She gives Keith a warning look, and Keith nods that he understands.

"Do you want me to stay?" Logan asks uncertainly.

Veronica hesitates, then nods her agreement.

Keith beckons, and Agent Lynley comes into the room. "Hi, Veronica. I feel like I know you. I've been watching you on the video for the last four days. My name's Thomas Lynley."

"Mike's friend," she notes.

"Yes, Mike told me all about you. He said you had incredible investigative skills, but I think he underestimated you," Lynley adds.

_Careful,_ Logan thinks._ This is a bad idea._

Lynley continues, "You know that your bug went out late Friday night, after you met with Alyssa. Can you tell us what happened after that?"

"Is this really necessary?" Logan interrupts.

"Well, yes it is, actually. We're in the process of determining the criminal complaint against Peter Klein and the other employees," Lynley says, puzzled by Logan's attitude.

"No, I can do it," Veronica interrupts. She closes her eyes and sighs before she begins. "It wasn't anything that intense. They just...they woke me up and made me do two hundred jumping jacks."

Of everything Logan has imagined that they could have done to her, this is not remotely like any of his scenarios.

"Jumping jacks?" Lynley asks incredulously.

"I know, it sounds..." her voice trails off as she flushes in humiliation. "My shoulder was very painful, and I...I couldn't do it. I fell on the floor at one point, and I said the code words. I said, 'I really wish I was in California.'" She looks at Lynley's surprised face. "I thought...I thought the guard was going to hit me, and he threatened to make me do push-ups instead, and..." She realizes she's babbling again.

"But he didn't actually hit you?"

"He was going to grab me by the arm and drag me up off the floor, and I knew, my shoulder was hurting so much, I couldn't let him do that..."

Logan realizes with a shock that what's killing her is the innocent nature of what exactly broke her down–that no one will understand why she gave in _then. There's nothing illegal about assigning jumping jacks as a punishment_, he thinks, and he knows that she too is aware of the problem. She believes that no one will comprehend the brutality of her experience, but of course he discerns exactly how sinister it was. He can see her berating herself for crumbling over a 'little' pain when she had been able to withstand so much abuse and degradation from them. With perfect clarity, he sees that she is completely disheartened by the realization that she is not anywhere near as strong as she thought she was.

Lynley asks, "What happened when no one came to stop the operation?"

"I didn't know what was happening. I was certain I had said the code words, but no one was coming. I didn't know what was happening." Logan is certain that her voice is trembling, although she is taking great pains to hide it.

Logan interrupts again. "Let's not do this right now." He glances at Keith, but before Keith can add his protests, Veronica begins speaking again. Keith also is trying to comprehend what she's describing; he too had been picturing intense psychological abuse or actual physical blows, and he is struck dumb by her tale.

"No...no, I want to tell it," Veronica objects. "You don't understand; I'd been having nightmares that I said the code word, and no one came. In my dream, sometimes my dad had abandoned me, or Klein found out about the operation and killed him, or...I don't know. It was..." She sees the pity and shock on her dad's face and, even worse, an expression of disbelief on Lynley's face. Embarrassed, she rushes in to explain. "I managed to get up off the floor, and I finished the jumping jacks. Then they took me back to bed. And a little while later, they woke me up again, and Alyssa made me...she made me..." she blushes furiously. "It was stupid; she pulled all the books in the library off the shelves and made me refile them. It just seemed so insane; just completely purposeless and inexplicable. And when you didn't come to stop the operation, I thought...I thought I was going crazy."

"Alyssa was trying to keep you off balance," Logan rushes in to reassure her. "She was showing you how deranged everything was and how much power they had over you, and she was making sure you didn't get any sleep so that Klein could work his sick therapy on you the next day. I saw her that night, and I knew something was up."

Lynley frowns at Logan for interrupting again. Logan glares back and moves to the bed, taking her hand and squeezing it gently. Logan continues, "Veronica's not ready to talk about this. You have enough for your criminal complaint. And, Lynley, I'll never forgive you for not investigating when I told you something was going on that night."

"You told them...?" Veronica asks in surprise.

"I called Lynley and told him something was up, something was really wrong. I had a feeling, and they wouldn't listen to me," Logan says angrily.

Keith recovers his voice. "Logan's right. Veronica's not ready to talk about this yet. Lynley, you've got plenty for the arraignment tomorrow. I'd like you to leave now." He escorts Lynley to the hallway; the two men converse in low tones, occasionally glancing at Veronica.

Turning to Logan, Veronica repeats, "You told them something was going on?"

He nods. "I didn't know what it was. But after the surprise hike...and then I saw Alyssa wandering around the campus in the middle of the night..." He shrugs.

She stares at him. "But you were so...you were so furious with me because I told them about Lilly. I'm sorry about that, they just...they kept after me, I couldn't seem to say anything that they believed. But when I," she swallows. "When I told them about Lilly, that I had tattled on you, that I saw you cheating on her, somehow they knew...they _knew_ it was the truth." She stops talking, completely deflated, her courage leaving her.

"It's okay," he says. "I'm not mad about anything you said, I was just surprised. I'm sorry I made you think I was upset."

"No, it's not okay...I never should have told them that," she chokes back a sob.

"Veronica...if it made them ease up on you a little, I'm glad you told them about Lilly," he tries to reassure her.

Keith comes back in the room, and Veronica says, "Dad, I'm so sorry, I don't know why I quit when I did, I ruined it–" She begins to cry. "I know I let you down."

Keith looks stricken. "Veronica, you got so much more evidence than we even needed. How can you say...honey, you did an incredible job."

"No, I messed up," she says tearfully. "I couldn't do it."

"Veronica, you are not allowed to feel that way! Don't you know–" Keith yells before thinking. He tries to calm himself and continues, "Honey, I'm sorry. Peter Klein is an evil man. What he did to you–goddammit, what I _let_ him do to you...please, Veronica. You can't think that way." He turns to Logan. "I need to talk to her alone for a minute."

Logan nods and leaves the room. He decides to find Dr. Arthurs and ask her to check on Veronica again.

Keith sits down on the bed next to Veronica. He fusses with the pillow and smoothes the sheets around her, stalling for a just another minute before he starts. "Veronica, honey. I want you to know that you can tell me anything. I...I know why you wouldn't want to tell your dad what happened at the party. You have to know that I wish I could erase it all for you."

She stops breathing. _Oh god. Not a nightmare, not a hallucination...it was real. Klein did find out about my rape. Dad knows. Oh god, Dad knows. Oh Daddy._

His voice cracks a little, breaking her heart. "I knew something was wrong, and I thought it was because of your mother. I wasn't a very good dad for you; I threw myself into the Lilly Kane case and pursued Jake Kane instead of taking care of you. I don't want you to ever think that I'm ashamed of you. I'm so proud of you; you've been so brave, Veronica. I'm the one who should be ashamed. I let you down by letting you get involved in this case, and now I've found out that I let you down five years ago too."

"Dad, no...you were right to go after Jake Kane–"

"No, Veronica. You are my priority, and I'll always regret that I lost sight of that."

"Dad, I wanted to tell you, but..." she tries. She thinks, _what good will it do to tell him,_ and then she says it anyway, the long-withheld words spilling out heedlessly. "I told Lamb. I reported the rape to him. He didn't believe me. I couldn't...with everything everyone was saying about you and the case, I wasn't brave enough to tell anyone else."

"You told that bastard? And he didn't believe you?" Keith says, completely enraged and sickened by the revelation. "Oh, Veronica..." _How could I have not seen what she was going through?_

"Daddy...I want to go home," she whispers. "When can we go home?"

"As soon as possible," he promises. "As soon as the doctor says it okay for you to travel. They don't want to operate on your shoulder until your infection has completely cleared. There's no reason why we can't do the surgery in Neptune."

She closes her eyes gratefully, then remembers something she wanted to ask. "Dad? Did Logan really try to get you to stop the operation?"

Keith scoffs. "Are you kidding? He tried to get us to stop the very first day. But that last night, when your bug went out, he knew. Logan knew something was wrong. He called and told Lynley that something was going on, but..." he sighs, "Your bug wasn't working, and he thought you were just asleep. Then Dr. Kinny realized that we weren't getting any audio when we should have been hearing you at breakfast. He convinced Lynley that something was wrong with your bug."

"Weren't you listening?" she asks in a small voice.

"Oh honey, Epstein and I were interviewing the woman who helped Hannah to escape. We tracked her down, and she wasn't far from here. She gave us a good lead to where Hannah was living after she ran away from the school. We never would have found her if you and Logan hadn't been undercover," he explains, hoping she will find it a small consolation. "We thought...we thought you would be all right. Kavner was on his shift, and Lynley and Dr. Kinny were monitoring the bugs. But I should have been there. It doesn't matter how big a lead it was. I'm sorry, it was my fault it went on so long. It's all my fault."

"You didn't hear the group therapy?" she whispers.

"Some of it, while we were rushing back." _And the rest of it, I watched on video this morning._ He conceals his rage from her and concentrates on reassuring her. "Honey, you were right to want Logan on this. He did a great job. I wish we had listened to him more than we did."

"I always used to think he worried too much," Veronica replies.

"This was very hard on him. He was very concerned about you, and it brought up a lot of bad memories about his father when he had to act like the other employees. He was very stressed, and Kinny wanted to pull him out. But Logan insisted that he wouldn't quit as long as you were still there."

"He was so scary...I couldn't understand the way he was acting."

"The other guards were giving him grief that he was being too easy on you. He was worried they would fire him, and he wouldn't be there to protect you when you needed him. So he had to try to appear to be rough with you, and I think it almost killed him."

_Is that why he was so angry and upset with me?_ Suddenly, her head begins to hurt, and she wonders if it's the stress of trying to understand what was happening at the school. Veronica says, "I think I need to lie down for a little bit. But Daddy, I really want to go home as soon as possible."

Keith kisses her on her forehead and helps her to adjust the bed so that she's lying down again. Logan has found Dr. Arthurs, and she comes in and takes Veronica's vitals again. In the hallway, she explains to them that she has ordered more sedatives and anti-anxiety medication for the evening, and she will assess Veronica again in the morning. Keith relates Veronica's desire to go home, and the doctor agrees that familiar surroundings would be helpful. She looks at Keith and Logan and notes their fatigue. "You're not doing her any good by not eating or sleeping. I want you two to get a hotel room, have a good dinner and maybe a long shower."

Logan protests, "I don't want her to be alone overnight. You don't understand, she was all alone while they were hurting her...we let her down. I don't want her to be alone now."

Dr. Arthurs says she will arrange for a cot to be placed in Veronica's room if they will agree to take turns sleeping at a hotel and staying with Veronica. "She needs you two to be healthy for her. I don't want to scare you, but I'm concerned about her mental status. It may be a while before she's out of the woods.

* * *


	28. Chapters 88 to 90

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall, Kazy, and Sobertears. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

* * *

**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from chapters 84-87:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/63490•html )

At the hospital, Veronica is diagnosed with a kidney infection, a dislocated shoulder that will require surgery, and exhaustion. Logan and Keith sit in vigil; Logan shaves his beard. Veronica wakes up, extremely disoriented and still scared of Logan. She is unable to remember most of the events from the last therapy session at Briar Hill. Logan and Keith tell her that her bug had stopped functioning; Veronica realizes that is the reason why she wasn't rescued. Veronica is emotionally fragile and susceptible to crying jags. The doctors emphasize Veronica's need to avoid stress, and Logan and Keith decide not to tell Veronica about the MacKenzie bombing.

Logan tells Keith some of the details of Veronica's rape. Veronica and Logan begin to talk about their perceptions of the time spent undercover, and Veronica slowly begins to trust Logan again. Agent Lynley questions Veronica about the period when the bug went out; Veronica is humiliated to admit that she broke down when she was ordered to perform the relatively innocuous task of jumping jacks. Logan is the only one who really understands how much she was affected by the mind control techniques at the school because of his own experience there. Veronica learns that while she was calling for help, Logan was unsuccessfully trying to convince them to shut down the operation.

At Briar Hill, the employees are taken into custody; after an emergency hearing, the students are placed in temporary foster homes. Klein is questioned by US Attorney Ruggerio about the school procedures and details of Veronica's time at the school. Klein is obviously skilled at avoiding self-incrimination and deflecting accusations of misconduct, but the prosecutor assures Keith that the evidence is sufficient for conviction. Keith tells Ruggerio about Veronica's theory of Hannah's murder, and the prosecutor presses Klein on Hannah's experience at the school and any subsequent contact. Klein refuses to answer any more questions when he realizes the direction of the questioning.

Leo questions Dick about Logan's relationship with Kendall. He obtains Logan's financial information from the period when Logan hid from Veronica in Texas. Leo asks for a partial fingerprint from Kendall's hotel room to be compared with Logan's and Veronica's fingerprint records. He sets up interviews in Los Angeles with Logan's agent, Harvey Greenblatt, and Madison Sinclair.

Wallace abides by Candice's wishes and stops spying on the Fitzpatricks; Weevil mocks him and swears to continue his surveillance. Wallace starts working on an organizational chart of the Fitzpatrick crime family.

Mac learns of the operation at Briar Hill. She steals her handler's Blackberry to try to use the FBI files to help Veronica investigate.

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Personally Motivated**  
Mac hacks; Logan and Veronica  
compare notes.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Alan: Ned Vaughan.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER EIGHTY-EIGHT: "PERSONALLY MOTIVATED"

Sun. 3/15/09 evening: Hotel, San Diego, CA

Mac is hunched over Alan's Blackberry. _It's one thing to hack into a Blackberry from a computer, and it's completely another thing to hack into a computer from a Blackberry._ Still, she's making progress. Mac has cracked Alan's password through diligent effort and now has access to his emails, but she has still found it impossible to actually get into the FBI databases. She racks her brains, trying to remember all the hacker tips she used to find on her favorite "Blackjacking" websites.

Once again, she sends a BBProxy code as an email attachment to Alan's desktop computer; the code attempts to activate an unsecured channel that Mac remembers noting on the FBI intranet. The database portal has accepted that she is the user 'Alan' and allows her access, but the returning data streams have been interrupted by various firewall protections; one by one, she has tried to evade each in order to gain unfettered access to the databases. She has carefully attempted to disguise her tracks by using the encryption protocols of the Blackberry. Without having spent the past five weeks working with the FBI databases, she would have found this task impossible; as it is, she has tried and failed to gain access perhaps a hundred times.

Mac sighs as the latest attempt fails again. She interlaces her fingers above her head and stretches her shoulders. The miniature keys of the Blackberry are great for texting, but not so comfortable for long stretches of data input. She glances at the muted television; she has been keeping one eye on the screen, hoping that CNN will run a story on the Briar Hill Academy closing. After a puff piece on the latest gasoline-saving technology that promises to do almost nothing to actually end the oil crisis, she notes the closed-captioning: 'Assemblyman Frazzino arrested; denies all charges'.

Mac seizes the remote and turns up the sound.

"Vincenzo Frazzino, speaker of the California Assembly and a rising star in the Republican party, voluntarily surrendered into custody early this morning on felony child abuse, sexual abuse of a minor child, neglect, and aggravated assault and battery charges. His daughter, a minor child, was recently found to be confined at a restrictive therapeutic boarding school, Briar Hill Academy, of Manchester Center, Vermont. Speaker Frazzino has been raising funds and working with the California Republican party leadership for a presumed run at the state senate seat in the fall. He is the author of California's Parental Responsibility Act, which makes parents financially and legally responsible for the crimes committed by their minor children. A spokesman for Frazzino confidently assured the media that all charges would be dismissed when the evidence was examined. Governor Schwarzenegger, in a prepared statement, called for an independent prosecutor to oversee the investigation of the allegations. In a related indictment, Dr. Todd Swinney, of Sacramento, California, was also charged today with failure to comply with mandatory child abuse reporting statutes. Sources close to the investigation state that medical records and documents from the boarding school show a clear pattern of long-standing physical and sexual abuse; speculation in the state capital hints that the Sacramento District Attorney is likely to file conspiracy charges that will implicate several key members of the Speaker's staff."

_Damn,_ Mac thinks. _Way to take down the high and mighty, Veronica._ She starts suddenly when there is a knock at the door.

"Mac, I'm coming in," Alan says, accompanied by the sound of a keycard unlocking the door.

"Hey, hang on, give me a second," Mac replies frantically, trying to shove the Blackberry under her mattress.

Alan walks in and extends his hand. "My Blackberry please."

Mac attempts to look confused. "Huh?" she says weakly.

"Yeah. I know you took my Blackberry...probably this afternoon when you fell. You really must think I'm stupid," he comments furiously. "And to tell you the truth, I am stupid, to try so hard to keep you safe, when you've been completely cavalier about your own welfare and that of your family. What the hell is so important that you would do something so incredibly foolish?"

Mac flushes a dark red and sits down on the bed. She fishes out the Blackberry and hands it to Alan without a word.

He sits on the other bed and looks at her. "What was so important?" Alan plays with the device, looking at the settings and trying to determine what she's been doing. "You had to know that I would figure out that you took it. And still...you took the chance to do _something_."

She replies quietly, "I wanted to do one last thing for my friend Veronica before I disappeared out of her life forever. I can't say goodbye, but she'll know, if I can get her this information, that I was thinking about her and trying to help her one last time."

"Help her with what?" he asks.

Mac motions at the television screen. One of the CNN talking heads is interviewing a child psychologist who is talking about the lasting traumatic effects of long-term child abuse. The graphic on the screen changes to a picture of Briar Hill Academy as the psychologist gives an overview of tough love schools.

"Veronica was investigating the last victim of the Saturday Night Slasher, Hannah Griffith. She went to school with us in Neptune." Mac decides to gloss over the connection with Logan. "She was sent away to that school that's been on the news, Briar Hill Academy, and then Hannah ran away. No one knows where she was before she turned up murdered in January. I think Veronica and maybe her dad too were undercover there at Briar Hill. There was a news story that attributed the school's closing to the work of private investigators."

Mac continues, telling Alan about Veronica's copycat theories and what Veronica had told her about Briar Hill before Mac was whisked away to witness protection subsequent to the first bombing attempt.

Alan asks, "This is your friend, Veronica Mars? The college student?"

"She's a criminology major, and she was also an FBI intern the last two summers," Mac says defensively. "And she's been a licensed private investigator for the last two years, and she helped her dad unofficially before that."

"Right, I remember reading something about her in your file. She also was not invited back into the FBI program this year, as I recall."

"Your loss," Mac retorts. "Besides–" Mac thinks better of what she was going to say and stops short.

"What?" Alan demands. "You realize that I'm going to have to make a report about this incident. I'll probably be demoted because of what you did."

Mac swallows. _Alan really is an okay guy._ "I'm sorry. I don't want you to get into trouble. I'll tell them I knocked you over the head to get your Blackberry," she offers.

Alan snorts. "That's not going to help me. Letting a civilian get the jump on me? C'mon, Mac. What were you going to say?"

"Veronica thought someone in the FBI might have been involved. Whoever killed Hannah Griffith knew a lot of the details of the other murders."

"Someone in the FBI? Doubtful." Alan considers this information, then asks curiously, "How did Veronica get onto the idea that this was a copycat murder? There's been no suggestion of that in the media."

Mac explains Veronica's theory about the full moon occurring on the dates of the real murders. "She just stumbled onto the connection. It can't be a coincidence. The correlation is too perfect."

Alan frowns. "Veronica is certain about this?" When Mac's dossier was being compiled, Alan read an FBI evaluation of Veronica Mars. Now he tries to remember exactly what the evaluation had said about her. He recalls that it lauded her investigative skills and her intuitive grasp on data and information, but reflected that her psychological profile revealed an alarming propensity for reckless and impulsive behavior that needed to be addressed if she was to continue in the program. All her instructors in the internship program seemed to be impressed with her skills and gave her high marks. Despite her personality flaws, she was preliminarily approved for a third internship until she was charged in the fatal shooting of Harmony Chase. An internal FBI investigation revealed that she had improperly gained access to FBI files through her boyfriend, and it was determined that she was possibly psychologically unfit for law enforcement and the rigorous chain of command demanded by the FBI.

"I remember something about Veronica improperly using FBI files last fall," he says. "Seems like she's been a bad influence on you, because that's pretty much what you're doing right now."

"After I helped you arrest fifteen Russian mobsters and put their identity theft scheme out of commission," she replies defensively. "And my reward is that I lose my life. Well, my life as I knew it."

Alan stares at her.

"What?" she asks.

He sighs. "You are not supposed to know this because of the security risk. And I was worried about getting your hopes up."

"What? Tell me," Mac says intensely.

"Based on the debriefings conducted with some of the persons we arrested last week, it seems as though the bomb attack on your house was personally motivated, rather than mob ordered," Alan explains.

Mac is totally confused. _Personally motivated?_

"The bombing was not retaliation for the work you did identifying the originating server. Someone is using that as an excuse to go after you personally."

"I don't understand, why would somebody come after me? The only things I've ever done are some minor hacking. Well, there is that website that Veronica and I created, YourCheatingHeart•com. Do you think I pissed somebody off by outing them as a cheater?"

"We investigated that pretty thoroughly. You remember that we got your client list before we shut the site down?"

Mac nods.

"All very small fish: no one with a reason to hate you that would be big enough to take out your whole family. We investigated your whole family as well, and after what you told me the other day, we looked at the Sinclairs too. We came up empty-handed. And the only other thing we found in your background was your trips to Las Vegas."

"You know about Vegas?" Mac says, horrified.

"Yes. Again, very small time." At her insulted expression, he adds quickly, "I'm sure you're quite good at card counting, but I don't think the casinos put a hit on you."

Slightly mollified, she asks, "So what then? Why would someone come after me?"

"At this point, we've run out of leads. It's possible that someone unknown to us in the Russian mafia is pursuing a revenge scenario, although we're not sure how they would have determined that you were personally responsible for the arrests last week." Alan looks at her somberly. "I'm hoping for your sake that this person takes a big chance to try to get at you at this funeral, and we'll be able to arrest them. And then, maybe you and your family won't have to be in witness protection." At her expression, he rushes to qualify again, "Maybe. Don't count on it."

Mac completely forgets to breathe at the thought that she might not have to give up her life after all.

Sun. 3/15/09 very late: Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, VT

Logan is woken from his dozing sleep. He looks over to Veronica's bed and sees her struggling to sit up. He sits up and asks, "Hey. Are you okay?"

After a moment, she explains, "I'm just...trying to go to the bathroom. It's all the fluids they've been making me drink."

"Do you want me to get a nurse?" _Do you want me to help?_ he wants to ask, but there's no way he'll say it. All he can think about is _the bucket._

"No," she replies quietly, but firmly. "I can do it."

He looks at her, not knowing what to say. Finally he says, "Let me know if you need help." He swings his legs over the edge of the cot and sits up with his back to her, trying to give her as much privacy as possible. He listens to the quiet rustling sounds of her movements through the room, the subtle _snick_ of the bathroom door being closed, and the rush of water as she finishes. Logan stays completely still with his back toward the bathroom; he tries to think about anything, anything except the way she looked when she was humiliated by Dave. _And me. I helped._ He closes his eyes, letting his own shame wash over him.

Suddenly he feels her weight on the mattress beside him. Logan opens his eyes and looks at her. "How's your shoulder?" he asks, trying to control a slight quiver in his voice.

"It hurts a little," she admits. "Dad went to the hotel?"

"Yes. He can be here in five minutes if you need him," he replies.

"No, that's all right."

"Is it...is it okay that I'm here?" he finally says. He looks at her face searchingly. "If you want me to go..."

She takes his hand and whispers, "No. I want you to stay. I like the sound of your breathing." _I don't want to be afraid of you. I know...I KNOW that I love you. It's crazy to be afraid of you. I know that I love you. _"I like knowing you're here in the room with me."

Logan says, "Come on, you should go back to bed. You need to sleep." He tries to pull her up from the bed, but she resists, and he sits back beside her.

"I've been awake for awhile, just thinking. I've been trying to understand what happened while we were undercover. Dad said you had to be tougher on me because the other guys were hassling you, and you were afraid you were going to get fired. And then you might not have been around when I really needed you. And he said...he said it was so hard on you to be tough with me, and you were very upset."

He doesn't know how to respond and looks at the floor.

"I thought you were upset with _me_. Maybe you were, because I wouldn't quit. But mostly I thought you were mad because I was acting out, making them be harsh with me. And I couldn't understand it, because you knew that I had to get proof of all the awful things that go on there."

He says quietly, "It killed me to watch you being hurt and attacked. And it was hard because I didn't always know everything that was going on. Then when I had to restrain you, I...Veronica, I can't even tell you what that felt like. I _knew_ why we were there, but I'm not like you. I'm not good at this–I can't just shut it off the way you do. I don't know how you could go on after they hurt your shoulder. It must have hurt like hell, Veronica. I–I wanted to quit so many times, but I couldn't leave you there. There's no way I would have quit with you still there."

Stricken with remorse, she says, "I didn't know...I didn't think how..."

"Veronica, you were so brave. What they were doing to you..." He falters and stops.

She protests, "I don't feel brave at all. I still don't really remember the last day. I just remember wishing it would end; I was so scared when you didn't come. I know now why you didn't come, but at the time..." Her voice trails off. "I keep thinking, there's something I need to remember, but then I just feel exhausted and–" She exhales loudly. "I don't want to feel like this anymore. I don't want to be confused and frightened."

_Maybe it's a good thing you don't remember that last day. _"Veronica, I don't know how to help you. And I'm scared that I'll do the wrong thing, say the wrong thing," he admits helplessly. "We've already made so many mistakes."

"I know. I'm scared too," she replies. She grips his hand a little tighter and adds, "You were crying before...I heard you."

He scoffs a little and looks away.

Veronica tugs gently at his hand, and he turns back to her. _Try to make him understand._ "I'm so sorry I didn't quit when you asked me to, after the hike, when you drove us back in the jeep. I was just so _angry_ at Klein. I wanted the whole world to see what a bastard he was, and that's all I could think about."

"I know. Everyone will see now. It's okay, Veronica," he reassures her.

Her voice trembling, she persists. "It's not okay. That's what you were there for...to watch over me and make sure I wasn't being affected, and I should have listened to you. I wanted you on this because I trusted you, and then when it was time for me to trust you, I didn't. I want you to stop blaming yourself, Logan. You're always so ready to take it all on, and you shouldn't. I see now how hard it was for you to hurt me; I never even thought about what that would be like for you. Especially..." she can't finish her thought, _Especially after what your dad did to you._ "I'm so sorry I made you be there."

He knows what she is saying, but he refuses to let her go there. "I just want you to be okay. I just want _us_ to be okay." Logan's voice breaks as he adds, almost inaudibly, "And I'm really scared that we're not going to be able to figure it out."

"I'm going to be okay," she says quietly. _I want to be okay again._ "And we _are_ going to be able to figure this out. Logan...we are going to figure this out."

They sit in silence for several minutes. Finally, he stands up. "Come on, you've got to get back to bed now. Dr. Arthurs will have my head if she hears you were up in the middle of the night."

Veronica lets him lead her back to bed. He helps her up and gets the covers settled around her.

She senses his hesitancy. She says, "Kiss me goodnight," and he bends and kisses her forehead. Veronica frowns and grabs the back of his head. She pulls him to her, and he kisses her mouth gently. She whispers, "I need you, you know."

"I need you too," he replies. "I love you, Veronica."

She smiles and closes her eyes. _That's what I wanted to hear._ "I love you too."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Arresting Developments**  
Complications from Klein's arrest;  
Leo questions Greenblatt; Veronica  
does some investigating.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Agent Lynley:  
James Badge Dale. Harvey Greenblatt:  
Paul Ganus. Sacks: Brandon Hillock. Nurse:  
Ellen Crawford.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER EIGHTY-NINE: "ARRESTING DEVELOPMENTS"

Mon. 3/16/09 morning: Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, VT

When Veronica wakes up, Keith and Logan are discussing something in a whisper. She observes Keith glancing in her direction, and she tries to hear what they are saying to no avail. Logan notices that she's awake and walks over. "How are you feeling this morning?"

She stretches as much as she is able with the sling trapping her right arm to her chest. "I think I might have rejoined the living." She gives him a quizzical look and adds, "What's going on?"

"Just figuring out when we should try to go back to Neptune," Logan replies.

"As soon as possible," she comments quickly. "I'd really like to go home."

Keith says, "Well, you know, you've been through a lot. It's a long plane ride. We're thinking maybe Wednesday morning."

Veronica notices that Keith is carefully avoiding looking at Logan. _Something's up...something they don't want me to know._ "Hey, have you heard from Wallace?" she asks. "Give me your phone, I want to let him know I'm okay."

"I talked to him a little while ago," Keith replies. "He's taking care of a few things for me in the office, and he was happy to hear you were doing better."

_Okay, now I'm getting pissed. I'm not allowed to call Wallace? _Veronica had noted the lack of a phone in her room previously and had assumed it was to prevent reporters from calling. She changes the topic and thinks that her dad looks relieved. "So, Logan, can we try breakfast again? Maybe...a breakfast sandwich this time? You know, for the klutz." She waves her left hand in the air.

"Of course," Logan answers. From his expression, Veronica decides that she is absolutely certain that something is up. He turns to leave the room but is intercepted by Agent Lynley and a uniformed police officer.

"Mr. Echolls," Lynley says in greeting. "Keith, Veronica."

Veronica tenses in anticipation. _'Mr. Echolls?' More questions? What's going on?_

Keith nods at the officer and asks, "What's going on, Lynley?"

Lynley sighs. "Klein's attorneys have insisted on pressing charges against Mr. Echolls for assault and battery. Unfortunately, the video feed clearly shows him striking Klein, and Mr. Echolls does have a misdemeanor conviction on his record for vandalism. They've tried to make the case that it should be charged as a felony since the assault was committed on school grounds against a teacher, but the district attorney has refused and is charging it as a simple misdemeanor. If you'll come with us, Mr. Echolls, and surrender yourself into custody, that would be for the best. I'm sure that you can post bond and be released immediately."

_Vandalism...that misdemeanor conviction is my fault_, she thinks.

Logan tries to make a joke. "I knew there was a reason I keep my attorney on retainer."

"Don't joke," she retorts. "Damn it, Logan." She closes her eyes; she has a vague memory of Logan hovering over her, then standing up and striking Klein, screaming, _'You fucker!'_ She tries and fails to remember more clearly exactly what happened. Veronica hears Klein talking, seemingly unendingly, and she feels his hands holding hers, forcing her to listen, forcing her to tell him everything._ 'Tell me what happened...Come on, Connie, you're never going to get better if you don't admit it...Tell me who else is undercover with you.' _She shakes her head in distress, thinking, _No, that's not right! Why can't I remember?_

"The district attorney has indicated that he's not inclined to pursue this vigorously and will be looking to make a plea arrangement," Lynley explains.

"I'll follow you to Manchester Center and arrange for a bail bondsman," Keith says quickly. "And we'll get Epstein over there right away to represent you for now." He sees Veronica's agitation and tries to reassure her. "Veronica, don't worry; it'll be all right. This will be no big deal. Klein's just trying to make trouble with some desperate legal maneuvers. I'm not surprised he's doing this."

With difficulty, Veronica focuses on her dad's words and pushes away the images of Klein staring into her eyes. She nods at her dad. _Just...don't think about it, for now._ She forces the terrifying thoughts back into a corner of her brain, locking them away until she feels a little more courageous. Veronica tries to breathe normally and pretends to smile encouragingly at Logan.

The police officer takes out a pair of handcuffs, but Lynley waves him off. "I don't believe that's necessary, officer. I'll take the responsibility."

"Thanks for that small favor," Logan comments wryly. He looks questioningly at Lynley, "Can I...?" When Lynley doesn't stop him, he walks over to the bed and kisses her goodbye. He whispers in her ear, "It's not a big deal, Veronica. I'd do it again in a heartbeat. Besides, I've been a good boy for too long now. You know you have a thing for bad boys."

"I'm sorry," she breathes anxiously. "It's all my fault."

"Don't you dare," Logan says firmly. "My choice, to–" Mindful of the police officer, he stops just before saying _'to punch out the fucker.'_ Carefully, he amends, "To do what was right."

"Don't try to impress them with your wit, all right? You know, you have the right to remain silent." She looks at him sternly: _I'm not kidding_.

He nods. "Yes, Veronica."

Keith says, "Honey, we'll get this squared away, and we'll be back as soon as possible. Try not to worry."

_Why would I worry? You're hiding something from me, my boyfriend just got arrested, and I still can't remember..._ She plasters a smile on her face to reassure him and says merely, "Hurry back."

Mon. 3/16/09 morning: Greenblatt Talent Agency, Los Angeles, CA

"Mr. Greenblatt, I'm Sheriff Leo D'Amato from Neptune, California." Leo extends his hand in greeting to a dark-haired man wearing an Armani suit and sporting a Bluetooth headset in his ear.

"Call me Harvey," Greenblatt responds. He puts a finger in the air and says, "No, that's not acceptable...Thirteen five is as low as Harrison will go."

Leo realizes that Greenblatt has taken a call, and he fidgets waiting for the conversation to conclude.

"I'm sorry, I'm in the middle of a tense negotiation right now. How can I help you, Sheriff?" Greenblatt smiles, showcasing his perfect Hollywood teeth.

"I'm wondering what service you performed for Logan Echolls back in January for twenty thousand dollars and if you by any chance know his current whereabouts. There's some evidence linking him to a crime in Neptune last week," Leo says abruptly.

Greenblatt leans back and tents his fingers. "I consider Logan an old family friend. I represented his father from the very beginning of his career."

Leo stares back and raises an eyebrow questioningly.

Greenblatt stabs at the intercom on his desk. "Sylvia, hold my calls." He fusses with his tie for a moment, then directs his attention to Leo. "Logan came to me looking for help with the paparazzi. His old girlfriend had been murdered, and the paps were hounding him day and night. He begged me to help him. I told him it would die down soon, but he was insistent. He was worried that something might even happen to his present girlfriend. You remember that there was an incident last fall, when the paparazzi pursued him and his friend, and Logan was injured in a car wreck caused by a photographer?"

Leo nods that he's familiar with the story.

"So he wanted to hire someone to provide a little misdirection."

"An impostor, correct? Based on the Homeland Security databases, Echolls never left the country, despite the videos that were splashed all over the news."

"Yes. I'm representing the screenwriter who wrote the Aaron Echolls biopic, 'For the Love of Lilly,' that begins filming this summer, and I've recently signed a young actor who will be portraying Logan in the film. When I spoke to Logan around Christmastime, I told him that this kid has an uncanny resemblance to him, and Logan asked me to hire him to...well, to act out for the paps, somewhere far away from here. I suggested Madeira, knowing I could get my client Johnny Depp to play along and invite the kid to his party. I knew the paps would be there, and this actor, Jason Dohring, would show up in the press."

Leo replies, "So the idea was that Logan was going to hide somewhere else?"

"I don't know where he went. After I helped set it up, he said, 'thank you,' and I haven't heard from him since. I think he didn't want me to know. His girlfriend's a private detective. She's the one who–"

"Yes, I'm familiar with his girlfriend," Leo interrupts. "You do realize that what you did could possibly be construed as giving him an alibi?"

"An alibi?" Greenblatt says nervously.

"Yes. I think that would be aiding and abetting if Mr. Echolls is found guilty of a crime."

"There was no attempt to fool anyone other than the paparazzi. Jason flew under his own name, and he did not use Logan's identification. He used a cane and had his hair cut similarly to Logan's usual style, and the paparazzi assumed it was Logan using a false name. Jason was playing a role. To him, it was a job, and we told him it was going to be a publicity stunt for the movie. He was happy to get a paycheck for basically taking a vacation and hanging out with movie stars. Logan authorized him to use one of his credit cards that has a ten thousand dollar limit. Jason always used his own name on hotel registers or when signing the credit card charges; the paps just assumed that Logan was using a false name. I can provide a copy of Jason's contract to you. There was no attempt to do anything illegal," Greenblatt protests.

"It seems like a lot of trouble to go to just to escape the paparazzi."

"Yeah, well, the paparazzi have gotten incredibly intense lately. I tell all my young starlets to wear two pairs of underwear when they go out now." Greenblatt sighs. "I'm glad I'm not a publicist. Sheriff, I have to say I think you're underestimating how traumatic the paparazzi can be. The last time I saw him, Logan was beside himself over the death of his ex-girlfriend. What is this crime that Logan is accused of, anyways?"

"Another one of his former lovers was killed," Leo replies succinctly. "A Ms. Kendall Casablancas, although she was known by a few other names as well."

Greenblatt is shocked into silence. After a moment, he recovers and states, "I don't believe it."

"Yeah, that makes three of his ex-girlfriends now. It's pretty dangerous to fall in love with Logan Echolls, wouldn't you say?"

Greenblatt repeats, "I don't believe it. He's really turned his life around. I helped get him into UCLA film school, and he's done very well there. You know he made that donation to open the center for battered wives and children."

"'The Bridge'. Right, I remember."

"Have you considered that this could be one of Aaron's crazy fans?" Greenblatt suggests. "You know that over the years Aaron was stalked numerous times. Maybe one of them has transferred her attentions to Logan."

Leo nods thoughtfully. "Yes, I remember the stabbing incident at their Christmas party. That could be worth looking into."

Greenblatt helpfully adds, "I believe Veronica's father investigated that for the Echolls. He might have some more information on any stalkers who were a serious threat to Aaron. Sheriff, if you have any more questions, I'd be happy to answer them."

Leo places a business card on Greenblatt's desk. "I'd appreciate it if you gave me a call right away if you hear from Logan. I'd really like to clear this up quickly."

After leaving the building, Leo puts in a call to the department. Sacks informs him that he received a fax replying to Leo's inquiry to Homeland Security. "Logan Echolls traveled to Boston on March 4 on a ticket purchased by Mars Investigations. And that's not all; that flag you put on Echolls' name turned up an arrest warrant issued for him this morning in Vermont...a misdemeanor assault and battery charge."

"That sounds like Echolls," Leo comments.

"No, you're not going to believe it, Sheriff. The charges against Echolls were filed by Peter Klein, the headmaster of that school that's been on the news: the one where Frazzino's daughter was. The news has been saying that private investigators were involved in exposing what was going on there; I bet it was Keith and Veronica. You know that school is where Hannah Griffith was sent."

Leo is silent, processing this new information. "Call up the department that issued the warrant and get some more of the details."

"You got it, Sheriff," Sacks replies.

"What about that fingerprint? What did the techs say?" Leo asks.

Sacks is silent for a few seconds. "They um...they said it could be a match for Veronica Mars. But Sheriff, I really don't–"

"Interesting. We'll have to see what Veronica has to say about that. And Sacks? I'd also like you to pull the files on Aaron Echolls' stabbing at that Christmas party...I think it was four years ago. It was right when I first joined the department. I don't remember the details."

"You know who worked on that investigation? Keith Mars," Sacks offers helpfully.

"Right. It looks there's a few things I'll need to speak to Keith about as well."

Mon. 3/16/09 morning: Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, VT

After her dad and Logan leave with Lynley and the police officer, Veronica desperately tries to be brave and think positively. But when the nurse walks in, she takes one look at Veronica's face and says, "Are you hurting more, honey?"

Veronica begins to cry profusely. _Damn it. Damn it! I hate feeling like this. I hate it I hate it._

The nurse asks anxiously, "Do you want me to get the doctor, Veronica?" She bustles around, checking Veronica's temperature and taking her pulse.

"No, no. Please, I'm just...it's been such a long week," she finishes lamely. _Got to keep it together, Veronica, or they'll never let you go home._ She wipes her eyes and resolves to stop crying right. this. moment. _Goddammit!_ Veronica smiles a little and says, "You know we were doing an investigation, and there's a lot of legal stuff going on. And I'm stuck here, and I don't know what's going on."

"I know there's orders for you not to receive any phone calls or visitors, and all access to this area has been secured. You must be an important young woman," the nurse replies. "Are you sure you don't want me to get the doctor?" She looks at Veronica's chart. "You could have more pain meds if you'd like. And they would help you get some more rest."

_I'm SICK of resting. I don't like feeling spacey from the pain meds. I want to get back to my life._ "No thanks. Really, my shoulder doesn't hurt that much."

"Okay. If you change your mind, you know how to ring the nurses' station." The nurse makes another note on Veronica's chart and leaves the room.

Veronica tries some of the breathing exercises that she used at the school, and she forces herself to resume control. _This is not going to beat me._ She pictures herself gritting her teeth in determination, rolling up her sleeves, and getting to work on making herself strong again, and she laughs a little at the mental image. _ I really want to know what's going on. Why won't they let me call Wallace?_ Suddenly, she is overwhelmed by panic. _Did something happen to Wallace? Is that why they don't want me to call him?_

She throws off the blanket and cautiously gets off the bed, favoring her injured shoulder. Veronica walks toward the door, cursing the hospital gown that flaps open in the back. She tries to keep it secured with her left hand but has to give up when she gets to the doorway. She cracks open the door and scouts the hallway. Nurses are moving around; two are sitting behind a high counter. Veronica continues to watch for several minutes, debating if she can leave the room to search for a phone without being observed by the nurses.

An insistent alarm begins to sound from a room at the far end of the hallway, and several nurses head in that direction. Veronica goes for it; she slips out of her room and stealthily moves down the hallway to the next room. She peeks in and sees a patient along with two visitors. She continues to the next room. It is empty, and the sheets have been stripped off the bed, presumably in preparation for the next patient. There is a phone on the table next to the bed. Veronica enters, carefully shutting the door behind her soundlessly.

She picks up the phone and dials '0-619-555-0189'. She waits with her heart pounding until the operator comes on. "Collect call for Wallace Fennel from Veronica Mars," she says with a shaky voice. The operator places the call.

"Yo." She hears the familiar voice and smiles in relief.

"Is this Wallace Fennel? Will you accept a collect phone call from Veronica Mars?" the operator asks.

"Of course."

"Wallace!" she says excitedly before she remembers to keep her voice down.

"Veronica, are you okay? Why are you calling collect? What happened to your dad?" Wallace asks.

"He wouldn't let me call you. Wallace, what's going on? Why won't Dad let me talk to you?" Veronica says frantically. She hears him breathing on the line, but he doesn't answer. "Wallace, tell me what's going on. I'm imagining all sorts of crazy things. Did something happen to you? Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Veronica." Wallace keeps his voice steady, but he's shocked by her obvious emotionality. He's never really seen her like this before.

"Then what is it? What doesn't he want me to know?" she persists, her voice rising in panic. "Wallace, tell me."

He considers and discards a few feeble lies that he knows she'll see right through; Wallace gives up and tells her the truth, hoping it's the right thing to do. "There was...well, some crazy person blew up Mac's parents' house."

Veronica is stunned into silence.

Wallace continues. "Mac's parents and her brother were killed."

"What about Mac?" Veronica asks tremulously.

"She was still in witness protection, I guess. The papers just said that she wasn't at home."

"Nobody's talked to her? Oh poor Mac."

"The funeral's tomorrow afternoon. I guess she'll be there. When I see her, I'll tell her you wished you could be there."

"I'm going to be there," she decides suddenly. "They must think it's the Russian mafia that blew up the house, right? Right?"

Wallace sighs. "Yeah. No one's saying it in exactly those words, but I guess that's what they think. I did some checking, and the day before the bombing, the FBI arrested fifteen Russian guys in Florida on multiple charges of identity theft, racketeering, conspiracy, and fraud. There wasn't a lot of details, but it sounded like computer crime, and I'll bet Mac had something to do with the arrests. Veronica, if your dad didn't tell you about this..." Wallace pauses, then plunges in. "When I talked to him this morning, he sounded pretty worried about you. Are you all right?"

"I'm going to be fine. I'm just tired."

"Your dad said you had a kidney infection and a dislocated shoulder." Wallace omits what Keith had told him about Veronica's disorientation. "Maybe you should just be resting in the hospital. You know you're not going to be able to get close to Mac. If she really is the target of the Russian mob, there's going to be a million FBI agents and US Marshals making sure that she's safe."

"I'm coming to the funeral, Wallace. This might be the last time we ever get to see Mac. Even if we can only wave at her across the room, I want her to know that we're there for her. You know if this was the mafia, there's no choice: she'll have to go into Witness Protection for the rest of her life."

"I know," Wallace mumbles. "Your dad's going to kill me for telling you, isn't he?"

"No, he's not." _Because I'm going to kill him first...after I make him take me back to Neptune._

"Veronica..." Wallace knows from Keith's phone call that somehow Veronica's rape became an issue during the operation. He doesn't know whether to apologize for telling her dad about it. "Are you really okay? Weevil has been worried about you too. I told him the operation was over."

"I'm just tired," she lies. "But it was hard...the hardest undercover job I've ever done."

"Keith said you did a great job, and for sure everyone's going to jail for a long time."

"I hope so," she muses. "It was a lot worse than I thought it would be. Wallace, you know I love you, right?"

"Okay, now I'm really worried. Where's my BFF's hard shell exterior?" he kids lightly.

"Hey, even the tough girls say I love you once in a while," she replies. "I miss you. It's only been a week, but I feel like I haven't seen you in years." Her voice trembles as she continues, "Tell Weevil I love him too, okay?"

"Veronica. You're scaring me. Are you sure you're okay?" When she doesn't reply, he goes on, "I love you too, Vee. I'm glad you're out of there. Call me when you know what flight you're on."

Fighting back tears, she says, "Okay. I'll see you soon." She cradles the phone and sits on the bed for a long time staring into space.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Exposing the Soft Underbelly**  
Leo interviews Madison; Veronica  
vows to avenge Hannah.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
Madison: Amanda Noret. Gracie Jane: Jill  
Brennan. Dr. Griffith: Rick Peters. Nurse:  
Ellen Crawford.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER NINETY: "EXPOSING THE SOFT UNDERBELLY"

Mon. 3/16/09 late morning: near USC, Los Angeles, CA

Madison Sinclair opens the door to Sheriff D'Amato.

"Thank you for seeing me, Ms. Sinclair," he says.

"Of course, I'm eager to help. Please call me Madison." _There's definitely something about a man in uniform,_ she thinks as she escorts him to her living room. When Leo takes a seat on her couch, she sits down quite near him and crosses her legs, hoping that he'll notice the fabric of her skirt sliding a little higher on her thigh. "How can I help you Sheriff?"

Leo does in fact notice Madison's thigh, and he wisely hitches himself a few inches away from her. "Madison, I'm investigating the murder of Kendall Casablancas, and I'm trying to get some background information. When I was doing some research, I found an interview you gave regarding Logan Echolls back in January. You said," Leo says reading from his notes, "'Logan Echolls was involved romantically with his best friend's stepmother. He was an emancipated minor living alone in the Neptune Grand Hotel, with no parental supervision.' I'm assuming, by best friend's stepmother, you are referring to Ms. Casablancas, yes?"

"Yes. I was quite close with Logan's best friend Dick Casablancas at one time. Dick told me that Logan was 'doing' her," Madison says superciliously. She laughs. "Logan always did have a death wish."

"What do you mean?" Leo asks.

"Well, Dick didn't care. But if Mr. Casablancas had found out...I think Logan would have ended up six feet under."

"Do you know when this relationship started? I'm wondering if perhaps this affair was what led to the breakup around that time between Echolls and Veronica Mars."

"Oh, you heard about that. Well, Duncan Kane and Logan both had a thing for that skank...I have no idea why, to tell you the truth. I heard she dumped Logan, and he was wandering around moping after her at the beginning of senior year."

"Did Veronica dump him because he was fooling around with Kendall?"

"Ooh. That would be delicious." Madison thinks a bit. "But I don't think so. Most people thought she dumped him to get back together with Duncan." She stands up. "Would you like a drink, Sheriff? I'm going to have some iced tea."

Leo writes 'Duncan Kane' in his notebook. "Yes, that would be fine." While Madison goes to the kitchen, Leo tries to remember the details of his and Veronica's first date. _Everything was going really well that night, until we ran into her friend Meg and...yeah, that was the guy, Duncan Kane. There was a lot of tension there. And then last fall, there was all that publicity about the supposed conspiracy between Veronica, Logan, and Duncan in Clarence Wiedman's death._

Madison comes back in and sets a tall glass of iced tea on a coaster in front of Leo. She sits down, again positioning herself just slightly too close to him.

He takes a sip of iced tea and coughs a little. "That's quite an unusual recipe for iced tea," Leo comments, placing the glass back on the coaster. _Bourbon,_ he thinks,_ and quite a bit of it_.

"Old family recipe," Madison says. Her mind wanders to a memorable night with Don Lamb that started with a quick hand job in his cruiser and ended with handcuffs and champagne at the Neptune Grand. Madison wonders if Leo has his handcuffs with him.

"Tell me about Duncan, Logan, and Veronica," Leo says. "From the beginning."

Madison tears her mind away from her thoughts of a naked Leo D'Amato in her bedroom. "Duncan hooked up with Veronica in ninth grade. His sister Lilly had been seeing Logan for a while, and Veronica was always around because she was Lilly's best friend. The four of them hung out all the time, and I guess Veronica kind of latched onto Duncan, you know, kind of like a leech? Then one day early in the fall sophomore year, Duncan just broke it off. Veronica was wandering around school looking like she didn't know what hit her. Of course, it's always hard if you're not really in the 'in' crowd. And Duncan was the only reason Veronica Mars was allowed to hang with the '09ers. Duncan was definitely acting strange around that time," Madison muses. "There was a rumor that he tried to choke his father, but Duncan always denied it. Then of course his sister Lilly was killed."

"So at this point Duncan and Veronica are broken up, and Logan's girlfriend is murdered?" Leo clarifies, taking notes.

"Right. After Lilly's murder, Veronica's father began to investigate the Kanes, and it was decided that Veronica needed to make a choice."

"Excuse me? A choice?" Leo asks.

"It was obvious to all of us that Veronica's father was investigating the Kanes in some crazy witch hunt. That guy, Abel Koontz, admitted to the murder. But Veronica's father wouldn't let it go. When Veronica stood up for her father, that was it."

"What was it?"

"Logan put out the word to make her life hell. She wasn't to be invited to parties, and no one was allowed to talk to her or sit with her at lunchtime. Anytime she did anything wrong, we made sure to broadcast it to the whole school. And Veronica didn't make her life any easier. She had sex with the whole swim team, you know. She was totally high and probably didn't know what she was doing, but still...what a whore."

Leo, despite himself, feels sick to his stomach thinking about the nice girl he had had a crush on at that time. "But wasn't Veronica's father justified in investigating Lilly Kane's murder? Abel Koontz wasn't the murderer."

"It wasn't the Kanes either, and any moron should have known that. Veronica totally got what was coming to her."

Leo stares at Madison. _This is not an impartial witness. She hates Veronica._ "Logan Echolls was the ringleader of this vendetta against Veronica?" _How could Veronica have been willing to help Logan at the eighties dance if he did that to her? It sounds like he succeeded in making her life hell._

"It wasn't a vendetta, you're not listening to me," Madison replies pettily. "Veronica was a slut, and she was telling anyone who was stupid enough to listen to her that her dad was going to nail the Kanes for killing their daughter. How could she do that to her best friend?"

_All right, somehow we have to get her to stick to the facts._ "So how did they go from sworn enemies to boyfriend and girlfriend?"

"They hooked up at the end of junior year. Logan was a mess after his mother killed herself, and Veronica was there to take advantage of it. They were together for most of the summer, according to what Dick said."

"That was when Logan was arrested for the murder of Felix Toombs?" Leo adds.

"Yes. She stuck by him throughout the hearing, amazingly," Madison says sarcastically, "and then she dumped him like a hot potato and went back to Duncan."

"I'm surprised she forgave Logan for the way she was treated after Lilly's murder," Leo comments.

"Are you kidding? She was ecstatic to get back into the inner circle again. And for some reason, over the summer, Duncan started pursuing her again, and she went back to him. I guess she thought Duncan was a better catch than Logan."

"And this is when Logan took up with Kendall Casablancas?"

"Apparently. Dick said he found Kendall in Logan's suite one morning when he picked up Logan to go surfing. That was maybe November? And Logan admitted that it had been going on for a while. Oh, but that's not the best part." Madison grins, knowing that she's saved the best for last.

"The best part?" Leo asks.

"Dick said that Kendall was hitting on Duncan while she was sleeping with Logan. I guess after Dick Sr. took off, Kendall was left without any money in her own name. And Logan was willing to give it to her in the sack, but that's it. Logan definitely wasn't in the market for a trophy wife. So Kendall looked around and saw that Duncan was doing it with Veronica. I can't imagine that Veronica would be much competition for a woman like Kendall."

"I thought you said Veronica did the whole swim team. She must have learned a few tricks," Leo comments wryly.

"Spreading your legs isn't much of a trick. Anyways, Kendall finally wore Duncan down and nailed him. Veronica walked in on her in Duncan's bedroom; Logan witnessed the whole thing and told Dick."

"And I'm assuming Dick told everyone."

"Of course. The next day, Veronica and Duncan had a very public fight at school, and they broke it off. If you ask me, the only thing that was surprising was that Duncan had stayed with Veronica for as long as he did. Everyone thought that he was going to get back together with his old girlfriend Meg anyways, since she was pregnant with Duncan's child."

"That's right. And then Duncan took off with his daughter after Meg died." Leo makes a note to look up the case files from the kidnapping incident that had occurred shortly after his dismissal. At the time of the manhunt for Duncan Kane, Leo remembers being completely depressed and unwilling to listen to any of news reports that involved the Neptune Sheriff's Department. He was going on multiple job interviews, trying to find a job, any job, that would cover his sister's expenses; finally, he found a job selling insurance with no benefits, and he took a security guard position on the weekends for extra money. The shenanigans of the richest family in town barely registered on his radar at that point.

"And I think Veronica's been trying to get back in the spotlight ever since Duncan came back," Madison remarks cattily.

"What?" Leo replies, startled out of his musings.

"I saw her hanging onto his hand last month at his press conference announcing his amnesty agreement in the kidnapping case. I bet she'll be hooking up with him again. Veronica's always chosen Duncan over Logan," Madison confides. "Personally, I don't get it. I mean, I've never been with Duncan, but Logan is...a spectacular lover. Even drunk off his ass."

"You...and Logan?" Leo can't resist asking.

"Just the one time." Madison smiles prettily.

Sacks had intimated to Leo that Don Lamb had been sneaking around with Madison three years ago, and, with this new information, Leo is tempted to ask her who does she think she is, calling Veronica a slut. He refrains, deciding to focus on the case, although at this point he's decided that Madison is a completely unreliable witness. "So you're confirming that Duncan definitely had a relationship with Kendall at one point?"

"When they argued at school, Veronica screamed at him that she found Kendall in his shower. Then she said, 'I trusted you the first time, but not anymore. I'm nobody's fool.' And Duncan told her that was it–they were over," Madison says triumphantly.

"That's not exactly proof that Duncan slept with Kendall. It's just evidence that Veronica didn't trust him," Leo points out.

"What do you need, a diagram? Of course he slept with Kendall. Are you telling me that you believe a guy would turn down the hottest woman in Neptune to be faithful to," she shudders, "Veronica Mars? You heard that she had chlamydia, right? They said it in open court at Aaron Echolls' trial. Veronica is a diseased skank who will do anything to get in with the 'in' crowd," Madison concludes triumphantly.

"Wow, sounds like you were putting your genital health in risk by sleeping with her lover, Logan," Leo retorts, disgusted with Madison's observations.

"What?? Eww. I'm sure he wore a condom when he was with her," Madison says, alarmed.

"Better get that checked out," Leo adds. "Thank you, Ms. Sinclair, you've been very helpful." He stands up and shakes her hand. "I can see myself out." He leaves Madison sitting on the couch, wondering if she needs to get tested.

Leo shuts Madison's door behind him and walks to the elevator. He punches the button and finds himself doubting his original theory. A small voice inside him is prodding him, _'You know your theory doesn't make any sense.'_ Madison's nasty insinuations have had the opposite of their intended effect, and he finds himself thinking about the Veronica he first met four years ago and what was so attractive about her at the time. He tries to reconcile that girl with the tough young woman who so coolly and effectively shut down his arson investigation. Still, despite his doubts, he decides there has to be something going on with Logan and Veronica vis-à-vis Kendall. _Why was Veronica's fingerprint in Kendall's room? I've got to find out what's going on here if I want to break this case._

The elevator arrives, and Leo gets in. He mulls over Madison's story. _The only new information she gave me was that Duncan Kane was sleeping with Kendall before he ran away with his baby._ His head hurts a little, trying to make sense of all the romantic entanglements. _Maybe it's not a coincidence that Kendall came back to Neptune the same time that Duncan did._

Mon. 3/16/09 morning: Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, VT  
_  
_Veronica is still staring into space thinking when her nurse comes in the room where she had phoned Wallace. "Veronica! I've been looking for you. What are you doing?"

Veronica turns to her. She wipes her eyes and says, "I needed to call someone."

"Honey, I think the doctor and your dad thought you should rest–"

"I know. I'll go back to bed, if you get my dad on the phone for me," she interrupts.

"I think he said he'd be back this afternoon," the nurse replies.

"No, I need to talk to him right away. We have to go back to California. Can you get a phone for my room?" Veronica looks at the nurse obstinately. "Just for outgoing calls, if they're worried about reporters."

The nurse sighs and nods her head in agreement. Veronica slides off the bed and leaves the room, with the nurse directly behind her. When they pass the nurses' station, Veronica notices that the other nurses have gathered around a television and are murmuring comments. When they see Veronica, they quickly pretend to look busy.

The nurse helps Veronica back into bed and promises to get a phone installed immediately. After she leaves, Veronica grabs the remote and turns on the television. She flips through channels until she suddenly see Tom Griffith talking with Gracie Jane.

"It's incredibly hurtful what people are saying," Dr. Griffith comments in a mournful voice. "I tried to do the right thing for my daughter and now I'm being accused of...well, I don't know what they're saying, but I know I wanted my daughter to get the best treatment possible."

Gracie Jane replies, "So you believe the news stories about Briar Hill are exaggerated?"

"Of course they're exaggerated. These are kids in trouble, and the school has to make sure that they won't relapse into drinking and drugging. It's so distressing to be accused of abusing my daughter when all I wanted was for her to be safe," Griffith replies.

"What about these stories that are coming out about Vincenzo Frazzino and his daughter? There are a lot of questions being raised as to why Briar Hill Academy didn't report the suspected abuse."

Griffith shakes his head, dismissing Gracie Jane's objections out of hand. "I understand that Assemblyman Frazzino may have misled the school about his daughter's condition, but that has nothing to do with my daughter's case. She was hanging out with a dangerous boy and was in danger of ruining her life. My ex-wife is consumed with guilt about Hannah's murder and is trying to find someone, anyone, to blame, when the truth is that the real villain in my daughter's case is the boy who introduced her to drinking and drugging. We _absolutely_ did the right thing by sending Hannah to Briar Hill. The school has an effective program of rehabilitating kids in trouble, and when this is all sorted out, I know Peter Klein and Briar Hill will be completely vindicated. I've never met a man who cared so much about the welfare of teens. Mr. Klein was beside himself when Hannah managed to run away from the school, and he personally telephoned me to offer his condolences for my loss."

Veronica is consumed by anger over Griffith's callous words. _Oh, you bastard. I swear I'm going to hunt you down and put you in restraints so you can experience Briar Hill for yourself._

"Of course the boy who introduced her to drinking and drugging would be Logan Echolls, son of Aaron Echolls, the accused murderer and statutory rapist."

Tom Griffith's face twists into an irate grimace. "Yes. Logan set out to corrupt my daughter. He mocked me and told me there was nothing I could do to keep him away from her. I knew my only choice was to get my daughter as far away from him as possible."

Gracie Jane looks sympathetically at Griffith. "Did you ever consider filing statutory rape charges against him?"

"My daughter would not have cooperated, and, as you can imagine, I was not eager for her to suffer the publicity that would have resulted. I knew Echolls would use his millions to hire the best attorneys and would never see a day of jail time."

"It's true that there is a double standard for Hollywood–"

Sickened by Gracie Jane's smug statements, Veronica clicks off the television mid-sentence. _I've got to hold it together; I have to be strong. The media is going to drag Hannah's death back into the spotlight again, and Logan's going to need me. And I'm not done with Briar Hill yet,_ she thinks_. It was worth it...it was worth it to show these assholes just what the school was really like_._ I'm going to have to be the best witness in the world to convince these people that there's nothing loving about tough-love schools._


	29. Chapters 91 to 94

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall, Kazy, and Sobertears. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

* * *

**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from chapters 88-90:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/67809•html )

Mac's FBI handler, Alan Sheffield, catches her using his stolen Blackberry and forces her to admit that she's trying to surreptitiously help Veronica with the Slasher case. He reveals to her that the FBI suspects the bombing attack on her parents was not retribution for Mac's work on the Russian mafia's computer identity theft scheme.

Veronica's condition is still improving, but she can't really remember the last day. She expresses her regret that she got Logan involved in the undercover operation and that she didn't listen to him when he tried to get her to end it.

Logan is arrested on misdemeanor assault and battery charges for his attack on Klein the last day of the operation. While Keith is bailing him out, Veronica sneaks off and phones Wallace, who tells her about the Mackenzie funeral. She insists upon returning to Neptune immediately to support Mac.

Sheriff D'Amato questions Logan's agent, Harvey Greenblatt, who insists that Logan did not hire an impostor as an alibi and suggests that perhaps one of Aaron Echolls' stalkers has targeted Logan. Forensics determine that a fingerprint found in Kendall's hotel suite is a possible match with Veronica's fingerprints. Leo learns of the Briar Hill undercover operation and Logan's arrest. He interviews Madison Sinclair, who tells the history of Duncan, Logan, and Veronica from her perspective. She confirms that Logan had an affair with Kendall and reveals that Kendall was the reason that Duncan and Veronica broke up before Duncan left the country. She points out that Veronica has recently been supporting Duncan in his custody case. Leo wonders if it is truly a coincidence that Duncan and Kendall returned to Neptune around the same time, and the romantic entanglements of Logan, Veronica, Duncan, and Kendall reinforce his suspicions about Kendall's murder.

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Besieged**  
Alan questions Mike Fields and probes the  
possible motives for the MacKenzie bombing;  
Veronica, Logan, and Keith head home.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Dick: Ryan Hansen.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Alan: Ned Vaughan.  
Mike Fields: Michael Trucco.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER NINETY-ONE: "BESIEGED"

Mon. 3/16/09 afternoon: San Diego RCFL, CA

Mike Fields taps nervously on the half-open door to Alan's office. His direct supervisor had called first thing this morning, ordering him to drop everything and proceed directly to the Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory in San Diego to speak with Alan Sheffield.

"Come in," Alan says brusquely. "Have a seat, Agent Fields."

Mike sits down; he glances sideways at Mac, already seated in front of the desk, who looks tired and stressed compared to the last time he saw her. "What's this about, Agent Sheffield? My supervisor didn't give me any details."

Alan stares at Mike. "It's amazing. Everyone who has a relationship with Veronica Mars seems to be incapable of full disclosure. Of course you know what this is about."

Mac says quickly, "I'm sorry, Mike. If there was any other way, I wouldn't have–"

Alan shakes his head. "Agent Fields, you've already been disciplined once in the last year for allowing Ms. Mars access to your passwords."

"Veronica did that without my knowledge. I would have encouraged her to take any evidence to the Bureau if she had confided in me," Mike explains.

Mac rolls her eyes. _Way to have Veronica's back, you douche._

"That's an interesting observation. In my file, it says that after she accessed the databases with your password, you subsequently helped her by providing background information on Marvin Chase. And you admitted as much to your supervisor," Alan retorts.

"She has a way of asking you to do things," Mike replies feebly. "I don't know why I agreed...I have a lot of respect for her investigative abilities." He tries to muster additional courage. "I've already been disciplined for that breach, as you know."

"And you didn't learn anything from it, apparently. I'd like to know everything you've done for Ms. Mars in the past few months. Everything, no matter how small or large. I'll be comparing what you tell me now with the records on your computer, so I suggest you be completely forthcoming. Or I'll be recommending that you immediately be terminated from the bureau."

Mike sighs. "Veronica came to me in early February." He consults his Blackberry and specifies, "February 6. She asked if she could review the case files for the Saturday Night Slasher. She explained that the latest victim was an old girlfriend of her current boyfriend, Logan Echolls, and that the media was spinning the story to blame him. I gave her unofficial copies of the case files for each victim and made her promise to bring anything she found out to me."

"How much of the case files did you give her?" Alan asks, making a note on a piece of paper.

"The biographical summary, autopsy and tox reports, crime scene reports, and photos, before and after, for each victim."

"Pretty much the whole file then?"

"I didn't give her any of the interview transcripts, just the raw data. She does excel at discerning patterns, and as long as she brought her ideas to me, I really didn't see the harm of a fresh pair of eyes looking at the data."

"Didn't see the harm," Alan comments sarcastically. "Anything else from that meeting?"

"She asked me to run Logan Echolls' passport number through Passport Control to see if he had actually left the country as the press was reporting," Mike replies. "Veronica explained that she thought the video of him circulating on the internet was a fake, intended to get the paparazzi off his trail."

"That's true," Mac chimes in. "Alan, she was just trying to help in the investigation in order to get the media to leave Logan alone. She thought it didn't make sense that Hannah was supposedly high on heroin at the time of her death, but hadn't been a long time user. Veronica wondered what other discrepancies there might be between Hannah's case and the others. She was suspicious that the FBI might be missing something."

Mike adds, "She told me what she had discovered the next time I spoke to her."

"Which was?"

Mike consults his Blackberry again. "March 2. She told me her theory that the serial killer was committing the murders on dates when Saturday nights coincided with a full moon."

Alan frowns. "Mac mentioned that yesterday. I believe the serial killer task force is working in a completely different area. Is there any evidence to support this theory other than Veronica's guesswork?"

"If you run the dates of the murders and compare them to the dates of the full moon, you'll see that every Saturday with a full moon has a corresponding victim. Except it wasn't a full moon when Hannah Griffith was murdered. And Hannah Griffith had never been arrested for prostitution. The only evidence that she was a prostitute was the fact that she was murdered by a killer who targets hookers," Mike explains.

Alan types on his computer, scowling at the screen. Mike looks at Mac, who shrugs and mouths, _'Sorry'._ Mike nods resignedly. Alan finally looks up and reluctantly admits, "She's right. This does seem to indicate that the last victim was killed by a copycat. Did you report this to the agents in charge of the Slasher case?"

Mike stares back. "You see, that's the thing. How did a copycat killer know all the details we withheld from the press? The symbol that was carved into the victims? Only the police and the FBI knew about that. Veronica was convinced this was someone in law enforcement or someone who had access to law enforcement."

Alan frowns. "You know that there are always leaks in investigations. Perhaps someone briefed the governor, or the mayor of Los Angeles, and the information got out that way."

"Someone in the government, like perhaps the speaker of the state assembly?" Mac suggests.

"Veronica wondered if Hannah was killed to cover up something that she witnessed at Briar Hill Academy," Mike explains. "She was about to go undercover there to gather evidence for a lawsuit against the school. Apparently, Veronica was successful, going by all the news reports over the last few days. There certainly have been revelations about Assemblyman Frazzino and his daughter and what was going on at the school. There were also allegedly payoffs to the commissioner of the Vermont Department of Education for early warnings about surprise inspections."

"Right, that's what you implied last night, Mac," Alan muses. "So Veronica thought Hannah was blackmailing somebody?"

"Not necessarily. It could have been someone trying to eliminate witnesses that took advantage of the Slasher's modus operandi," Mike replies.

"You took these suspicions to the agents in charge of the Slasher case, of course," Alan says.

"If I took Veronica's suspicions to the Slasher task force, I could have alerted the murderer," Mike answers. "She told me to try to get in touch with Mac. Veronica thought Mac had uncovered something about the case."

Mac explains, "After I entered Witness Protection, and I was working with you on the identity theft programs, I learned enough about the FBI databases that I was able to compile a list of everyone who had access to the Slasher's victim files. I sent Veronica a coded email, telling her to get Mike to make contact with me, and I gave him the list."

Alan looks pissed. "You're incredible, Mac, and that's _not_ a compliment."

Mac flushes.

"Why is this so important now?" Mike asks curiously. "What's happened? Did Mac come up with some new information?"

Alan looks at him stonily. "You heard about the attempt to murder Mac's family?"

"Wait...the MacKenzie family in Neptune...that's your family? Oh, Mac, I'm so sorry," Mike says sympathetically.

"Mac's family was not at home when the bomb went off. They've now been inducted into the Witness Protection program. At first, we assumed it was retaliation for Mac's computer forensics work here at the Bureau. She was able to reconstruct a method for identifying the originating server for a massive identity theft program, and we were able to arrest the perpetrators, who were Russian mafia."

Mike looks at Mac. "That's great, Mac. We've had to devote more and more of the Bureau's resources to computer crime. Veronica always said you were an amazing programmer."

"Except we don't think the Russian mafia was behind the bombing after all," Alan replies. "How would they know that Mac was responsible for finding that server? There was no press reports of her involvement. The Bureau's Computer Forensic Team took the credit for the bust. There was no mention of Cynthia MacKenzie in any of the publicity. At first, we just assumed it was a continuation of the hit that was placed on her, Max, and the other hacker who was murdered, Rick Picket. But our informants in the Russian mafia say there is no hit on Mac. And there was no attempt on Max's or Picket's family, either. Why your family, and not theirs?" Alan sighs. "I'm wondering if it was Mac's other activities with us here at the FBI that made her a target. Maybe someone found out about your research into the serial killer case and decided to stop you before you told someone what you knew. They couldn't get to you personally because of our security, so they're trying to get you out in the open at your family's funeral."

"I've told you everything I know," Mac protests. "And I was very careful when I was snooping into files."

"You're absolutely certain no one could know you accessed those files?"

"No, of course, you can never be absolutely certain; someone could have installed a program that would surreptitiously gather data on everyone accessing the files. But I was watching for that, and I don't think there was anything like that," Mac replies thoughtfully.

"Agent Fields, you said you saw Veronica on March 2. You got the list from Mac on..."

"The next day, March 3. I started working on the names on Wednesday, March 4."

"What exactly have you been doing with the list Mac gave you?"

"I haven't made much progress with it. I'm doing a basic alibi check. I've eliminated maybe half of the agents listed, because they were working shifts at the time," Mike explains. "I structured it as an Accounting Department query verifying timecards. I included agents who weren't on Mac's list to avoid raising suspicion."

Despite himself, Alan nods, appreciating Mike's cautious investigative techniques. "I'm trying to understand the timeline here. Do you know when Veronica's undercover operation started?" Alan asks.

Mike looks at his Blackberry and tries to recall their conversation. "I met with her on Monday the second, two weeks ago. I think she said she would be starting on Friday."

Alan looks at his own calendar. "Friday, March 6. About ten days ago. And the bombing occurred late on Sunday, March 8."

"You think there's a connection?" Mac asks dubiously.

"I don't know what to think." Alan starts to pace around the office and muses out loud. "Veronica meets with Mike on March 2. Mike gets the list from Mac on the third, and begins checking alibis on the fourth. Two days later, Veronica goes undercover, at the place where she suspects Hannah witnessed something bad enough to commit murder. She starts asking questions at Briar Hill, snooping around, and somebody gets suspicious. Let's say for argument's sake that someone at the school has a contact in the FBI. This FBI agent digs around and finds out that Mac is snooping here in San Diego, and they decide that Mac might really know something. They've already killed Hannah to cover up something; they decide to try to get at Mac to keep her quiet. But she's protected by intense security here at the Bureau, and they can't get to her without revealing themselves."

Alan continues, "They know Mac is helping investigate the Russian mafia, and they try to get Mac out in the open by making it look like the mafia took out her family. There have been several incidents in the last few years where FBI agent's families were targeted by the Russian mafia, and everyone's hyperalert about it. Of course we would assume it was retaliation for the arrests. At the funeral, they would get assigned to the detail and make sure that Mac gets taken out."

"Lots of ifs," Mike says dubiously. "If it's an FBI agent, why not just try to get at Mac once she's in Witness Protection and away from all this security?"

"I don't know. Maybe the agent doesn't have clearance for WitSec files. Or there's a reason to move quickly that we're not seeing," Alan theorizes.

"So you're assuming that Veronica made somebody nervous in Vermont?" Mike asks.

"Or maybe your alibi checks alerted somebody," Alan replies. "I guess the real question is, is there something that you know that's worth all this trouble, Mac?"

"What?" Mac asks. "I don't know anything."

"If this theory's correct, somebody thinks you know something," Alan states. "Is there any chance that Veronica accidentally let something slip about Mac while she was undercover and that alerted someone?"

Mac says "No!" as Mike comments simultaneously, "I doubt it. She's a pro."

Mac adds, "So what about the funeral tomorrow?"

Alan sighs again. "I guess we go ahead with our plans. I don't know what to think. This Briar Hill connection seems pretty far-fetched. But I think the alternative is worse."

"The alternative?" Mac asks.

"The alternative is that someone in the FBI has a connection to the Russian mafia, and this truly was retaliation for Mac's help with the identity-theft ring."

Mike and Mac stare at Alan. Mac realizes if this is true, even Witness Protection might not save her life.

Alan begins to pace again. "I don't think we have a choice. We need to stick with our plan at the funeral. Brenda will take your place, and I'll ask for further security upgrades, strictly on a need-to-know basis. I've been setting up a video feed for you to watch everyone who is attending to see if you recognize someone who shouldn't be there, in case this is some personal vendetta that we haven't been able to discover. And I'll ask for any of the agents on the list you compiled to be transferred to other duties–in case there really is some connection."

He continues, "I'm going to have to discuss the whole operation with my direct supervisor. Agent Fields, I'm going to ask you to take a voluntary leave of absence until we determine how to handle this incident. Clearly, you should have brought this to the attention of your supervisor even if you were hesitant about contacting the Slasher task force directly," Alan states seriously.

"Sir...I fully intended to compel Veronica to discuss her theories with the appropriate personnel once she had finished her undercover operation," Mike protests.

"No, I don't think so, Agent Fields. I think Veronica knew she could trust you to work with her without informing other Bureau personnel. It was the right move for her, but not the right move for your career."

Mac interrupts, "Screw the Bureau, Mike." Alan frowns at her, and she makes a face back at him.

Mike shakes his head. "No, I'm not going to take this lying down. There were compelling reasons not to disclose this information until more data was known, not the least of which was Veronica's personal safety on her undercover operation."

"Suit yourself," Alan answers. "The ADIC will be in touch with your supervisor."

Mon. 3/16/09 late afternoon: Logan Airport, Boston, MA

For the hundredth time, Veronica protests, "I can walk. I don't need this wheelchair."

"You agreed, Veronica," Keith replies. "That was the deal. You agreed to use a wheelchair, avoid all stress, and comply with your doctor's orders if we would agree to take you back to Neptune. Dr. Arthurs wasn't too happy with us. First Logan gets arrested, and then you sneak out of your room, call Wallace, and insist on taking the next flight out. I think Dr. Arthurs wanted to put you on a psych hold and report me to the Department of Child and Family Services. Please, Veronica. Don't push it, okay?"

Veronica sighs as Logan continues to push her through the terminal.

Keith's phone rings again. "Hey...yeah...that sounds good. Thanks again for helping Logan today. I appreciate it, Jim." He terminates the call.

"Epstein again?" Logan asks.

"Yeah, he's packing up all the gear to ship back to Neptune and closing up the rented house for me. He and I are both retaining a copy of all the evidence on separate hard drives, and the FBI took possession of the computers we used as evidence for the federal case. Epstein's pretty happy right now. He's been working on this lawsuit for two years without much success, and he seems to think a substantial verdict is a lock."

"Maybe he can afford a secretary now," Veronica comments, remembering the disorderly state of Epstein's office.

"He'll need more than a secretary. He'll need several paralegals just to file all the paperwork for this case, and probably a second attorney to help prepare the lawsuit once the criminal charges have been resolved. Klein's attorneys are already filing motions to suppress evidence. I suggested that Epstein get a forensic accountant to trace all of Klein's and Briar Hill's assets before they have a chance to hide them."

"Is Klein still talking about suing us?" Veronica asks, looking up at her dad.

"Don't worry about it, honey. Ruggerio assured us that there's not much wriggle room on the federal charges. Klein's not going to have time to sue us when he's defending himself on all these charges," Keith replies, somewhat misleadingly. _Truth is, I do expect a lawsuit. But there will be time enough to worry about that later._ He continues, "And I don't want you to worry about Logan's arrest. Epstein said that Logan can plead no contest to assault and pay a small fine. It's just a misdemeanor, and we'll ask the clients to pay the fine for him."

Veronica glances at her dad. He smiles reassuringly at her, and she nods slightly.

They reach the gate, and Logan sets the brake on the wheelchair. He sets his carry-on down next to the wheelchair and suggests, "I'll go buy some food for the plane."

"Good idea," Keith agrees. "Peanuts aren't going to do it. See if you get a filet mignon, or maybe a lasagna for this one," he adds, nodding at Veronica, who sticks her tongue out at him.

Logan wanders down the terminal until he finds a sandwich shop. He orders six large sandwiches with various fillings, large containers of potato salad and macaroni salad, and chocolate chip cookies. He is still unaccustomed to how thin Veronica is; he didn't see it at the school, where all the girls were underweight, but now it strikes him as obscene. She has uncharacteristically pushed her food away more than once, and he worries that it's her emotional turmoil that prevents her from eating as she usually does. He picks up several sodas and a large water to share.

He starts back towards the gate carrying the large bags of food. He passes a store with newspapers, magazines, and books, and he stops, intending to find some light reading to pass the time on the flight. Logan grabs a copy of 'People', 'Entertainment Weekly', and a crossword puzzle book and gets in line to pay. There is a 'Wall Street Journal' on display near the cash register and, to Logan's surprise, he notices a headline reading, 'SEC Reopens Investigation Into Casablancas REIT Enterprises After Suspicious Death'. He adds the newspaper to his stack and waits impatiently to pay.

He takes his purchases and sits down to read the article. His heart hammers in his chest as he reads that Kendall Casablancas, née Priscilla Banks, was found murdered in Neptune, California on March 11. Logan checks the date on the paper and calculates that the eleventh was last Wednesday, about five days into the operation. He reads the article three times. It highlights Kendall's marriage to Richard Casablancas, Sr. and her disappearance shortly after the suicide of her stepson. Sheriff Leo D'Amato states the investigation is being pursued vigorously, although no arrest has been made. The article speculates that up to fifty percent of the assets of the Casablancas REIT were not recovered after Casablancas fled the country to avoid prosecution for real estate and stock fraud. The former CEO had no comment when contacted by the Wall Street Journal. The article notes that Casablancas is now living in the Cayman Islands after serving a one-year sentence in a federal penitentiary.

Shakily, Logan folds up the newspaper and returns to the gate. _There's no way I'm showing Veronica this. She has enough to worry about; plenty of time to tell her about Kendall later._ He hides the newspaper in the bag with the sandwiches, intending to transfer it to his carry-on when she's not looking. He offers her the magazines and the crossword puzzle book and kisses her on the forehead. "I'll be right back. I want to use the men's room before they start boarding." Veronica opens the 'People' magazine to scan the table of contents, and he quickly moves the newspaper to the outside pocket of his carry-on while she is distracted.

Logan walks a short distance to the men's room. When Veronica's and Keith's attention are elsewhere, he walks past the restroom to a deserted gate and pulls out his cell phone. He dials with trembling fingers. _This isn't bad news: it's good news. That bitch is fucking out of our lives for good now. _"Dick."

"Dude! Where the hell are you? I've been leaving messages at the Marses' apartment for days," Dick replies.

"I'm in Boston. We're on the way back."

"Did you hear about–"

"Kendall. Yeah, I just found out. We've been completely out of the loop. Veronica and I were undercover for a case. It was a mess. The FBI were involved, and Veronica got hurt. She didn't even know about the MacKenzies until today. She found out and insisted on coming home for the funeral, even though the doctor wanted her to stay in the hospital for another day."

"Is Veronica all right?" Dick asks anxiously.

"Yeah. She's going to be all right, I guess. She's...the fuckers really did a number on her. It was...fuck, I don't know how to say it. I'll tell you about it when we get back. Dick, what the hell is going on with Kendall?" Logan says nervously.

"I don't know. They found her last Wednesday. The sheriff has been investigating; he asked me a whole bunch of questions about you and her. Somehow he found out that you and Kendall had a thing senior year. And he's got a video of you and Veronica at the Neptune Grand where Kendall apparently was staying before she got offed. Better watch out for your nads, dude, that guy D'Amato wants to cut 'em off. What'd you ever do to him, anyways? He totally hates you," Dick comments.

"A video from the Neptune Grand?" Logan repeats. _Did we miss a camera in Duncan's room? Fuck!!_

"Security footage from the elevator. You guys are making out. Whoa, dude, pretty hot stuff."

_At least it's not a video of us interrogating Kendall, but, fuck!, this is not what Veronica needs right now. _Logan viciously pounds the arm of his chair with his fist. The bruises from punching Klein, which have finally stopped hurting, begin to ache again. In a tense voice, he asks, "What did D'Amato say, exactly?" Another passenger stares at him, and Logan makes a little wave, smiling slightly to reassure the man, who moves off uncertainly.

"He asked when you started the affair. He implied that Veronica dumped you because she found out you were screwing Kendall. I told him it wasn't true, that you went after Kendall on the rebound from Veronica. The sheriff knows you weren't in Madeira, and he said he was wondering why you went to all that trouble to make people think you weren't around. He friggin' wants to crucify you, Logan. I thought Lamb was bad, but this guy's worse. It's like his personal mission to fuck you over, but good."

"Fuck," Logan says quietly, more mindful of the people around him. "Does D'Amato know..." Logan pauses, trying to figure out how to ask Dick without giving him new information. "Does D'Amato know that Kendall was sniffing around Duncan senior year?"

"He didn't mention it. Dude–I'm supposed to let him know when you come back to town."

"Well, technically, I'm not back yet." Logan remains silent, thinking. "I don't know. Veronica's not...she can't handle any extra stress right now. Just try to put him off if he talks to you again. I won't call you when I get back to town, so you don't have to lie."

"Last I heard, you're still out of town, dude," Dick agrees.

"Exactly. And you don't know when I'll be back. Thanks for the heads up, man."

"I hope Veronica gets better fast, so she can save your butt as usual," Dick says wistfully.

Logan snorts quietly. "Yeah. Right now, I'd give anything for her to be calling me a horse's ass like the old days." His voice breaks a little at the end.

"Shit, she's really messed up?"

"Yeah. I'm pretty worried about her. I've never seen her like this."

"C'mon, man, you know she's tough. She'll get through this. You guys have been through so much."

"Not like this," Logan replies shortly. "I'll talk to you later." He hangs up, morose about the latest news. Thinking of that ill-advised relationship with Kendall causes him to drift back to thoughts of the old resilient Veronica of senior year, who used to trade barbs with him, viciously pushing him away as she reinforced her own thick skin.

_FLASHBACK: At the winter carnival slushy booth, Veronica asks him, "What's your poison?"_

_Logan replies, "Ah, emotionally unavailable women." He is immensely pleased at his witticism and her inadvertent reaction. She recovers and raps impatiently on the counter, and he continues, "Let's see...uh, I want something that suits my mood."_

_Without a second thought, she snaps back, "Oooh, I'm sorry. We're all out of liquid evil."_

He remembers that day as if it was yesterday. He had found Hannah's picture in the yearbook; by asking around, he had determined that the general impression was that Hannah Griffith wasn't seeing anybody, and the word was that she was cute, but not beautiful or popular...just an average freshman girl who ran track and volunteered to sell Pirate Pride buttons and work at carnival booths. He recalls thinking that that added up to 'vulnerable' in the Echolls playbook. When Veronica commented that they were out of 'liquid evil', he had thought for a moment that she had somehow divined his desperate plan. Logan had headed for the Leap Frog booth, expecting Veronica to whip out her taser to stop him from going after Hannah. And when Veronica did find out what he was up to, her look had burned a hole in his skin. _'Toying with a sweet little girl's heart just to screw with her dad?'_ The words cannot be forgotten, no matter how hard he tries. Only Veronica can shame him like that.

He swallows compulsively. Veronica had told him off over and over that year; she had called him on his asinine, self-destructive relationship with Kendall–_'poor little rich boy with a death-wish.'_ And now that affair is biting him on the ass again; biting Veronica on the ass too, he thinks, with bitter self-contempt. _ It sounds like Leo is determined to pay us back for humiliating him, and I've given him the perfect ammunition. Dammit!! I wish that Veronica was back in her old fine form, ready to snark and fight at the drop of a hat; she took on Leo without hesitation because her dad needed her to, and now I need her to help me too. Saving my ass 'with comment' would be just fine right about now._

That old Veronica was a cold-hearted bitch, to be sure, but right now Logan would rather have her than the thin and fragile young woman he sees in the wheelchair as he rounds the corner. That Veronica wouldn't be susceptible to D'Amato's insistent questioning or to the insinuations of relentless paparazzi given a new sex tape to replay day and night; she would just tell them to go to hell and live her life the way she wished...all the while supplying witty commentary.

_She's got to be okay,_ he thinks, for perhaps the thousandth time since the undercover operation ended. The loudspeaker announces pre-boarding for their flight, and he pretends to smile at her as he approaches. Logan hoists his carry-on over his shoulder and takes the handles of her wheelchair.

Keith grabs his own carry-on and the food bags and glances at him. "Everything okay? That, uh, took a while."

"Oh yeah, I was just avoiding some guys playing 'I'll show you mine, if you show me yours' in the bathroom. Why can't people just admire my endowments from afar?" he replies, trying for an insouciant tone.

Keith chuckles.

Veronica rolls her eyes and says, "Don't encourage him. How many times do I have to tell you, Logan, that there's nothing wrong with being average?"

"Average? Oh, you cut me, baby," he replies. He bends down and kisses her on the cheek. _We're all trying here. I just hope it's enough._

While they wait for the flight attendant to check their boarding passes, she reaches back and grasps his hand for a moment. He realizes that, somehow, she knows something is wrong. He holds her hand tightly until he has to begin wheeling her into the jetway.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Situation Normal: All Frakked Up**  
Leo questions Duncan; Veronica pushes  
Logan to tell her what's going on.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER NINETY-TWO: "SITUATION NORMAL: ALL FRAKKED UP"

Mon. 3/16/09 late afternoon: Flight from Boston, MA to San Diego, CA

VERONICA

I hate this. I hate them protecting me, not telling me everything that's going on, treating me like I'm fragile, breakable. Fuck, I _do_ feel fragile. I hate being carted around in a wheelchair. I'm fine. I can't get strong if they won't let me do anything.

Logan doesn't know I saw him. He wasn't in the bathroom. I think he was calling somebody. Something else is going on, something he doesn't want me to know about. He's keeping it from Dad too. I don't know if that reassures me or worries me.

Poor Mac. I wish I could talk to her. I can't believe I'm never going to see her again after tomorrow. At least...at least she'll see me at the funeral, one last time.

Mon. 3/16/09 evening: Duncan Kane residence, Neptune, CA

Duncan Kane looks at the video screen from the intercom at the entrance to his property. _Shit. _It's a patrol car from the Neptune Sheriff's Department. He's been expecting this visit since he read the news about Kendall's murder. He takes a moment to formulate a short prayer that somehow this won't destroy his custody case before he triggers the 'speak' button on the intercom. "Yes?" he says, trying for an innocent tone.

"Sheriff Leo D'Amato, Mr. Kane. Do you have a few minutes to talk?" Leo asks. On the video screen, Duncan stares at the face and remembers meeting this man with Veronica a long time ago.

"What's this about, Sheriff?"

"I have a few questions regarding your relationship with a woman named Katerina Beversdorf. You knew her as Kendall Casablancas," Leo explains.

_'You knew her as Kendall,'_ Duncan thinks. _He's asking about senior year...I hope._ "Dick Casablancas' stepmother? I read something about her in the paper." _Okay, technically, that was COMPLETELY the truth._

"Yes, she was found murdered five days ago. Are you going to let me in, Mr. Kane, or do we need to do this down at the Sheriff's department?" Leo requests brusquely.

"Of course...I'm sorry. I'll open the gate for you." Duncan triggers the automatic gate and watches as the police car drives up the driveway. He tries to breathe normally; he assumes that if the Sheriff really knew anything, this interview would be happening at the Sheriff's Department. Leo exits the vehicle and walks to the front door; Duncan opens the door, allowing Leo to enter.

Leo looks around at the relatively modest home by Neptune standards. Duncan leads the way to a living room filled with comfortable furniture. The large picture window faces a grassy backyard with an elaborate swing set highlighted by security lights. A tall privacy fence completely surrounds the property. The gate where Leo entered the property had closed again once the car has passed through; the security precautions are the most impressive feature of this otherwise unremarkable home.

"You have good security here," Leo comments as he takes a seat in the living room. He places several file folders neatly on the coffee table in front of him.

"I'm sure you know I've been trying to win custody of my daughter. The paparazzi are always trying to get a story on us, and I wanted to show the court that I could ensure her safety and privacy...You and I met with Veronica a long time ago, right?" Duncan asks, trying to change the topic. _My resemblance to Howard Hughes is only coincidental,_ he thinks morosely. _I hardly ever collect my urine any more._

"Yes, Veronica and I were on a date; I think you were with your parents, right?"

Duncan nods.

Leo continues. "I've heard from a witness that you might have had a relationship with Kendall Casablancas several years ago. A Ms. Madison Sinclair indicated that Kendall was the precipitating reason for your breakup from Veronica...uh, apparently that was your senior year in high school."

_Fuck...another bad idea that's come back to bite us in the ass._ "Veronica thought there was something going on, but there wasn't. Veronica and I had a huge argument over it, and I broke off my relationship with Veronica when she didn't believe me."

"Really? Why would Veronica think that you were having a relationship with Kendall Casablancas?" Leo presses. "I understand that Kendall had been sleeping with Logan Echolls around that time."

_This guy knows a lot: be careful. _"Logan was living with me after his house had burned down. He was having a casual affair with Kendall, so she was at my suite a lot. She wasn't exactly shy. She came on to me pretty obviously, and Veronica was understandably upset about it. I didn't handle it very well. My ex-girlfriend, the mother of my child, had just died, and that was all I could think about. It was just one more stress on our relationship, and it turned out to be the last straw for us."

"And then of course you left the country with your daughter," Leo points out. "But it's funny...the department's records suggest that the FBI suspected Veronica of helping you flee with your daughter."

"I think you missed the part about Veronica being pissed at me about Kendall. She wasn't inclined to help me with anything at that point," Duncan states.

"Right." Leo regards Duncan, certain that the Kane heir is obscuring something. "Mr. Kane, can I ask where you were living before you surrendered to the authorities last month?"

Duncan gazes at Leo, wondering what he knows. _I can't take a chance. Somebody at the Neptune Grand has to have told him I was living there._ "I was staying at the Neptune Grand under a false name. Daniel Gillman."

"That's quite a coincidence. Ms. Casablancas was staying there as well."

"Really?" Duncan tries but fails to sound surprised. He tries to recover. "I suppose it makes sense; it really it is the only decent hotel in Neptune. The Camelot is not much of an option."

"Why weren't you staying with your parents?" Leo asks.

"Have you met my mother?" Duncan retorts wryly. "Celeste Kane is best experienced in limited quantities. Of course, you must understand that while my attorneys were negotiating my amnesty agreement, I had to keep a low profile."

"Yeah, I get it; you had to hide while there were still outstanding warrants for your arrest." Leo extracts several photos from one of his file folders. "In case you haven't seen the photos in the paper, this is what Kendall looked like recently."

The first photo is a blowup of Katerina's passport photo; the next two are graphic photos of her body. The first shows Kendall sprawled on the ground, with a blood stain under her head and several markers indicating evidence around her body. The second is a close-up of her head, showing a large bullet wound on her left temple.

Duncan tries to maintain a poker face, but the photos are sickening. He realizes that Leo is trying to provoke a reaction. "My god. She doesn't look anything like she used to. But...she does look a little familiar," he finally says. "Maybe I did see her around the Neptune Grand." He hands the photos back. "Why was she back in Neptune?"

"That's what I'm trying to determine. Mr. Kane, if you're concealing a relationship with Ms. Casablancas, this could be very damaging to your custody case. I suggest you tell me everything you know about her, and we'll deal with it."

"I don't like what you're insinuating, Sheriff."

"I don't like unsolved murders, Mr. Kane. And there's too many questions about Ms. Casablancas' relationships with you and Logan Echolls in this case. If you have nothing further to add, I'll be on my way. But I have a feeling we'll be speaking again soon," Leo concludes, standing up.

Duncan silently escorts him out. He shuts and locks the door; he watches on the security screen as Leo leaves the property. Once the gate has shut behind the sheriff's car, he picks up the phone and calls Mars Investigations again. "Mr. Mars, it's Duncan Kane. I know you and Veronica are working on an important case. I hate to bother you, but if you get a chance, please call me before the hearing on Friday." He hangs up the phone, shaking with the effort to maintain a calm voice on the message. He stands by the phone, his fists clenched, his eyes shut, the anger building inside him. The situation seems to get worse every day, and with each new development, he feels less in charge of his destiny.

Duncan pounds his right fist into his left palm several times, trying to defuse the building tension within him. He realizes that he's actually panting with stress and fury; before he quite realizes what he's doing, he grabs a table lamp and throws it viciously across the room. The electrical cord pulls out of its socket, hardly delaying the lamp's trajectory, and the lamp crashes against the far wall. The bulb explodes with a 'pop' and a tinkle of glass; the lamp lands on the floor, with the shade bent out of shape and the base shattered into shards of pottery. Duncan lets out his breath heavily; a strangled sob escapes his throat. He goes over to inspect the mess and ends up sinking to the floor next to the ruined lamp. He drops his head into his hands and wishes desperately that he had someone, anyone, to hug him and tell him it was going to be okay.

Duncan sits there feeling sorry for himself for perhaps half an hour. Finally he stirs himself; he gets up and finds a broom and dustpan and cleans up the mess he made. He disposes of the remnants of the lamp in the garbage and returns to the living room. He turns on the television to watch the evening news. The featured story is yet another exposé on Vincenzo Frazzino and the legal troubles resulting from the abuse of his daughter. Duncan watches, his mind wandering. _How could you do that to your daughter?_ he thinks absent-mindedly. He smiles, thinking about playing with his daughter on the beach in Australia.

Suddenly, he sits bolt upright as a picture of Veronica and Keith Mars flashes on the screen. He turns up the volume as the announcer explains that the two private investigators were involved in an undercover operation in cooperation with the federal authorities. Logan's picture replaces the Marses, and the announcer adds that 'reputed bad boy' Logan Echolls appears to have been assisting in the investigation. Duncan stares at the photo; it seems to be an old stock photo and does not resemble Logan as Duncan last saw him in his suite at the Neptune Grand. The report states briefly that Veronica was injured, though not seriously, and was released this evening from Southwestern Vermont Medical Center.

The report turns to a summary of the federal investigation into Briar Hill Academy. Duncan has not paid a great deal of attention to this story up until now, preferring instead to concentrate on his own difficult custody battle. The story continues, focusing on the different aspects that have come to light since the school was closed.

Duncan stares in bewilderment at the television screen. _No way._ He stands up, intending to get his cell phone, until he remembers that he erased that photo of Kendall meeting someone in the playground from his phone. He sits back down to watch the conclusion of the report. _No fucking way._ He remembers that he had sent a copy of the photo to Veronica's email; maybe that photo still exists on a server somewhere. Duncan allows himself a small measure of hope, but overall, he keeps thinking, _no fucking way. Hurry up and get home, Veronica; help me figure out what the hell is going on here._

Mon. 3/16/09 evening: Flight from Boston, MA to San Diego, CA

Once they are settled in their seats on the plane, the conversation lulls. Logan, seated on the aisle, seems distracted; Keith, next to the window, opens one of the magazines and begins to read. In the middle, Veronica leans against her dad's shoulder and closes her eyes, trying to sleep. He puts his arm around her and cuddles her to him. Out of the corner of his eye, Logan watches, thinking it's ridiculous to be jealous of his girlfriend's good relationship with her father. He dismisses the thought, excusing it by saying _'of course she can't lean her injured shoulder against me'_; he finds a flight attendant and obtains a blanket for Veronica, tucking it around her. She smiles in gratitude, and Logan returns the smile, hoping against hope that whatever the hell is going on with Kendall isn't going to make things even worse between them.

Surprisingly, it is Keith who drops into a doze, his eyes fluttering closed and finally staying shut. He snores quietly with his head propped against the plane's bulkhead. Veronica opens her eyes, giving up on napping for now. She watches Logan as he stares into space, obviously lost in thought about something. Veronica looks around, and everyone around them seems to be absorbed in the movie, 'Nights in Rodanthe'. On the screen, Richard Gere and Diane Lane appear to be discussing something very seriously. Veronica carefully pulls her dad's arm off her shoulder. He mumbles something and immediately fall back asleep.

She looks at Logan. "He's pretty tired."

"He probably hasn't slept more than a couple hours a night since the undercover operation started," Logan comments.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on?" Veronica asks quietly.

"What are you talking about?" he replies, evasively. _Dammit, she does know something's going on._

"Are you worried about the arrest? You heard what Dad said, you'll be able to plead 'no contest' and–"

"I'm not worried about it. The arresting officer said he thought they might even drop the charges once they hand down the indictment against Klein," Logan says brusquely. "Come on, you should be trying to rest, Veronica." He tucks the blanket around her, trying to avoid the issue.

Veronica impatiently pulls the blanket free, wriggling in her seat to turn and look at him more directly. "Then something must have happened. If you're not worried about the arrest, something new happened. Tell me."

He glares at her. "There's nothing going on."

She turns forward, avoiding his angry gaze. "Well, then I guess you're pissed at me again," she says sarcastically. "How refreshingly different for you," she adds before she can stop herself. The slight quiver in her voice is masked by her angry tone. _I will NOT cry again. Damn you, Logan. Tell me what's going on!_

"Yeah, I'm pissed at you, because you're supposed to be resting and following your doctor's orders," he mutters. "I'm sorry that I care about your health, Veronica."

Keith stirs. "What's going on?"

"I'm sorry, Dad. Go back to sleep," Veronica says apologetically.

"Logan, what's going on?" Keith replies.

Logan stays silent. Veronica takes a breath, defiantly keeping control of her emotions. Quietly but intensely, she says, "I hate that you guys are keeping stuff from me. I know you're upset about something, Logan. Goddammit! Stop treating me like I'm an invalid."

"You _are_ an invalid," Logan answers. "You're supposed to be resting and taking it easy."

Obstinately, Veronica retorts, "Well, I'm feeling kind of stressed, because I think you're keeping something from me again. It's hard to rest under these conditions," she hisses.

Keith chuckles. "I think she's feeling better. She can pick an argument again."

Logan laughs halfheartedly. _ He's actually right. She's not crumpling into a ball; she's fighting back. Still...can't she just leave it alone?_ He realizes that, at least partially, he's avoiding telling them the news because he's petrified of their reaction. _It will be just another reminder of a time when I let her down before, just like I let her down in the undercover operation._

Veronica frowns at her dad; she turns to Logan again and fixes him with a steady stare. "I want to know what's going on."

Keith puts his fist to his mouth to cover up a chuckle. "Logan, I think you better tell her. No one can resist the Veronica stare."

Veronica looks at her dad peripherally, narrowing her eyes in displeasure, then returns her gaze to Logan. She tilts her head a little and says pleadingly, "_Please_ tell me what's going on?"

Logan leans back and catches Keith's eye behind Veronica's head. "She's definitely feeling better. The head tilt, too."

"All right, fine, don't tell me," Veronica says with a huff. She leans back against her seat, face forward, wishing she could cross her arms and communicate her disdain for their double-teaming effort.

"Do you want one of the sandwiches?" Logan asks.

Veronica ignores him. "Dad, are you done with the magazine?" She takes it from him before he can answer. She rests it on her lap and flips the pages, obviously not reading.

"Veronica, would you like a sandwich?" Logan repeats.

She exhales, "Humph," and pays him no attention.

Logan stares at her. _Stop this. Don't fucking do this._ He wants to scream at her. _Sometimes you don't know what's best for you, goddammit._ "Veronica."

Veronica says quietly, "What I would really like is for you to treat me like an adult."

"Fine; you're an adult, Veronica," he replies in defeat. He bends down to his carry-on stowed under the seat. He pulls out the Wall Street Journal and hands it to her. He unbuckles his seat belt and visits the restroom.

When he returns, Veronica and Keith look at him with worried faces. Logan takes his seat and faces forward. He says quietly, "I talked to Dick. Leo is asking a lot of questions. He found out that Kendall and I were sleeping together senior year." He steals a glance at Keith, expecting a reaction to the reminder of Logan's salacious behavior that year; to Logan's surprise, Keith only looks concerned. Logan continues, "There's a security video of you and me...kissing in the Neptune Grand elevator, that night when we questioned..."

"Right," Keith says, cutting him off. "Is Leo implying–"

"He's trying to connect me to Kendall's murder."

Veronica says impulsively, "But that's ridiculous. You were undercover with us that day...on the other side of the country."

"He can make a lot of trouble for us, Veronica. That fight you had with Duncan before Duncan ran with Meg's baby...it could lead to questions about you helping-" Logan looks around, making sure they cannot be overheard. He whispers, "There could be speculations about your role in the kidnapping, Veronica. What about what we did to Kendall that night at the Neptune Grand when we questioned her? And there will be paparazzi interest in yet another one of my girlfriends being murdered. This time, Leo's got a video to leak to the press."

"How bad is this video?" Keith asks, worried.

Veronica considers for a minute, then replies, "It's not that bad; this is ridiculous. So what? We kissed a little. Some PDA in the elevator."

"Except that I was supposedly in Europe at the time. Leo's asking a lot of questions about that too. He implied that it looks suspicious–that I was creating an alibi for myself, and the video is absolute proof that I wasn't in Europe."

"Does he know about Duncan?" Keith asks. "The custody case is–" He stops short.

"Now what?" Veronica says in exasperation.

Keith sighs. "You've been subpoenaed in a hearing on Duncan's custody case. I talked to the family court judge and convinced them to push it back a day until this Friday. I said you needed at least that long to be rested enough to testify."

"Testify to what?"

"Mrs. Manning subpoenaed you, honey. I think they're going to ask you about breaking into the Mannings' house. They must be trying to cause trouble for Duncan that way. He's still on the hook for felony breaking and entering."

"Right, the statute of limitations hasn't expired for him. But that's nothing compared to a relationship with you-know-who. If the media gets hold of that story, Duncan will look like a rich playboy who's a possible murder suspect," Veronica muses sorrowfully. She sighs loudly. "He's such a good father. He threw his life away to save Lilly, and now they'll try to take her away from him."

Keith comments, "Veronica, if Leo hasn't found out about Kendall and Duncan yet, I'm sure he will. He's a good investigator. Somebody will have seen them together at the Neptune Grand."

"And he's pissed at us," Veronica observes. "Dad, he was very angry when we–"

Keith places a hand on her arm to stop her; he nods that he understands. _I don't want to know the details; damn it, my daughter had to stoop to blackmail._ "Of course, it was probably the Fitzpatricks who killed Kendall. There must not be any forensic evidence."

"Or Leo is ignoring it." Logan notices a passenger staring at them. "I think we need to save this discussion for later," he says quietly. Logan gives a little wave and a meaningful look to the passenger, who has the grace to appear embarrassed and faces forward again.

Veronica whispers under her breath, "Please...promise me you won't keep any more secrets from me. I can't take it, thinking that you're not being honest with me." She looks from Logan to her dad and back. "Please promise me!"

They both nod reluctantly.

Keith blows out a breath and says with finality, "We'll talk about this when we get back to Neptune."

After finally agreeing to eat one of the sandwiches, Veronica admits that her shoulder is hurting quite a bit, and she swallows two of the Percocets that were prescribed for pain management. She falls asleep against her dad's shoulder, and he conks out against the bulkhead again. Logan watches as they sleep together. Veronica begins to snore quietly along with her father, and, smiling, he wishes he had a way to record their duet for posterity. The slight twinge of jealousy he felt before at their closeness has completely dissipated. Logan reviews the conversation about the latest revelation: during their discussion, neither Keith nor Veronica expressed any disappointment in his behavior with Kendall. They acknowledged the difficulties of the situation and included him in their discussion without reservation.

He exhales; he realizes he had been expecting a lecture or recriminations, especially from Keith, but also from Veronica. Unconsciously, he had been cowering, waiting for Keith to spout off like his dad had: _'What do you think? You're boneheaded! You really screwed up this time, Logan.'_ He wonders what it would have been like to grow up in a family that tolerated mistakes and worked together to overcome difficulties. Even Veronica's exasperation at his obfuscations no longer feels upsetting; he knows she's struggling to feel strong and healthy again, and it was his concealment of the truth that hurt her rather than the remembrance of his prior actions.

Like Keith, she had accepted the news of Kendall's murder calmly and had included him in their discussion. He reconsiders what she had said, and he is convinced that Veronica no longer appears to be devastated by or ashamed of his relationship with Kendall. _Could she have finally forgiven me for Alterna-Prom?_ he wonders.

Logan closes his eyes; that betrayal was the one thing he never expected her to forgive. He had vowed to spend the rest of his life making that up to her. He revisits the memory of her desolated expression the morning after the Alterna-Prom; he usually cannot bear to picture Veronica's face that day, but now he forces himself to remember. The whole night had been a haze of alcohol and bong-hits; he doesn't remember calling Kendall, but somehow she had ended up in his bed in the morning. It doesn't really matter what had happened that night; whether he had made the booty-call or Kendall had decided on her own to look him up, he was ultimately responsible for breaking Veronica's heart and for letting her think that the whole epic speech was just more Echolls bullshit. The look that Veronica gave him that morning wounded him in a way that Aaron could never have hurt him: her pain at his perfidy was a far greater blow than any sick punishment–a pain that resonated deeply, acutely, and, he had thought, permanently.

The tremendous burden he has been carrying around since he learned of Kendall's murder seems to ease. He decides that somehow they will figure it out, together, as a family; _such a comforting word, family,_ he thinks. Even his guilt about the disastrous end of the undercover operation feels...manageable. _If she can forgive me for Kendall, then maybe she can...maybe we can figure it out._

Logan turns to look at them sleeping beside him. He strokes her hair gently; she may be fragile and wounded, but her strength and courage are still remarkable. He is still in awe of her capacity to love and forgive him; he knows they will both need every bit of their strength and love for each other to continue on. She stirs a little, her eyes fluttering open; he reassures her, "Shh, go back to sleep, everything's okay, Veronica." She smiles up at him and closes her eyes again. Logan leans back against his seat and, somewhat more reassured, tries to join them in sleep for the rest of the flight.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Homecoming**  
Complications on the last leg of their journey  
back to Neptune.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Wallace: Percy  
Daggs III. Deputy Sacks: Brandon Hillocks.  
Flight Attendant #1: Jen Johnson.  
Flight Attendant #2: Janelle Pierzina.  
Police Officer: Colby Donaldson.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER NINETY-THREE: "HOMECOMING"

Mon. 3/16/09 evening: San Diego International Airport to Neptune, CA

When the plane lands in San Diego, most of the passengers start bustling to collect their belongings as soon as the 'fasten seat belts' has gone off. As usual, the passengers scurry to leave but are trapped by a bottleneck leaving the plane. Keith puts a restraining hand on Veronica's arm. "I don't want some doofus knocking into your bad shoulder. Let's wait until everyone's off the plane."

"'Doofus?'" Veronica rolls her eyes. "C'mon, let's book, dad."

"Just cool your jets, Veronica. I know you're eager to get home, but you're not going to get there any faster if we hurry up and wait in line."

"You don't know how much I'm looking forward to getting home. Sleeping in my own bed, eating my own food..." She flashes back to Briar Hill; she remembers daydreaming about sleeping in her old waterbed with her dad and Backup standing guard. _I'll never take that for granted again._

"Just take it easy, okay?" Logan asks. "You just got out of the hospital."

She glances at him and smiles wanly. "I'm okay. No more bad news today, all right?"

When almost everyone has departed from the plane, they get up and move to the front where they had stored the collapsible wheelchair for the flight. Once again, Veronica protests, "You know I really don't nee-"

"Veronica," her dad warns, and she lapses into silence. When the wheelchair is folded out and the frame secured, she carefully lowers herself into the chair, supporting herself with her good arm. Logan rolls her into the jetway, and the three of them exit into the terminal. They join the throngs of people, all seemingly in a hurry to get to their destination.

They see a commotion up ahead just past the security checkpoint. Two flight attendants approach from the opposite direction, wheeling their bags and talking animatedly.

"Excuse me," Keith asks, putting up a hand to stop them. "What's going on up there?" He motions to the security checkpoint from where the distant sounds of a disturbance can be heard.

"It's a bunch of reporters, looking for someone who just landed," one of the attendants replies.

The other adds, "Probably some Hollywood bigwig."

Logan and Keith exchange a glance. "I'll go check it out," Logan announces. Keith takes over on the wheelchair; he wheels Veronica into a deserted gate while Logan walks through the terminal. Just past the lines at the security checkpoint, there are perhaps ten paparazzi swarming around a young blonde woman who had been on their flight. The photographers are yelling questions and jostling to get a shot of the bewildered woman. Logan looks around. He sees a flight attendant working alone behind the check-in desk at a nearby gate. She appears to be watching the scene with interest. Logan approaches the check-in desk. "Could you do me a huge favor?" Logan asks, in his most ingratiating voice. He nods toward the paparazzi. "Those guys are looking for me and my friends."

"How can I help? They're not going anywhere," she replies.

"Can you call in a page? Ask for Veronica Mars to report somewhere really far from here. Maybe ask her to meet her party at the baggage claim; we didn't check any bags, and we could try to get past these guys. My friend's been in the hospital, and she doesn't need this right now. Please. The name is Veronica Mars," he repeats slowly.

The attendant stares at him for a moment, debating. She picks up a handset and makes the call. A few seconds later, they hear a page on the loudspeakers overhead. "Veronica Mars, please meet your party at the baggage claim for United."

The reporters immediately take notice and begin to hustle through the terminal toward the baggage claim. The blonde woman who had been the focus of their attention shakes her head in confusion.

"Thank you," Logan tells the attendant. He returns to the gate where Keith and Veronica are waiting. He explains quickly, "Let's go. I got someone to page you to the baggage claim, and the paparazzi took the bait. Where's Wallace picking us up?"

"Outside the United baggage claim," Keith replies. "I'll tell him to go up to departures and meet us there." He pulls out his cell to make the call. Logan hoists his carry-on over his shoulder and takes over pushing the wheelchair.

Veronica turns around slightly and comments, "Someone spilled the beans about the undercover operation. I guess it was only a matter of time."

They cautiously head for the security checkpoint; by now, the exit line has diminished, and they pass through without notice. They make their way through the terminal; no one gives them a second glance, and Veronica is glad that her appearance is still altered.

As if reading her mind, Logan says, "They must not know you were in disguise at the school. The reporters were hassling a blonde woman from our flight."

Keith adds, "Let's hope they don't find out."

"You mean, you want me to stay like this?" Veronica motions to her red curly hair. "Yuck."

"For a day or two, until the commotion settles down," Keith replies.

"Fine," Veronica agrees reluctantly.

At the departures level of the airport, they see Wallace, standing on the curb beside Veronica's Saturn and arguing with a police officer.

"Wallace!" Keith calls.

"There they are, Officer," Wallace says with relief. "As soon they can get loaded up, I'll move the car."

"Officer, if there's a problem...this is my daughter's vehicle, and I'll take the responsibility for any violations," Keith says as he walks over to the police officer. He takes out his wallet and shows his identification. "Mr. Fennel is my employee, and he's helping me out."

"Keith Mars? The Keith Mars who wrote 'Big Murder, Small Town' and 'Neptune Undercover'? I love those books." The officer grabs Keith's hand in a firm handshake and begins to talk garrulously about the two books.

Wallace sighs and turns to Veronica. "You guys are just in time. Veronica...I thought you said you were doing okay. Why are you in a wheelchair? And...damn! girl, you're too skinny."

"I know, don't remind me. They made me promise to use the wheelchair today so I wouldn't get overtired. I'm fine, really I'm fine. Help me out of this thing," she asks Logan, who gives Wallace a look:_ 'See what we've been dealing with?'_

"Yes, dear, especially when you ask so nicely," Logan replies, getting a chuckle from Wallace.

"Please," Veronica adds. Logan helps Veronica to stand up and get out the chair; even with his great care, she winces when she twists her torso a little upon standing.

"I brought a surprise for you, Vee. It's in the backseat of the car," Wallace says. He opens the rear door for her, and Backup begins to bark at his mistress.

"You brought Backup! Oh I love you so much, Wallace. I missed you guys!" Veronica says delightedly. She surprises Wallace by kissing him on the cheek. He helps her get into the back seat while Logan folds up the wheelchair and stows it in the rear of the car. Veronica is awkwardly hugging Backup with her left arm while trying not to let him jump on her.

Logan gets in the other side and pets Backup as well. "Who's a good boy? Now, sit and be calm. Good boy." Backup complies immediately, sitting down and wagging his tail.

"I hate that he behaves better for you than for me," Veronica says with a frown.

"It's not a competition, Veronica. He just knows I have your best interests at heart. Don't you, boy?" Logan ruffs the fur on Backup's neck, and the dog whines happily.

Wallace slides into the driver's seat, and Keith gets in the passenger seat soon thereafter. As Wallace pulls out into the traffic, Keith says, "That was a lucky break. I think that guy's my biggest fan."

"Why the last minute change?" Wallace asks.

"Paparazzi were waiting for us at the gate," Keith replies tersely. "There must have been a leak about the Briar Hill case. I know the US Attorney wasn't planning on revealing any details until the indictment is handed down against Klein and the school."

Veronica thinks, _If they knew what flight we were on...they're probably going to waiting for us at home._ She decides not to think about it just yet and changes the subject. "Wallace, tell us about the playoffs. How did Hearst do?"

Wallace spends the next twenty minutes regaling them with stories of the playoffs; Hearst was eliminated in the third round in a heartbreaker.

"That's the best Hearst has done in years," Veronica comments. Innocently, she adds, "I don't know how you managed to do so well without any snickerdoodles to fortify you."

"Yeah, it's a funny thing; a couple days after you left, I found that cookie tin you hid in my room. I had a hell of a time explaining it to Candice," Wallace teases.

"I wrote 'Go, Rough Riders' on it!" Veronica says indignantly.

"Well, she thought it was a secret admirer and was pretty jealous...she practically ripped my head off. I don't think our relationship is ever going to be the same," Wallace says mock-solemnly.

Veronica smiles in response, imagining Wallace finding the snickerdoodles.

Throughout the rest of the ride, they talk about everything except what's really on their minds. Wallace wants to know what the hell happened on the undercover operation; it's obvious that Veronica is trying to act normal, but she seems more than just tired to him. And he sees the worry on Logan's face. He wonders if they've heard about Kendall, but he hesitates to bring it up until he can get Keith alone to ask him about it. Veronica looks stressed, and the last thing Wallace wants is to add to it. Even worse, she looks afraid, and Wallace thinks he's never seen her look scared before.

For her part, Veronica keeps obsessing about the funeral. _I've had to go to too many funerals already in my life._ She remembers how hard it was for her at her mother's funeral six months ago; Mac and Wallace had been her constant support during that time. They had practically dressed and bathed her and had made sure she was eating. _Who's doing that for Mac?_ And the old feelings of guilt that she should have looked more vigorously for her absent mother start to assail her. In the turmoil after her mother's death and Veronica's subsequent arrest, Veronica had never really given herself time to process her own role in Lianne's death. _What if Dad and I had really dedicated ourselves to finding her?_ She shakes herself, trying to push the feelings away again. _Mac must be feeling so guilty about her family. It's not her fault, but I know she'll think it is. I hope she knows how much I wish I could be helping her through this._ She sighs, and Logan takes her hand.

Then she thinks about the last funeral she attended: Hannah's memorial service. Logan had been miserable and guilty, morose about his role in her death; something had snapped after the altercation with Dr. Griffith, and he had run away from his life–had run away from her. Suddenly she feels completely afraid: these new revelations about Kendall will surely be as destructive to his ego as the stories about Hannah. _ I don't want to lose him...I'm so scared I'll lose him._ She resolves to bury her trepidations and to try to get their relationship back on track, no matter how hard it is, no matter how painful the memories from the operation. Veronica strokes Logan's hand with her thumb, trying somehow to show him that she wants to love him again and be there for him. _ I can do this. I can do this so I won't lose him._ He seems completely lost in thought, and she wonders what he's thinking about.

Logan is remembering his conversation with Dick from earlier in the day. '_The sheriff implied that Veronica dumped you because she found out you were screwing Kendall...He friggin' wants to crucify you, Logan...It's like his personal mission to fuck you over, but good.'_ He wishes there had been some other way to save Keith from prison; it's obvious that Leo intends to make this a personal vendetta against him. But Logan doesn't regret putting himself in the crosshairs; he would do it again in a moment to save Veronica's dad.

What kills Logan is the knowledge that his affair with Kendall might become tabloid fodder. The speculations about his relationship with Hannah were bad enough; he knows this will be a hundred times worse. All the clandestine meetings and late-night hookups with her that seemed sexy and exciting at the time now just feel sordid and shameful._ She led me around by my cock and reported back to Liam about it._ The thought of Veronica having to read about his misbehaviors in the paper makes him nauseous. When Veronica sighs next to him, he takes her hand, hoping that by some miracle she'll still want him in her life when this is all over. She smiles at him, and he wonders how she can look him in the eye when all he does is fail her._ Please...somehow...let us get through this._ She begins to stroke his hand with her thumb, and he closes his eyes, trying to imagine a time when they could possibly be okay together again._  
_  
Keith asks some questions about the business; Wallace updates him on a personal injury investigation that he completed in the last few days. Keith is having a hard time focusing on the minutiae of Wallace's conclusions; he realizes that he's exhausted from worrying about Veronica. _I hope I don't regret letting her come home...I just have to concentrate on helping her through the next few days._ He knows that the paparazzi at the airport mean that they are likely to be ambushed at their apartment as well. He makes a decision and turns in the seat to look at Veronica. "You know, there might be photographers at the apartment."

Veronica nods. She looks out the window and starts petting Backup to distract herself.

Keith asks, "Do you want to go to a hotel for the night?"

She turns back and replies quickly, "Dad, no. I really want to be home tonight. We're going to have to face them sometime. We got through it before, when..." She looks at Logan, who squeezes her hand.

"Maybe..." Keith muses, formulating an idea. He pulls out his cell and dials the home number of Deputy Sacks. He has a short and hushed conversation before terminating the call. "Sacks is going to meet us at the apartment in a squad car. He said not to worry; he's going to make sure we're not bothered tonight." He doesn't relay that Sacks had also said that he needed to talk to Keith anyway.

The conversation lulls. Veronica suddenly says, "No one's heard from her at all?" Everyone knows that she means Mac.

Wallace shakes his head 'no'. "I ran into Dick yesterday. Everyone's been speculating that Mac must be in witness protection or something, and Dick is really upset. He was kind of a mess about it, saying that he really loves her and this was all his fault for getting her to fix his computer."

Veronica glances at Logan questioningly.

Logan shrugs. "She's the only girl Dick ever went out with who had a brain. Actually she's the only girl who even had a personality."

"But you don't think he really _loves_..." Veronica asks.

"I'm sure he thinks he loves her. But you know that it didn't work for her. At all."

"Yeah, I know. She had some fun with him, and then as soon as he started acting like...well, like _Dick_ again, that was it," Veronica muses. "Do you remember how much trouble Mac caused with the purity test in high school?"

"Yeah, that was great," Wallace chimes in.

Keith says, "Purity test? Do I want to know about this?"

"Don't worry, Dad. I was as pure as the driven snow...well, unless you count my videos on Porntube. What was your score on the test again, Wallace?" Veronica asks.

"Seventy...sixty-eight if you count the bonus points for getting a hot detective chick to flash me. I was practically a horndog," Wallace says proudly.

"It was totally worth pissing off your mom. And I know you were really looking for a sixty-nine. You're such a playa, Fennel," Veronica teases. Keith glances back with a pained expression.

"You flashed him?" Logan asks. "Maybe Candice _should_ be jealous. Maybe _I_ should be jealous."

Veronica smiles at him. _I can do this._

Logan says, "What?"

"It's just...it's really good to be back home. I feel so much better already. I know, it's going to be so sad tomorrow, and the paparazzi are going to make our life hell, but still...it's really good to be home."

When they pull into the parking lot at the Sunset Cliffs apartment, they are greeted by a squad car with its flashers alternately blinking blue and red. Sacks gets out of the vehicle to greet them. Wallace parks the car, and Keith exits the Saturn to talk to Sacks while Logan and Wallace help Veronica to the apartment.

"Jerry," Keith says, grasping Sacks' hand.

"It's a good thing you called," Sacks replies. "There were probably twenty asshole paparazzi here waiting for you. I started writing summonses for disturbing the peace and trespassing, and they disappeared. But they'll be back. I'm going to hang out here for a few hours, and then some of the other guys from when you were sheriff two years ago said they'd take a shift watching. Hopefully the paparazzi will give up in a day or two. You know, you were always a good sheriff, Keith. Fair to the guys and honest..."

Keith winces, thinking about the evidence on the DVR that he erased.

Sacks continues, "...Some of us were talking, and I think you ought to know what's going on. Sheriff D'Amato's convinced your daughter and Logan Echolls had something to do with Kendall Casablancas' murder. I think he's pissed about the botched arson investigation. There's been a lot of jokes about the latest incompetent Neptune sheriff down at the county courthouse, and I know it really hit the sheriff hard. He's been trying to clean up all the messes Vinnie left behind and mostly doing a great job."

Keith comments, "Yeah, I always thought Leo would be a good sheriff." He purposely omits referring to the arson investigation.

"The crime scene techs found a partial fingerprint in Kendall Casablancas' hotel room at the Neptune Grand. It's not a great print, but what there is is consistent with Veronica's prints."

Keith says without thinking, "Shit."

"Sheriff D'Amato would have my badge if he knew I was telling you," Sacks adds. "I bet he thinks he's going to get a confession by surprising her with it. He's been interviewing witnesses the last few days: Dick Casablancas and Duncan Kane here in Neptune, and up in Los Angeles, he talked to Logan's agent and some girl named Madison Sinclair."

"How did he get on this track anyways?" Keith asks.

Sacks explains, "Someone who works at the Neptune Grand told him about Logan's affair with Kendall three years ago, and then he discovered security footage with Veronica and Logan on it. ...Keith, they found Veronica's print inside a drawer. Maybe that will help her to remember why it was there, and she can explain it away."

"You said it's not a good match?"

"No, only three points of comparison. Still, combined with Logan's history, it doesn't look good," Sacks concludes.

"Right. But Leo knows we've been in Vermont the last ten days, right?"

Sacks nods. "I guess he's thinking some kind of conspiracy. None of it makes sense, to tell you the truth. I don't think he's thinking clearly. He's barely spoken to me in the last few days except to bark orders at me."

"I appreciate the heads-up, Jerry. I know...you took a big chance telling me this," Keith notes.

Sacks asks worriedly, "Is Veronica all right? We had an alert on Echolls' name, and we were notified when the assault warrant was issued in Vermont. We got a copy of the police report from Briar Hill; it said that she and Logan were both undercover, and that Veronica had sustained injuries during the investigation."

"She's going be okay," Keith replies. "I'm not going to lie; it was a hard operation, and we should have ended it a day earlier than we did. The timing of Leo's investigation couldn't come at a worse time, though. Veronica needs to rest and not be stressed."

Sacks shakes Keith's hand again. "I'll do what I can for you."

"Don't lose your job over this," Keith warns. "Let me handle it."

Keith heads up to the apartment. Wallace and Veronica are sitting on the couch; Wallace is holding a large bowl and spooning ice cream into Veronica's mouth. Wallace says, "Hey, Keith, I'm force-feeding her. Girl needs to eat!"

"They've been bugging me to eat all day. I'm stuffed, Wallace," Veronica protests. She pushes away the spoon, and Wallace looks at her sternly. She sighs and manages another bite.

The phone rings, and Veronica grimaces. Wallace comments, "That's the third time the phone's rung in five minutes."

Keith walks to the phone; he notes the unfamiliar caller ID and turns the ringer off. "Let's just let the machine pick up," he suggests, and Veronica nods in relief. She turns back to Wallace and asks him a question about the last playoff game; Wallace tells her an animated story while demonstrating his fadeaway ball-handling technique.

Keith pulls Logan aside to talk. "Sacks told me what's going on in Kendall's investigation." He quickly summarizes what Sacks had told him. "I'll give Cliff a call and fill him in. If Leo tries to question either of you, I'd like Cliff to be there."

Logan nods. _Shit...a fingerprint. It's worse than we thought._

"And Logan..." Keith sighs, uncertain how to broach this topic. "I know before the operation, you and Veronica were sleeping together in her bedroom. I think it might be best–"

"I know. I'm going to sleep on the couch. I don't want to push her." He meets Keith's concerned gaze. "I don't know how to do this. I...I love her so much..."

"Just take it slow. You saw how she was today. She's trying so hard to be strong."

"Maybe too hard," Logan comments. "It's impossible for her to admit that she needs help."

"But it's a good sign. She's fighting back again. I know if she just gave up and completely let us take care of her, I'd be even more worried. She's trying to get back to the way she used to feel, about you, about herself. Just take it slow," Keith repeats.

"Okay, you're right."

"Why don't you drive Wallace home, and I'll get Veronica ready for bed?" Keith suggests, and Logan nods his agreement.

Logan walks over to Veronica and Wallace. "I hope you finished that ice cream, missy," he says sternly.

"God. You guys aren't going to let up," she retorts. She takes one more bite and pushes the bowl away. "Seriously, enough. I'm going to be sick."

"Come on, Wallace, I'll give you a ride home," Logan adds.

"Logan?" Veronica asks, beckoning him to come closer. She whispers, "Hurry back." She touches his cheek. "I'm looking forward to sleeping in your arms again."

"Veronica." Logan swallows. "I think I should sleep on the couch tonight. I'm worried I'll bump into your shoulder in my sleep."

"I don't care. I want to get back to normal again," she says, controlling her voice which threatens to reveal her fears. _Please...hold me again. I don't want to be alone. Please don't make me sleep alone. Please...we have to figure this out._

Before she can express her feelings, Logan suggests, "Let's take it slow, okay? You just got out of the hospital."

_Why is he pulling away?_ She tries to recover. "Okay, you're right. We have all the time in the world," she lies. _He's barely even hugged me since...why won't he..._ "Raincheck," she says, trying to sound unconcerned. _He's avoiding me. Everything's changed. He doesn't want to sleep with me any more. It's too late. When I was scared of him...it hurt him too much._

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Taking Back the Night**  
Veronica is persistent, as usual.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER NINETY-FOUR: "TAKING BACK THE NIGHT"

Mon. 3/16/09 very late: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Logan is dozing on the couch when he hears quiet sobs coming from Veronica's room. He quickly gets up and goes to her. "Veronica, what's wrong? Are you hurting? Do you need some of the pain meds? I'll go get them."

"No, don't," she says desperately, grabbing his hand with old-Veronica strength. "Stay." She tugs at his hand, and he tentatively sits down on the bed. Her eyes are red and teary, and the bedcovers are rumpled around her.

He smooths her hair from her face. "Veronica, what's the matter? I thought you were happy to be home at last."

"Don't you...aren't you...attracted to me anymore?" she finally mumbles. "You haven't even tried...anything since... I thought you would want to sleep with me tonight. I mean, at least..._sleep_ in the same bed and cuddle with me. I know it's because you saw me...humiliated...you saw me when Dave and you...you don't think I'm..._sexy_ any more." She stumbles over the words, unable to adequately express her doubts.

"Oh Veronica," he protests, aching to hear her acknowledge her fears.

She whispers, "I need you to hold me. Please. Even if you can't bear to make..." she whimpers, unable to finish the sentence, _even if you can't bear to make love to me any more._ "I know I upset you...when I was scared of you. I should have known that you would never hurt me on purpose."

"I did hurt you, Veronica," he says. "I'm ashamed of it. I should have found a way to restrain you without hurting you. And Veronica...you did nothing to be humiliated about. You were so brave. I'm so proud of you."

"Please...lie down with me. Prove to me that I'm still..." she chokes on the words.

Logan straightens out the covers a little and carefully lies down next to her on her good side. She turns on her side and snuggles into his shoulder. He puts his arm on her waist, gingerly avoiding her injured arm.

"I'm so scared I've lost you," Veronica says quietly.

"How could you say that? I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere."

"Don't you want to..." She sighs loudly.

"Veronica, you're injured, you're exhausted, don't you think..." He can't bear to say, _you were mind-raped by that fucker._ "I don't want to push you, and I'm worried it's too soon. Veronica, of course I want to..."

"It's just that you're always the one to...start things and–"

"I am not. What about that blowjob in Texas?" he chuckles softly, stroking her chin. "I'll never forget waking up to that."

"I thought I'd lost you then, too," she admits.

"Don't you know that you can't get rid of me now?"

"No, I don't know it. You ran away from me then. How could you do that? I was so worried about you."

Realizing that the funeral tomorrow is bringing up bad memories of Hannah's memorial service and its aftermath, Logan says honestly, "I wish I could go back and change what I did. I was scared and...I don't know, maybe a little crazy. Part of me did think I was protecting you, but mostly, it was just so intense, and I couldn't handle it. I know, we have to find a way to get through the bad times together. I promised to try and work on that with you, and I meant it." He caresses her hair, trying to reassure her and calm her anxieties about Mac's funeral. "Veronica, it's going to be okay tomorrow. I'll be with you the whole time, I promise. Even if you can't talk to Mac, she'll see you, and she'll know you're saying goodbye."

"I don't want to say goodbye," she cries tearfully. "Everything's changing."

He puts his hand on her waist, hugging her tentatively. _ There's nothing I can do about Mac leaving._ "Everything's not changing. I'm still here."

"Prove it," she says, daring him.

"Veronica..." He kisses her, not intending for anything more than reassurance, but she surprises him. She presses her mouth against him strongly and forces her tongue between his lips; she refuses to release him, even as he struggles to catch his breath.

"Damn this sling," she says, pulling away slightly in exasperation.

"Now you know how I felt with my cast."

"We've got to stop getting hurt," she mumbles against his lips.

The soft brush of her lips against his and the gentle rush of her exhalations are tantalizingly familiar and promising. Logan tries to shift subtly away from her to keep his growing arousal from becoming apparent, but she notices and follows him, hitching herself toward him and trying to press herself against him again. "Veronica, I don't want to do this too soon...you don't have to. I'm right here, I'm not going anywhere."

"Dammit! Why won't you–" she answers in frustration. She rolls away from him and accidentally knocks her shoulder. She gasps, "Fuck." Veronica lies on the bed, breathing heavily, waiting for the pain to subside.

"Shit, Veronica, I knew you were going to get hurt."

"You're hurting me right now," she says intensely. "You've got to stop treating me like I'm fragile and broken. I'd rather try and get hurt. I can't stand it. You make me feel like I'm never going to get better...like I'm never going to be strong again."

"Veronica," he tries.

"Go back to the couch. It's all right. Just leave me alone," she says dully. "I'm sorry I woke you up. You must be tired too. I almost forgot." She laughs without humor. "You got arrested today. You've got a lot on your mind without having to service your damaged girlfriend."

"I don't know how to do this, okay? I don't know what I'm supposed to do, Veronica," he says, allowing his anger and frustration to show. "I don't want to fuck it up worse than it is." He rolls onto his back; together they stare up at the ceiling as the silence between them lengthens.

"Why can't we just fall into each other's arms and be normal again?" she asks bitterly. "We're always so good at arguing and sniping at each other."

He huffs a laugh.

"What?" she says, turning to him.

"I was just thinking about that today, after I found out about Kendall: the way you used to just blow me out of the water senior year with your zingers. 'Liquid evil', remember? You know, you haven't called me a jackass in forever."

"Jackass," she replies.

"Ah, that's good to hear. Just like old times."

"Blow _you_ out of the water? I think you held your own in our fights. What was that one about why we broke up? Oh yeah, I remember now, 'It was you, you were too much man,'" she says sarcastically.

"Well, you were."

"Jackass," she repeats.

"Now that's just pathetic...repeating an insult," he chuckles.

"Asshat, is that better?"

"Barely. Snookums," he adds sardonically.

"What the fuck is wrong with us?" she asks.

"I'll take you sniping at me over crying any day," he replies, completely truthfully.

"Well, when you give me an opening, the way you _always_ do, I've got to take it."

He rolls over and looks at her. "That whole year...I was trying to avoid you, but for some reason, every once in a while we'd bump into one another and just bitch at each other like crazed lunatics. But Veronica, some part of me lived for those moments. I think I _wanted_ to fight with you, if that was the only way I could be with you."

"I always thought you were sitting at home, thinking up things to say to me. 'Annoy like the wind': come on, are you kidding me? You really just thought that up on the spot?"

"That was junior year, silly, and I'm really proud of that one. What can I say? You inspired me like no one else could," Logan admits. "If I had known..."

"What?" She looks over at him.

"If I had known how much I was getting under your skin...if I had known that was how to get you back in my bed, I would have worked on my lines night and day."

"You are so smug. I chose to come back in your bed, you didn't get me back in your bed," Veronica retorts.

"You can think of it that way if you want," Logan laughs. "We know the truth though."

"Yeah, that it makes you horny when I call you a jackass."

He moves over on the bed next to her, coming to a decision. He nuzzles against her ear, "Yes, it does." Logan bites her earlobe gently and whispers, "Promise me, you'll say stop if you want me to stop." She closes her eyes and breathes in deeply as his tongue flutters against her ear. "Promise me?"

"I promise, just...keep doing that," she exhales, arching slightly when he kisses her neck. "Oh, god. I've missed you."

"Mmm. It's about time you admitted I'm a god." _Take it slow, don't rush her. Don't get too excited, even if...she keeps pressing against you like that. Oh...fuck! I've missed her._ He cautiously reaches one hand to stroke her cheek with the back of his fingers; he knows it drives her crazy when he touches her lightly.

"Ohhh," she moans. "Damn you. You know just how to..." and her voice trails off as he sucks on her neck.

"Hmm. Let's see, didn't you say you had a list? I didn't forget about that, you know. What else could you have had on there?" he murmurs, nuzzling her under the jawline. He sits up a little, so he can look at her.

"What now?" she says, opening her eyes.

"Just thinking." He trails a single finger along the outside of her thigh, enjoying her compulsive shiver. "Just deciding how to drive you crazy." _ She's not broken,_ he thinks resolutely. _She wants this, she wants to feel whole again._

"That's pretty good, I just wish I was...ahh," she gasps slightly, "naked."

"But taking off your clothes is part of the fun," he comments. "Your pajamas, I mean."

"Not exactly delicate lingerie, huh?" she asks, looking at the sensible nightwear that her dad had picked out.

"No, they're awesome," he leans into her ear and whispers, "because you're wearing them." Logan kisses her neck again, and she strokes the back of his head. He rubs his cheek against hers, and she cries out slightly. "What?"

"Stubble...oh god, it's so good to feel that again," she giggles. "I hated that beard."

"I'll be careful. No beard burn," he promises. He lays his cheek on hers and watches her as he opens the top two buttons of her pajama top. Logan runs his fingers gently up and down her sternum, titillating her with his restraint. She hums in pleasure and anticipation, and he wishes she could understand how her arousal is the best aphrodisiac he could ever have. The sling encasing her arm is strapped tightly to her chest, concealing her right breast from him. He unbuttons two more buttons and pulls her top open to reveal her left breast. She breathes out, eager for his touch, but he just stares at her nakedness, loving the perfection of her and the luscious temptation of her pebbled nipple beckoning to him. "I love to look at you, Veronica," he mutters.

"Keep talking, keep saying my name," she begs him._ Make me feel like Veronica again._

"I love your breasts, Veronica. Oh, this breast is going to get a lot attention. Your right boob is going be so jealous." He bends over her and blows softly across her nipple, and she catches her breath compulsively. "I hope I don't wear it out," he comments, flicking his tongue just once against her.

"Ahh," she moans, "please..."

He kisses all around the aureola, avoiding the pink tip that is so inviting, trying to drive her completely insane before he licks her, again just once. Remembering her request, he murmurs against her, "Love your breasts, oh my god, there ought to be a law, that you're not allowed to wear clothes ever. Oh, Veronica, you're so beautiful." He loses his words for a second, then resumes, "You're so fucking beautiful. I can't keep my tongue off you." He begins to flick his tongue against her. _I want to make her come, just from this._ He sucks her nipple into his mouth, delicately pulling it into a sharper point, drawing air in around her. Logan feels her writhing a little against him, and he reaches down to the inside of her thigh and pulls her leg against him. He strokes her thigh softly, keeping it pressed against his growing hardness. "After I make you come by fucking your nipple, I'm going to do it to your pussy," he whispers, his lips dragging across her hardened flesh.

She shivers and arches her chest into him, urging him to continue. "Loh-gahn," she breathes. "I don't think it's– Ahh...ahh..." she cries, as he flicks his tongue hard against her and grabs her ever-so-gently between his teeth. He releases her with a hard swipe of his tongue and looks up at her mischievously. Panting a little, she tries again, "I don't think it's possible to have an orgasm like that, Logan."

"You don't mind if I try, do you?" he laughs. He flicks her overstimulated nipple again, and she jumps in response. "I think you like this."

"You are my absolute favorite jackass," she mutters, and he chuckles a little against her chest.

Logan carefully clamps down on her nipple, working the tip of his tongue furiously, wishing he could touch her other breast. "Mmm," he groans in the back of his throat.

The guttural sound of his aroused groan assails her in her core; she knows that, were he to reach under her pajama bottoms, his fingers would easily find their way inside her wetness. She reaches down to his hand trapping her thigh against him and tries to nudge him to touch her, to spread that dampness back and forth, up and down, the way she longs for him to do.

"You want me to touch you, don't you?" he murmurs. "You really love it when I kiss your breast." He tugs inexorably on her, using the rough friction of his tongue to abrade her nipple. Logan bites her a little harder and groans again, animalistic, suddenly unafraid to possess her. He traces his finger along the inside of her thigh, the light touch coming close, but resolutely avoiding her center. She arches again, trying to urge him on, but he resists, knowing that he's driving her crazy. "I know you like this, Veronica, you're going to come for me, this is just the beginning for us," he whispers, gently dragging his stubble across her titillated skin. He assaults her with his tongue, flicking and punishing her nipple.

She moans, trying to keep quiet, knowing her dad is just next door, but she wants to scream, wants him to keep doing it,_ do it everywhere, do it until I can't think any more._ She bends desperately against him, and he sucks _hard_, and nips her again and again as she claws underneath him. He relents just for a moment and strokes her clit once through her pajamas, and she knows she's going to have to scream; but he senses it and slides up to kiss her. He teases her with gentle caresses as she spreads her legs and rubs herself against his hand.

Logan knows the best way to really get Veronica Mars off is to stimulate that brain of hers that's always working overtime. He whispers again, punctuating his words with licks of his tongue against her ear, "I'm going to suck on you all night, every night, until you're raw and sore. You're going to come for me, and you'll be begging me to do it again and again, because only I can make you come like this. Just when you think there can't be more, I'm going to show you that there is," he promises, and he slides down and tongues her nipple again to demonstrate what he means. He presses his hand firmly into her pussy, and she shakes against him, writhing helplessly, desperate for his hand's attention, his cock's attention.

He kisses her nipple, bites her, licks her over and over, thinking how he almost lost her and how he's going to make her feel whole again if it's the last thing he does on this earth. "So beautiful...I _missed_ you, Veronica," he growls. He feels her pressing against him, vibrating urgently with the need for all of him. "I want to lick your pussy, Veronica."

She whimpers and pants her surrender, and he feels a surge of power, _I did this to her...and she loves it._ He kisses her breast gently one last time and stands up; she reaches to him, trying to clasp him to her. She lets her hand fall to the bed as he avoids her grasp. He throws off the covers, kneels over her legs, and gently hooks his fingers over the top of her pajama bottoms; she sighs deeply, anticipating.

As Logan draws the pajamas down her legs, he trails kisses down her body: on that sweet spot where her leg joins her pelvis; on her thigh, rounded and fleshy, just curvaceous enough; on the inside of her knee where he knows she is ticklish; down her calves, unshaven since the undercover operation, but he doesn't care, and he brushes his lips against the prickly evidence that she is still alive, still okay, dividing cells and sloughing skin, here in his arms. He lavishes kisses on the lovely geometry of her slender ankles, sucking gently on the bony protrusions and licking that slight hollow framed by her Achilles tendon. As the pajama bottoms finally clear her feet, he kisses her toes, one by one, making sure that every bit of her is safe and perfect.

Logan sees that she has calmed a little while he was lavishing attention on her legs. Her desperate arousal has been replaced by a relaxed and peaceful anticipation, and that is perfectly fine. There's no earthly reason to hurry; he can do this all night if she wants, and, truth be told, he's looking forward to driving her into a frenzy again. He settles himself between her feet, and takes her left foot in his hands. He begins to caress her, massaging the foot delicately, smoothing the skin and kneading the multitude of tiny muscles within. He kisses her smooth instep and presses her foot against his face. As he strokes her foot, Logan watches as she exposes herself to him, the beautiful, inviting slickness of her folds and entrances tempting him. _ Down, boy,_ he thinks, trying to exert some control over his growing erection; _it's all about her tonight. And it's not like you're not enjoying this._ He muses that most of the time he'd really rather watch her get off: _orgasms are cheap compared to the thrill of her wild abandon at my hands._ Logan whispers, "Remember...you promised to tell me to stop if you need me to. Right?"

"You better not stop," she answers. "But Logan? I think you've kissed my foot enough."

"Bitch, bitch, bitch." He makes a show of gnawing on her ankle. "Careful, or I'll have to tickle you."

"No, please, I'll behave," Veronica pleads, laughing quietly...until she realizes what she said. She freezes, suddenly completely tense, remembering the bucket, and pulls her legs together, closing her eyes against the memory.

_No...no...fuck!_ he thinks. He crawls up her body and kisses her. "Veronica, you're here with me, you're safe, we'll stop. I promise, you're safe, I love you so much, god, you're so beautiful." He murmurs into her ears, trying to drown out the thoughts he thinks she's thinking. Logan reaches down and pulls the covers over them, covering her and hiding her. He carefully reaches around her bad shoulder and gently hugs her to him.

She breathes into his ear; he thinks she must be the strongest woman in the world not to begin sobbing and screaming to have the man who helped do that to her lying on top of her. He feels her heart thudding against his chest. Finally she takes a deep shuddering breath and whispers, "What are you doing up here?" Veronica takes his hand and pulls it down under the covers to her crotch. "I don't want you to stop," she mutters fiercely. "Don't stop, Logan. They don't get to own every word I said while I was there. I know I love you. I _know_ I love you. _Damn_ them, they even tried to take '_love_' away from us. Love you, Logan," she says defiantly. "Did you hear me? Love you, Logan. I'm not fragile and broken. They didn't break me." Her voice almost quivers, but through sheer force of will she holds it steady, declaring her intention to make it through.

He is scared despite her strong words. Feeling utterly useless and bewildered, he says, "Veronica, I just...I just love you so. I know you're not broken. But I want everything to be okay again, and I don't know how to do it. I fucked up. It was too intense, too soon."

"No..." she cries. "Please...I know I love you. I love this. I love you making me crazy. Please don't stop!"

Logan tries to control his trembling; he is completely petrified of making a mistake with her that will ruin them forever. He attempts a middle ground that doesn't feel so dangerous; he strokes her hip, not lightly and teasingly–the way that drives her crazy–but comforting, the way you would reassure a child or an animal in a thunderstorm.

"That feels nice, don't stop," she encourages him quietly, throwing off the covers to watch his hand.

Logan suddenly says without thinking, "How can you be so strong? How can you..." He stills his hand, completely afraid and worried he's screwing it up again.

"Don't. DON'T. Just keep doing that," she replies. "Don't say it. I can't bear it. Tell me I'm beautiful again and...make love to me." Under her breath, she says, "I want to feel...like I used to feel." She interlaces her fingers with his and pulls his hand from her hip to her center. She holds their hands there, just resting together in an intimate place, just getting used to being there again. When it feels familiar and safe, she urges his hand, and together they caress her fine curled hair gently, sweeping back and forth to reacquaint themselves with the landmarks of her body. She sighs happily; this feels so easy and gentle, so right again, with his hand guided by hers.

Logan repeats her name over and over, as she wants. "Veronica...Veronica...so beautiful, oh I love the way you feel, Veronica." He lets her lead the way; gradually she urges him lower and further, until he brushes against her most sensitive spot, and she gasps softly. He hesitates, waiting for a long moment; finally she breathes, "Yesss," and he exhales with her again as he gently caresses her, listening carefully for her cues.

She pulls her hand away and reaches down to touch him; he groans aloud when she cups him softly in her palm. His cock, with a mind of its own, pulses against her hand, begging for more of her attentions. Veronica strokes his length, and he almost loses his words at the intensity of his desire for her. "Oh, Veronica. Can you feel what you do to me? I lose myself when you touch me." He tries to keep his caresses on her clit undemanding and subtle, but she arches into his hand, defeating his noble intentions.

When she presses firmly against his hand, he makes contact roughly, strong enough to make her cry aloud. "Logan, you have too many clothes on again," she gasps. "What have I told you about that?"

She squeezes him harder, encouraging him, and he moans, "Fuck, Veronica." He pulls his shorts down, and she begins to massage his nakedness, unmistakably trying to bring him to a full and throbbing erection. "Veronica, I need to...you know we need a condom," he manages to say, his voice croaking with urgency.

She nods, and he pushes himself off the bed; Logan fumbles in the top drawer of her nightstand for the condom necessary because of her forced abstinence from the pill during the operation. He finds a foil package and lowers himself to her side again. He rips it open and sheathes himself quickly. "Tell me how to do it, Veronica, so we don't hurt your shoulder," he whispers intensely, bringing his hand back to stroke her again, now without any restraint.

Veronica pants compulsively, completely under the thrall of his ministrations on her. "I guess...face to face, help me, help me to turn on my side...oh Logan, god I've missed you." He gently grasps her hips and helps her to face him. He kisses her, pressing his body against her, slipping himself between her legs, striving to find her entrance.

She closes her eyes as she kisses him; the white-hot lust takes over and all her sensations seem focused on his cock and his tongue, pushing within her, struggling to become one with her. She manages to get her leg thrown up over his hip and tries to pull him in as he enters: he goes in farther than she thought possible, with the base of his cock propelling itself against her.

Without the advantage of leverage, he thrusts and angles himself, determined to explore new, incredible ways of fitting within her to substitute for gravity and strength. His hips flex and release compulsively; for once, he's glad of the latex barrier that delays his release. He pumps in and out, so grateful and insanely thrilled to be inside her again. She is breathing heavily, moaning her appreciation into his shoulder; he whispers breathlessly, "You're okay? You're okay? Goddamn, you feel so good, god, Veronica, I love you, tell me you love me."

"Ohhh, I love you too, Logan," she manages before losing herself again in the sensations. _Feels so good, feels so incredibly right to have him inside me, don't want it to ever end, ohhh..._ He changes his angle again, and she moans loudly, completely oblivious to her dad not twenty feet away.

"Shhh..." he cautions her as he presses his thumb onto her clit, his quick flicking motion urging her ever closer to climax.

"Don't stop, please, Logan, god, I love you," she mutters again, "Ahhh...ahhh...ohhhhhhh." With a long breathy groan, Veronica lets herself go and lets him own her completely again. He kisses her, his tongue filling her so sweetly and desperately as she throbs and vibrates, her entire body humming with the electricity of their togetherness. She sighs, lolling and sated as Logan still thrusts, trying to catch up with her and join her on the other side of arousal. He kisses her neck, and she reaches to stroke his balls gently, trying to make him feel like she's feeling.

"Fuck, Veronica, oh, fuck," he says, the words coming out in staccato bursts as he begins to thrust hard, feeling the beginning of the end. He ejaculates and continues to plunge into her, not wanting this to be over yet. With a final surge, he buries his cock deep within her, struggling to be just a little bit more inside her. She hooks her leg around him and draws him in, pulling herself completely against him as he shudders and quiets within her. Veronica rests her head against his chest, and he holds her to him as tightly as he is able without causing her pain.

After a few minutes, he reaches down and holds the condom tight against himself to pull out, but she whimpers, "No, not yet."

"Come on, you know–"

"Just another minute. Just stay," she begs.

"One more minute. It's only for a couple months, until it's safe again," he reassures her. "Something to look forward to. You know we have to be careful until then."

"I know, I just–" She sighs. "I really like feeling you inside me," she whispers.

He strokes her hair, feeling the weight of her against of his chest, loving how relaxed she is right now. He feels her breath on his skin, the slight exhalations cooling the sweat from his exertions. Logan counts twenty breaths, remembering how he was counting her respirations in the hospital, before he kisses her gently. "I'm getting up now." He carefully extricates himself and gets out of bed. He disposes of the condom and pulls on his shorts. He goes to the bathroom, bringing back a glass of water. He offers her the water and takes back the glass when she finishes. "Veronica, you know you should go to the bathroom now," he suggests cautiously. Dr. Arthurs, in addition to making several dietary suggestions, had stressed in her discharge instructions that Veronica should be extra careful with hygiene and be certain to urinate after sex to prevent a recurrence of her infection.

Veronica nods and quietly says, "Help me, okay?"

Even though she is perfectly able to get out of bed herself, she lets him help her to the bathroom. He stays just outside the half-open door, ready to assist her if necessary. After urinating, she wets a washcloth and clumsily tries to wash herself; he sees her struggle through the door, and he steps inside the doorway. Logan extends his hand and whispers hesitantly, "Let me help you. You cleaned me up so many times when I had the cast...but it's okay if you don't want me to," he adds, shrugging.

She nods, biting her lip, concentrating on keeping tension at bay. She hands him the washcloth and looks up at him. "I want to feel like...like we used to, when you knew every inch of my body," she whispers. "I want to feel okay with you again."

He leads her back to the bedroom, helps her to lie down, and begins to gently wash her, constantly looking up at her to see how she's doing with this. _Why is this harder than...I've had my mouth, my tongue on every intimate part of her, but this feels..._ She has her eyes closed, but she seems relaxed. Logan says quietly, "I used to love it when you did this for me. I liked watching you, trusting you to take care of me while I was injured. I want to take care of you too." She nods, keeping her eyes closed; she sighs a little as he works. He buttons up her pajama top for her, knowing it's almost impossible with one hand, and retrieves the bottoms from the floor where they ended up. He slips them over her feet and up her legs; she lifts her hips for him, and he pulls them up to her waist.

"Thank you," she says quietly when he finishes. Reluctantly, Veronica admits, "It feels strange to let you take care of me, but...I like it."

He takes just a moment to savor her admission. _She needs me...she's letting me take care of her._ He takes the cloth back to the bathroom and hurries back to her. Logan lies down next to her and pulls up the covers. He gathers her into his arms and whispers, "I love you, Veronica."

"I love you too." After a moment, she whispers, "Logan? I want you to help me with something."

"Of course."

"Don't agree until you hear it."

"What, Veronica? You'll know I'll do anything for you."

She scoffs lightly. At first, Veronica speaks slowly, trying to make herself sound perfectly rational and reasonable. "I want you to watch the videos from the operation with me. I want to remember everything." As she talks, her voice speeds up and becomes more urgent. "I need to remember everything, not just to get better, but so I can testify and put them away. And I want to try to understand everything that happened."

He kisses her forehead. "Veronica, I don't know. I think it's a bad idea. You don't have to testify about what you don't remember. They can just use the videos at the trial. And I'm not sure it's possible to understand what happened there. Those people are insane. I want to forget about it."

"You know that's not possible," she argues. "I think...I'll always wonder if I don't do this. It'll always be between us; it'll always have the power to make things wrong for us again. And what if something comes out at the trial? I don't want to find out what happened from some paparazzi screaming it in my face for a reaction shot. What do you know about that last day? I know he was..." She swallows, frightened but determined. "He was confronting me about my rape." It's not a question; she knows on some level that this is the truth. Her dad had told her in the hospital that she could tell him anything about that night, and she had known instantly that those vague, terrifying memories of Klein pressing her about Shelly's party were not her imagination or a particularly vivid nightmare but the horrible truth. It was all made even more appalling by the shock in her dad's eyes when she told him that Lamb had known and not done anything. Her flashes of the group therapy session have become a little more clear with passing time, but her greatest fear is that she'll never know exactly what happened...again.

Logan nods. "You know that I don't really know what happened either. I was outside the room, and I couldn't hear what was going on."

"I remember seeing your face when you came in; you were so upset. What happened that was so shocking?" she asks compulsively.

"Veronica..._I'm_ not ready yet," he begs her. "I feel guilty about everything, I couldn't convince you to quit; I couldn't make them believe me that something was wrong...I let you down. And I let them get under my skin, when I had a job to do there; my job was to protect you, and I couldn't do it. I failed you." He smoothes her hair behind her ear, wishing it was just that easy to make things okay for her again.

"When we're both ready...maybe it would help you too. Logan, we can't spend the rest of our lives feeling bad about this," she replies. "Maybe your therapist would help us, together. Please. You know I'm having a hard time, feeling so weak and fragile. I think I need this."

"I need to think about it...for me, Veronica. Let's talk about it in a couple days." He glances at the alarm clock. "Veronica, it's three a.m. Let's try to get some sleep. I love you...I love you so much." He wants to somehow express how incredible it was to be invited back into her body. "Tonight was so...there's not a word for what it was: unbelievable, beautiful, amazing...I don't know. Tonight was...you gave me hope, Veronica, that we're going to be okay."

"Not just okay," she vows. "Epic, right? ...I love you too, Logan."

* * *

doofus-Seventies slang for 'oaf' or 'dumbass'  
let's book-Seventies slang for 'let's get out of here'  
cool your jets-Seventies slang for 'chillax' or 'take it easy'


	30. Chapters 95 to 99

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall, Kazy, and Sobertears. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility. Sorry about the delay in getting this update posted. I do appreciate hearing that people are enjoying my story.

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**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from chapters 91-94:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/72624•html )

_Mac's FBI handler, Alan Sheffield, questions Agent Mike Fields, Veronica's ex-boyfriend. Mike tells Alan that he has been checking the alibis of people who have accessed the case files for the Saturday Night Slasher to try to prove Veronica's copycat theory. Sheffield wonders if Mike's and Mac's investigation into the serial killer triggered the bombing attack against the Mackenzies, or if Veronica herself did something in Vermont to alert the copycat killer. The alternative is that the Russian mafia somehow knew that Mac was responsible for the arrests of the identity-theft ring, implying that the Russian mafia has a mole in the FBI._

_On the way home to Neptune, Logan finds out that Kendall has been murdered; he contacts Dick, who tells him that Sheriff Leo D'Amato has been questioning people about Logan's previous relationship with Kendall. Veronica senses something is wrong; he finally tells her about Kendall's murder and discusses their options with her and Keith. Unfortunately, with Keith on the plane, there is no nooky on this plane flight. When they arrive in San Diego, they narrowly avoid a run-in with paparazzi, who have been alerted to Keith's and Veronica's involvement in the Briar Hill/Frazzino scandal. Finally arriving at home after the long journey, they learn from Deputy Sacks that crime scene techs have found a partial fingerprint in Kendall's room that is a match for Veronica's prints._

_Leo questions Duncan about Kendall. Duncan denies having a sexual relationship with Kendall senior year; he admits that he was staying at the Neptune Grand before purchasing a home. He reacts violently after the sheriff leaves, throwing a lamp against the wall. On the news, he sees the person he had previously witnessed arguing with Kendall in the park._

_Logan intends to sleep on the couch to give Veronica time and space to heal from her ordeal. But Veronica, sick of feeling fragile and broken, begs him to sleep with her; they have an intimate evening, remarkable for their openness with each other. Veronica admits that she cannot remember much of the last day of the operation, including the vicious therapy session with Klein that focused on her rape; she tells Logan she wants to use the recordings to help jog her memory of the therapy session and get past her traumatic amnesia of the rape itself._

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•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Jumping to Conclusions**  
Leo tries to rationalize his vendetta;  
Mac posits a new suspect; Keith reacts.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
Alan: Ned Vaughan.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER NINETY-FIVE: "JUMPING TO CONCLUSIONS"

Tues. 3/17/09 morning: D'Amato Residence, Neptune, CA

Leo wakes up well before his alarm is set to ring; he starts to mull over what he's begun to call in his mind 'The Echolls Case'. He lies in bed, staring at the ceiling, getting more and more agitated about Logan Echolls. _Fucking Logan Echolls,_ he amends, _and fucking Aaron Echolls...I wish I never heard of either of them._

He gives up on falling back asleep; he knows that he's becoming completely irrational about the case, but still he feels that something is being covered up. _Like father, like son?_ he wonders, remembering Aaron Echolls' masterful machinations behind the scenes that resulted in an acquittal...and his own disgrace. He gets up and puts on some sweats and drives to the beach. He runs along the shore for five miles, trying to regain some sense of perspective. _I can't afford to be wrong again. The phrase 'Neptune Sheriff' is becoming the punch line to a hundred jokes about incompetence and corruption._

Back in his apartment, he showers and dresses for the day. Aware that he will be coordinating security for the Mackenzie funeral with the FBI, he selects his newest uniform, fresh from the dry cleaners. Over coffee and cereal, he opens the file on Aaron Echolls' stalker case from four years ago. The 'le trancheur' who stabbed Echolls appeared to have been just one of several hundred women who were obsessed with the man. Keith Mars helpfully contributed his research to the police files, and Leo notes that Echolls Senior appeared to have been cheating on his wife with numerous women. _I wonder if Logan inherited his father's philandering tendencies,_ he thinks._ Hard to imagine Veronica putting up with that...although I think Veronica would be more likely to castrate Echolls than kill one of his girlfriends._

He sighs, convinced that this stalker idea is a wild goose chase. He makes note of several women against whom the elder Echolls got orders of protection; one of the deputies can follow up with them to make sure that they haven't become interested in the son. Although Logan Echolls has certainly had his share of celebrity notoriety in the past few years, it was nothing like the relentless attention paid to his father, and Leo doubts that a stalker would somehow be motivated to track down and kill an old girlfriend to demonstrate her affection for him. _Veronica would be a far more likely target anyway...Greenblatt was just grasping at straws, trying to divert attention from his role in providing an alibi for Logan._

_What the hell does she see in him anyways?_ he suddenly thinks bitterly.

_FLASHBACK: Veronica finds him at the sheriff's department. She says, "I need to talk to you," and Leo immediately goes on high alert, knowing that nothing good ever follows that intro. She continues, "I can't date you anymore...Trust me, you don't want to date me. I'm a train wreck. Seriously. The-the first guy I ever loved just dropped off the face of the earth, probably because of something I said, and the last guy I dated turned out to be a drug dealer, and I just made out with my dead best friend's boyfriend, who, incidentally, I hate. So. Train wreck," she concludes, pointing at herself._

Leo remembers thinking, '_My dead best friend's boyfriend,' in other words, that asshole Logan Echolls, drunk off his ass, not even wearing any pants, whatafuckingloser,_ and then he also recalls that, of course, she immediately followed up with a request for a favor. _In Veronica's world, you get to do whatever you want, and then ask your friendly law enforcement contact to break the rules and skirt the law to get what you need...and your dad always looks the other way. But if someone else does something wrong, it's the letter of the law, and you're out on your ass without a job._

Again, for the thousandth time since she spit them in his face, he recollects her angry words: '_I'm pretty sure I'm not capable of setting a murderer free.' Ms.-High-and-Mighty, judging me...judging ME! She has no idea what kind of pressure I was under...and what happened when I didn't get the payoff Aaron promised me. Logan's money was just a temporary reprieve before..._

He drops his head into his hands. _Don't think about it...don't think about it. You're not thinking straight._

Resolutely, he tamps down his anger. _I am not going to fuck up this investigation. I'm NOT going to be Neptune's latest joke of a sheriff. I'm going to investigate this wherever it takes me and back up my theories with evidence._

Leo picks up the phone and asks to speak to one of the deputies at the sheriff's department. The deputy reports that the security footage from the Neptune Grand never shows Kendall together with Duncan Kane. In fact, the deputy noticed that the only security cameras that caught her image were located in the lobby; apparently, Ms. Casablancas took pains to avoid being recorded. Leo cradles the phone and thinks about the lengths she went to to conceal herself. He takes out before and after pictures from his file and compares her features. Her nose and cheekbones appear to have been slightly altered; her lips are somewhat fuller and the chin could have been changed as well. None of the alterations are extensive, but the overall effect completely disguises her appearance. _Why was it so important that she change the way she looked?_

He realizes that Duncan Kane has also completely changed his appearance. The Kane software heir's image has been featured so prominently in the tabloids over the last month that Leo has forgotten that he, too, used to look quite different.

_I'm more confused than ever,_ he thinks. _What the hell was going on here...two people with extensive plastic surgery, both suddenly coming back to town, both staying at the Neptune Grand. One with a lot to lose, and the other one ends up dead._

_A lot to lose..._Leo thinks about Duncan's desperate decision three years earlier to flee the country with his baby daughter. He opens the file on the Manning babynapping and rereads the FBI reports on the investigation. The report concludes, _'Although there is no concrete evidence of her involvement, we suspect that Veronica Mars assisted Duncan Kane in his flight from the country and misled the authorities during the investigation. We recommend that the case against Ms. Mars remain open pending any additional information in the case.'_

He finds his notes from his interview of Madison Sinclair._ Madison said, 'Kendall finally wore Duncan down and nailed him. Veronica walked in on her in Duncan's bedroom; Logan witnessed the whole thing and told Dick...The next day, Veronica and Duncan had a very public fight at school, and they broke it off. If you ask me, the only thing that was surprising was that Duncan had stayed with Veronica for as long as he did. Everyone thought that he was going to get back together with his old girlfriend Meg anyways, since she was pregnant with Duncan's child.'_

_And after the public breakup, Duncan fled the country with his baby daughter. They used Kendall to make everyone think that Veronica and Duncan had broken up–to protect Veronica when Duncan took off. Classic Veronica Mars maneuver; the only question is whether Logan was in on it._

Leo drums his fingers on the table, deep in thought. _No statute of limitations on aiding and abetting kidnapping...Duncan's not the only one with a lot to lose if Veronica, and maybe Echolls too, helped with the kidnapping. I wonder what Kendall knew about the babynapping. Did they only use her as a patsy, a distraction to make everyone think that Veronica and Duncan had split up, or was Kendall actually involved somehow? Or did she remember something that would tie Veronica to the kidnapping?_

_Did Kendall come back to town to blackmail Veronica and threaten Duncan just as he was trying to win permanent custody of his daughter?_

Leo has another thought. _Logan's cash withdrawal in January...the payoff for Ms. Casablancas? Fifty grand–not much of a payoff, unless it was just the down payment. And...the timing's a little off, unless Kendall had already been in touch with them._ He makes a note to request Logan's phone records from back in January.

The phone rings again. One of the deputies says, "Sheriff, we got word from Homeland Security that Logan Echolls flew from Boston to San Diego last night. I checked the flight manifest, and Keith and Veronica Mars were on the flight as well. I checked with the Manchester Center authorities, and they said that Echolls is free on a 50,000 bond on the assault and battery charge. I thought you'd want to know right away; you seemed pretty eager to talk to the guy."

"Yeah...thanks. I appreciate the heads-up." Leo hangs up. He puts in a call to Logan's permanent address in Los Angeles; there is no answer. He tries Keith Mars' home phone, and a message announces that the voicemail box is full and to try to call later.

He decides to head over to the Mars' apartment later to see if Logan is staying there; right now he needs to head to the department to run a scheduled briefing on security details for the Mackenzie funeral. _And then maybe...maybe I'll try to talk to Tina at the Neptune Grand again. I need to see what she knew about Logan and Kendall and question her about Duncan and Kendall._ He thinks about Tina's vague answers to his questions. _Oswaldo Cortez had said, 'Tina told us that she wanted the employees to keep their mouths shut about the guests. Tina's a real starfucker; she's always hoping one of these Hollywood types will take her away from all this.' I'll bet Tina didn't tell me everything that was going on at the Grand. You'd think it was the fucking Camelot No-tell Motel. Let's see if I can get a little more information out of her before I talk to Echolls and Veronica._

Tues. 3/17/09 morning: Hotel, San Diego, CA

Mac opens the door of her room to Alan. "Are you ready to get going?" he asks.

She hesitates; she couldn't sleep for the entire night worrying about the funeral. When Alan told her that he believed there was a personal motive for the bombing attempt, she immediately thought of Gory Sorokin and the vendetta he swore against Logan and Veronica. _Would he really kill my entire family to get to them?_ Finally, after tossing and turning for the entire night, she decided that she had to at least mention Gory's name. _I just have to make sure not to mention the hard drive or what Keith did to protect Veronica. I have to tell Alan._

"I have something to tell you," she says, sitting down on the bed. "Two years ago, there was a Hearst student who was rumored to be connected, and...well, he did something to Veronica. When her boyfriend, Logan Echolls, found out about it, he beat up this student, Gorya Sorokin. And Gorya swore that he would pay them back. He told Logan, 'Whoever you are, you're gonna die.' He seemed kind of...insane, actually."

"Two years ago?" Alan asks. "Why would he wait until now? And why go after your family?"

"I don't know. It doesn't make sense. I just thought I should tell you."

"Why did you wait until now to tell me?...Mac? I'd like an answer," Alan presses.

"I can't say. It's probably just a coincidence."

Alan looks at her. "Veronica did something illegal, didn't she?"

Mac stares back, refusing to answer.

Alan sighs. "What's the name again?" Mac hands him a sheet of notepaper with the name on it. Alan pulls out his Blackberry and makes a phone call. "Can you run a name for me?...Yeah, it might be relevant to the funeral today. Gorya Sorokin. The only information I have is that he was a student at Hearst College." Alan waits. "Really. Paroled on February 6 of this year?...On a weapons charge...Can you get in touch with his parole officer?...Thanks." He terminates and looks at Mac.

Mac says, "February 6? Alan, the package bomb was postmarked February 7."

"Will you tell me the whole story now?"

"You don't need to know the whole story," she replies obstinately. "All you need to know is that he wants to kill Veronica and Logan...and I guess me too." _Maybe he figured out that I helped Veronica._

"Dammit, Mac." Alan makes another phone call. "Sheffield here. I have some information about a possible suspect in the Mackenzie bombing." He quickly summarizes what little Mac had told him and the information he had just learned about Sorokin. "No...Two years ago, according to Ms. Mackenzie...I really think we should–...But sir, I think–...Yes, sir." He punches the end button and looks at Mac.

"Are you going to cancel the funeral? It's too dangerous," Mac says anxiously.

"I can't. My supervisor is more worried about an FBI mole. He doesn't think this guy Sorokin sounds like a credible suspect. He doesn't have a record of any bombings or violent felonies, just the one weapons charge. Before that, he has a completely clean record. And why would he wait two years to go after your friends and do it in such a roundabout way? They agreed to put out an APB on Sorokin and see if they can track him down just in case. And I'm supposed to coordinate some additional security for the funeral."

"You've got to tell her not to go to the funeral!" Mac gasps. "It's not safe, if this guy Gory is gunning for her!"

"There's going to be a lot of eyes on her," Alan says. "I'm sorry, Mac. I wish you had mentioned this before. But you know if this guy actually is targeting your friend, this might be our best opportunity to catch him. I'll make sure all the agents get a copy of his mug shot." He catches Mac looking at him and adds, "And Mac? Keep your hands off my Blackberry."

Tues. 3/17/09 morning: Sunset Cliffs Apartment / Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Keith wakes up, expecting to find Logan on the couch. He tiptoes into the kitchen to avoid waking him only to realize that Logan is not in the living room, and Veronica's bedroom door is shut tightly. His stomach tightens in distress as he pictures Logan relentlessly trying to seduce his little girl in the middle of the night. He opens her door silently and curses internally when he sees them snuggled together on her bed. _Goddammit, Logan. You know she's fragile right now!_

His every instinct is telling him to haul Logan out of there and toss him out on the sidewalk; he is only able to stop himself by reminding himself that Veronica needs to avoid stress as much as possible, and with the funeral this afternoon she'll have enough to deal with. Keith settles for perversely slamming a cupboard door shut. He grumbles under his breath as he makes his breakfast and coffee. He makes a few phone calls and decides to go into Mars Investigations, before his bad temper gets the best of him and he does something to Logan that he might regret later.

When Keith arrives at the office, Wallace is already hard at work. "Hey, Keith. Do you want to start with your messages?" He hands Keith a stack of message slips. "Coffee?" Keith nods, and Wallace gets a cup of coffee and puts it on Keith's desk. "How's Veronica this morning?" Wallace asks.

"She was still asleep when I left," Keith says shortly, trying not to display his anger.

"She'll be okay," Wallace says, misjudging Keith's demeanor as concern. As he leaves the inner office, he nods questioningly at the door. Keith motions for him to close it.

Keith frowns at the stack of messages. He closes his eyes, procrastinating for a moment. When he woke up to find Logan sleeping in Veronica's room against his wishes, he was completely furious, not just at Logan's disobedience but at his actual deception the night before. With a little distance from the operation, he has begun to berate himself for allowing Logan to be involved. Despite Logan's best efforts, he still seems to sometimes lack good judgment: running away after Hannah's death, assaulting Klein, and now this. Keith knows that the responsibility for Logan's involvement in the investigation rests solely upon his own shoulders, and he wonders how he could have taken such a chance with an amateur when his daughter's life was at stake. At the same time, he admits that Logan did help and pushed to end the operation when it did. Keith decides that there's plenty of blame to go around; _why the hell did I let it go on for so long? I should have..._

_Dammit, how could I have not known that Veronica was raped? _ He pounds on the desk in frustration. _I was obsessed with Lilly Kane, when I should have been obsessed with my own daughter. I saw that she was upset, why didn't I...why didn't I..._

Keith rubs his forehead and shuffles through the papers on his desk, trying to think about something else, anything else, to blot out the pictures of his daughter being unknowingly fed drugs by her boyfriend, then Cassidy holding her down and pushing himself between her legs...and then Keith pictures himself, supposedly the doting father, ignoring the signs that she was hurting and throwing himself into an investigation to clear his own reputation. He opens the desk drawer, looking for a pen, and suddenly slams the drawer shut with a bang. _If Logan hurt her by pushing her to have sex with him last night...I don't care what Veronica says. He'll have to go...if I don't kill him first._

Wallace taps on the door.

"Come in," Keith says quietly. He picks up the top sheet of paper on his desk and pretends to read it.

"Everything okay in here? Thought I heard something..." Wallace asks.

"I just, uh, dropped something," Keith replies lamely.

"Okay." Wallace looks at Keith, wondering what's going on. "There was another message from Duncan Kane on the machine. He's called almost every day while you've been gone."

Grateful for something else to think about, Keith asks, "He's calling about the custody case?"

"I talked to him a few days ago. I don't think it's just that. He seemed pretty nervous about something. He really wants to talk to Veronica."

_Kendall,_ Keith thinks. "I'll call him right now." He thumbs through the message slips and finds Duncan's number. The call goes directly to voicemail, and Keith leaves a message, asking Duncan to stop by the apartment that evening.

Wallace says, "Do you want to go over the cases I handled while you were away?"

They spend almost an hour going through several insurance fraud investigations, background checks, and asset searches that Wallace took care of in Keith's absence. Keith makes a few notes and suggestions. The work improves Keith's mood, tempering his anger at Logan, but he still resolves to have a long talk with him concerning his daughter's well-being.

When they reach the bottom of the pile, Wallace says, "Can I show you something?"

"Of course."

Wallace puts a large piece of paper labeled 'Fitzpatrick Crime Family' on Keith's desk.

"What's this?"

Wallace sighs. "Candice wanted me to drop the investigation into her brother's death. She thinks it's too dangerous."

"She sounds pretty smart, Wallace. You should listen to her."

Wallace says, "But you know, Weevil and I went up to Chino and talked to the guy who used to be in charge of PCHers before Gustavio Toombs. Emilio Vargas."

"Yeah, I remember Emilio. A tough kid."

"Emilio told us what he had heard about Shawn. Apparently, Shawn had a connection for this new drug, Meth-X. But the supplier only wanted to deal in large quantities, and Shawn couldn't handle that. He didn't have the money or the distribution for that kind of a deal."

"So he got the Fitzpatricks to help," Keith suggests.

"Exactly. And I guess it was a match made in heaven for awhile. But then Emilio said that Ciaran tried to cut out Shawn and go directly to the source. And Shawn was trying to go around the Fitzpatricks, so..."

"Ciaran took out Shawn."

"Yeah. But that's not the most important thing that Emilio told us. We had already figured that they probably killed Shawn over the drugs. Emilio said that the Fitzpatricks have a cop in their pocket."

"A dirty cop?" Keith asks sharply. _Vinnie said that Liam had a contact in the FBI._

"Yeah, Emilio was positive that the Fitzpatricks have a connection in law enforcement."

"It did seem suspicious when Liam's racketeering charges were dropped. It was a pretty solid case," Keith comments.

"I didn't want to just drop it, but...I promised Candice to be careful. So I've been doing research...the files on Ciaran and Padraig and Gustavio Toombs that you got from Inga, newspaper articles. I've been looking in the county courthouse files too, just collecting names that seem to be associated with the Fitzpatricks."

Keith studies Wallace's chart carefully. "Most of these people are known criminals."

"Right. I tried to show family connections, too. Maybe we'll see someone who shouldn't be connected to the Fitzpatricks."

"It's good work, Wallace." Keith thinks a minute. "You know, there might be a few more names I can add to this for you." He pulls the phone toward him and dials the sheriff's department. "Inga, it's Keith Mars...Yes, it was quite a big case. Veronica did a great job...I'll tell her you said hello. Inga, I'm being audited...2002 and 2003. I need to get copies of some of my files from that period. Yes, the Mulvaney_  
_investigation and...Kevin Bray. Oh, and maybe McLaughlin too...Yeah, those crazy Fitzpatricks kept us busy, right?...I'll have my assistant come by to pick them up. Wallace Fennel...I'll talk to you soon, Inga." He hangs up and looks at Wallace. "I'm glad you were careful while I was gone. I promised I'd help with Shawn's case, and I will. Just let me tie up a few loose ends on the Briar Hill case."

The phone rings, and Wallace picks it up. "Mars Investigations?...Yes, let me check." He puts the call on hold and tells Keith, "It's Ms. Denenberg."

Keith nods grimly. He takes the receiver and connects the call. "Ms. Denenberg...Stephanie...Yes, I can come by this afternoon." He looks at his watch. "Can we say...1:00?...Okay, I'll see you then." He hangs up. "Wallace, let's get going on some of these new cases."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Losing Your Perspective**  
Logan talks with his shrink.  
Logan: Jason Dohring. Dr. Friedman: Lorraine Bracco.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER NINETY-SIX: "LOSING YOUR PERSPECTIVE"

Tues. 3/17/09 morning: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Logan wakes up to the sound of cupboard doors banging in the kitchen. He hears Backup bark quietly, and Keith says, "It's okay, boy." Logan listens to Keith making breakfast and getting ready for his day, with an occasional muttered aside to the dog. Keith makes several brief phone calls; Veronica's name is mentioned several times. He hears the jangle of keys; the front door opens and closes.

Logan looks over at Veronica, who is sound asleep. He wants to caress her and hold her more than anything, but he is plagued by doubts that he should have somehow controlled the situation better last night. He can't help but think, _it was too soon, it was TOO SOON, how could I...I should have convinced her to wait._ He tries to reassure himself by recalling their conversation; like a drowning man with a lifeline, he holds desperately onto her words. _'I want to feel okay with you again...It feels strange to let you take care of me, but...I like it.'_ Suddenly, he is appalled to realize that he is slightly aroused, and he quickly gets out of bed and throws on his jeans.

Logan goes to the kitchen where he finds a note on the counter.

_Went to the office. I'll pick you up at 3:30 for the funeral._

_Veronica, this is the orthopedic surgeon Dr. Jacobson recommended. Please call him to set up an appointment as soon as possible for your shoulder._

_Dr. John Aster, 555-2829_

_Logan, I need to speak to you._

_It wasn't my imagination...Keith is pissed that I slept with Veronica last night. And he's right...I shouldn't have let her talk me into it. She's not as strong as she thinks she is._ He quietly goes about making his own breakfast, hoping Veronica will sleep for a while longer. While the coffee brews, he walks back to her bedroom and peeks in the doorway. She is sleeping soundly, with her mouth open slightly and her body completely relaxed. Backup nudges him, wanting to go on the bed with Veronica, but Logan quietly shuts the bedroom door and shoos him back into the kitchen, rewarding him with a treat.

After downing a cup of coffee and a slice of toast, he takes the phone into Keith's bedroom and shuts the door to avoid waking her up. He dials his therapist in Los Angeles. Keeping his voice low, he says, "It's Logan Echolls."

Dr. Friedman replies, "Logan...I was wondering why I hadn't heard from you, but then I saw something in the paper today. You went with Veronica on that undercover operation, didn't you."

"Yes."

"It sounds like it was very successful, based on the arrests I read about in the paper. And the story about Assemblyman Frazzino...it's just appalling," Dr. Friedman comments.

When Logan doesn't reply, she asks, "Logan?"

"I'm here. I've wanted to talk to you so many times, and now...I don't know how to start."

"Start at the beginning," Friedman suggests.

"They got me a job at the school as a guard. I started before Veronica got there. I had to help make sure that the girls behaved." He summarizes for Friedman what happened during the beginning of the operation: Veronica fighting back at her strip search and being sentenced to Observation Placement almost immediately, and his having to help take her down in group therapy when she fell asleep.

"Oh, Logan. You had to hold her down?" Dr. Friedman asks.

Logan grips the phone. "That's nothing. It got worse. We...we needed to document the use of restraints. So Veronica started to really push. They assigned her to write an essay, and Veronica just wrote 'fuck you,' over and over again. When they confronted her about the essay, Veronica pretended to try and escape."

"Pretended?"

Logan sighs. "She was trying to get sentenced to restraints, so she acted like she was escaping. She got one of the card keys so she could unlock the door and run, but she got to the door too quickly; she had to fumble with the key until I got there, and then she struggled against me. I had to..." He stumbles over the words. "I had to hurt her to stop her. And...I was so angry with her, for pushing them. And...this is going to sound crazy, I was furious at her for not behaving. I knew she had to, but it was like I was actually a guard and she was actually a student."

Friedman is silent, processing what Logan is telling her.

"I hurt her more than I had to," he adds, almost in a whisper. "I was thinking, 'Why are you making me do this to you? Why do you make me hurt you? This is for your own good.' She was resisting, doing her job, and I couldn't do _my_ job. I couldn't _not_ hurt her. How could I do that? I mean, she was incredible, she seemed to know exactly how to force them to abuse her."

"Logan–" Dr. Friedman tries to interrupt.

He rushes in, ignoring her. "And I needed to get along with the other employees in order to do the job, so I wouldn't get fired and not be there to protect her. What was crazy was that the other guys...it-it seemed like they were really making sense. They were all ex-drunks just like me, and they were funny, they were...I know they weren't good guys, but it seemed like...I don't know. I can't explain it. I'm just a fucking asshole, I let them get to me." Logan's voice is rising with his anxiety.

"Logan, listen to me. I need you to slow down. Take a breath. Count to ten for me."

"That's not even everything," he replies morosely before he does as she suggested. _One...two... three...four...five...six...seven...eight...nine...ten._ He takes a deep breath. "So we put Veronica in restraints. She had to be taken to the bathroom every six hours, and...they decided I was ready to help with something like that. And she...she was so fucking brave. She wasn't scared, she was baiting me and the other guy, she called me a fucking nazi. And he grabbed her around the neck and then..." Almost inaudibly, he continues, "We humiliated her by making her go to the bathroom in a bucket in front of us. I can't even describe it. It was...it was even worse than it sounds. They were trying to break her, and I was helping."

"Is that when the operation ended?" Dr. Friedman asks.

"No!! You're not understanding. She wouldn't give up. Even after that, she wouldn't stop."

"My god...Logan..."

He laughs bitterly. "And it's all on tape. Veronica was wearing a wire. I'm sure they'll play that scene at the trial. ...I kept begging Veronica's dad to stop the operation, but they wouldn't listen to me. Veronica kept insisting on continuing."

"Were you still...identifying with the other guards after this incident with the bucket?" Dr. Friedman asks cautiously.

"I don't know," Logan replies truthfully. He thinks for a moment before continuing, remembering. "I think I was just so glad because Connie, I mean Veronica, stopped resisting, stopped fighting back for a little while. I just wanted to forget about it."

"Connie is the name Veronica was using?" Friedman probes.

"Yes." He exhales loudly. "The next day I was...I was just trying to hold on, I was telling jokes with the other guys, I was just trying to do the job. I knew I was supposed to be there to protect her, but I was getting so...confused. The guys were teasing me about her, needling me that she was my girlfriend, and I had to be rougher with her, so they wouldn't _know_. I was losing track of who I was, what I was supposed to be doing; I kept catching myself almost screwing up. But then..." he stops, his voice trailing off.

"What?"

"I met with Veronica's dad and the other guys monitoring the operation. They were considering pulling me out, because they could tell that I was fucking up. I had to convince them to let me stay, I wasn't going to leave her there without me."

"You begged them to let you stay on as a guard," Friedman repeats.

"Yeah. I...I had to get it together, I had to hold it together, for her. If she wouldn't quit, I had to stay. One of my old professors, Dr. Kinny, was helping with the monitoring. And...and he helped. He kind of talked me down, got me to see that..." He takes a deep breath, and says it aloud. "He tried to convince me that I'm not an abuser like my father."

"You've been working hard for a long time now to be a better person than your father, Logan."

"I didn't feel like a better person while we were there. ...That night, after I convinced them to let me stay at the school, I had a dream, well, a nightmare I guess. It was Veronica and Hannah, begging me to help them, to keep going and protect them. I don't know why, but when I woke up, I didn't feel so confused. I was able to focus a little better, keep track of who I was and why I was there."

"Why didn't they want to stop the operation?" Friedman asks. "It sounds like you had enough evidence at this point."

"That's what I thought. I guess they were arguing about it. They were worried about Veronica, but they also knew how hard it would be to convict Klein and shut down the school. And Veronica was so determined. We had code words worked out, and she kept saying them over and over again, to show them that she was okay. I tried again–when I got her alone for a second, I tried to get her to quit. But she refused. I was so angry at her: couldn't she see how dangerous it was, how sick they were?...I was, I don't know, I thought I was going insane, and I had to keep telling myself that it wasn't real, and it was going to be over soon. And I had to keep going, I had to stay to protect her. Then it got worse. They started singling her out, really targeting her in group therapy." He sighs. "Veronica was using...she was using stuff from _us_."

"Us?" Friedman echoes.

"She was using stories about Lilly when they were trying to get her to admit to her bad behavior. I couldn't help it; I got so mad at her. I don't like anyone knowing about that, that I feel...guilty about Lilly. I realized later, she was desperate, she was using those stories to try to get them to back off a little. Dr. Friedman, I'm so ashamed; it was so hard for Veronica there, and I let her see that I was upset with her for talking about Lilly. I could tell, she _knew_ I was mad. How could I do that? They were on her, night and day, fussing at her to admit things, and I was such a fucking asshole...I got pissed because she told them something from our past when she was just trying to do her job."

"You reacted. You're human," Friedman replies.

"You don't know how bad it was for her. All I had to do was be there to protect her, and I couldn't even do that. I made it harder for her. What the hell is wrong with me?" Logan begins to cry. He wipes tears off his cheek and grips the phone tightly.

"Logan, listen to me. You did the best you could. This was an impossible situation."

"Everyone's going to see how I let her down. _She's_ going to see. She wants to watch all the video tapes."

"What?"

"She doesn't remember the last day. That sick fucker Peter Klein was confronting her about her rape."

"What do you mean she doesn't remember?" Dr. Friedman says worriedly.

He exhales loudly. "She was sick, with a high fever, and they had hurt her shoulder. And he was torturing her with attack therapy. I was outside, I couldn't hear what he was saying. We had finally decided to stop the operation, but I had to wait for backup before I could go in to get her. I was outside the room, imagining what was going on, thinking about what horrible things they were doing to her, and then..." He pauses, then continues, "When we finally went in, they had written 'SLUT' on her forehead, and she was completely out of it. She didn't recognize me; she thought I was there to hurt her, and she tried to get away from me." Logan tries again to wipe away the tears on his face. "Dr. Friedman, I'm afraid if she remembers..."

"What?"

"...She's unbelievable. She says she's not mad at me," he explains. "Why isn't she mad at me? Veronica is trying so hard, she's...trying to get past this, trying to keep us together. Last night, she insisted...she wanted to sleep together. She's so fucking strong. I'm not strong like her. I really wanted to take it slowly with her, give her a chance to get...I don't know, _strong_ again. But last night, she was...she was crying, she thought I was pushing her away because I wasn't attracted to her any more. She begged me, she...I let her...Dr. Friedman, we had sex last night, and we shouldn't have, it was too soon. I shouldn't have...dammit! I just love her so much, and when she started crying, I couldn't not hold her in my arms and..."

Dr. Friedman stays silent for a moment, then asks, "What was it like? How did Veronica react when you made love?"

"It started off great, just kissing and touching, and then...she said something. It was an accident, she said something she had said when we humiliated her with the bucket."

"What did she say?" Friedman says curiously.

"She said, 'I'll behave.'" He sighs. "We stopped, and I didn't want to do anything else. But she insisted, she took my hand and...well, slowly, we– we got past it. She was so fucking strong. She was _determined_ to make love, to not let them take it away from us."

Cautiously, Friedman probes, "And what happened...once you got past this...faux pas?"

"It was incredible...she let me take care of her, admitted she needed me, all the things I always wanted from her that were so hard for her. It's _never_ been like that for us. To tell you the truth, I'm scared to death that I screwed up again. I mean, I want to hope that it's going to be okay for us, but..." Logan pauses. "I'm so afraid."

"What scares you the most, Logan?"

In a whisper, he says hesitantly, "I think she remembered something about her rape during the group therapy, but now she can't remember what happened that whole last day of the operation."

"It's possible. The new trauma might have unlocked deeply buried memories for her, and it might be too hard for her to examine those memories–"

He interrupts. "I know she blames me for her rape. And she should. I got the drugs that were used on her," Logan explains.

"But you didn't–"

"It doesn't matter. She knows, I'm responsible. And...I know if she remembers her rape, she's going to..." He swallows, unable to continue. "She's not going to be able to get past that. No one's that strong."

Dr. Friedman exhales softly. After a few moments, she says quietly, "Logan...I saw on the news that Veronica was released from the hospital. It sounds like she's being taken care of."

"Of course they're taking care of her. She had a kidney infection and a dislocated shoulder."

"And it sounds like they are taking care of her emotional health too. But...who's taking care of you?"

"What?"

"Logan, I hear you blaming yourself. You were an amateur in an extremely tough situation. Who's taking care of you?"

"I don't deserve–"

"Logan! You're not listening to me," Dr. Friedman says sharply. "You've been through a trauma here, too."

"No, that's crazy, Veronica's the one we have to worry about. I'm all right."

"You don't sound all right to me."

"No, I'm fine," he protests. He starts to become agitated again. "I just need your help, I want to help Veronica through this. I'm worried about doing the right thing for her. I keep screwing up, and I don't understand why she still...loves me. It's not just the undercover operation...there's this woman that I had an affair with a few years ago..." Logan struggles to find the words to explain. "Her name was Kendall. She was back in town, making trouble again, and while we were in Vermont, somebody killed her. And...it's all coming out, the affair that I had with her, and the sheriff is going around asking questions about me and Kendall. I can't believe this is happening, on top of everything else. And Veronica is–" he breaks off.

"Veronica is what?" Friedman presses.

"She just said we would figure it out, somehow. I thought she would be...I don't know, her old judgmental self, telling me that I fucked up again. And this woman, Kendall...she really caused a lot of pain for us. I don't know how Veronica is not more upset about it."

"You said that Veronica is really trying. And, Logan, you said yourself, she admitted to you how much she needs you. You've become pretty close to Veronica's father. Can you talk with him about how you're feeling? I'm very concerned that no one is recognizing how difficult this experience was for you."

"Veronica's dad is pretty pissed at me right now. He specifically asked me not to...not to share Veronica's bed last night."

"Of course, he's worried about his daughter. He knows about the rape then?"

"He does now. I told him about the GHB, that I brought it to the party." Logan scoffs. "It's a mess. I'm surprised he didn't kill me himself when he found out."

"You said it was Veronica's idea to sleep together last night. You didn't press her, did you?"

"No! Of course not. She was crying; she wanted me to hold her. She said it was upsetting her that we were acting like she was weak and needed protecting. I tried to get her to go slowly, but..." Logan mumbles, "She was insistent. She keeps saying that it hurts her worse when we treat her like she's broken."

"From my short time with Veronica, I'm not surprised that she would feel that way. She needs to feel strong and in control, and she's been through an experience that took all that away from her. Still..." Friedman sighs. "The fact that she was raped, and now they used it against her...I'm very worried about both of you."

"She wants you to help us watch the videos so she can remember what happened that last day. She's unbelievable. She's so fucking determined."

"She's trying to get healthy, trying to get back to the Veronica she used to be any way she can," Friedman comments. "She's a very strong woman, Logan. She's going to be okay. _You're_ going to be okay. You'll get through this, I'm sure of it. ...Logan, I'm sorry. I have a patient coming in. But you can call me anytime. You still have my home number too?"

"Yeah. Thanks," he says.

"I'm glad you called. Please, call me if you need me. Let's talk in a day or so, okay? Remember to really listen to Veronica when she talks. She'll tell you what she needs from you. And I'd like you to think about telling her what you need from her."

Logan disconnects. He takes a deep breath and massages his neck, stretching it to try to relieve some of his tension. The intense knot in his stomach gradually releases, and he realizes that the knot has been there, nagging and persistent, ever since the end of the operation. Logan admits to himself that he has tried to avoid examining his own behavior during the operation by focusing on taking care of her. He feels a curious mixture of relief, guilt, and sorrow after finally talking about what happened, and the therapist's concern for him does reassure him more than he would have thought possible. But despite Friedman's comments, he knows he can't possibly talk to Keith about these feelings. _If I ever needed a father to talk to, it's now,_ he muses bitterly. He thinks about Veronica's strength and vows to hold onto the hope that somehow they will be okay.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Tightening the Noose**  
Logan and Veronica work on their story;  
Leo digs into the goings-on at the Neptune  
Grand; Leo picks up Veronica and Logan  
for questioning.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Tina: Anna Campbell.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER NINETY-SEVEN: "TIGHTENING THE NOOSE"

Tues. 3/17/09 late morning: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Veronica wakes up. She cautiously opens her eyes. _I feel pretty good,_ she thinks to her surprise. _I'm home,_ she remembers, and then she smiles, recalling the night before. She sits up and cautiously gets out of bed, favoring her shoulder; even her injury seems to be bothering her a little bit less after a good night's sleep in her own comfortable bed.

She walks out to the kitchen. Logan is sitting at the counter with several days' worth of newspaper spread around him.

"Hey," he says. "How are you feeling today?"

"Hey," she replies, suddenly shy. "I feel good. It's great to be home." Backup wakes up on the couch and joins them in the kitchen, hopeful for dropped food and some attention. Veronica bends down and begins to play with his ear; as she scratches his head, he whines happily.

"Want some breakfast? Eggs, pancakes..." he suggests.

"Did you eat?"

"A little bit, maybe an hour ago," he answers. "I've been catching up on the news."

She nods. "Where's Dad?"

"He left a note," Logan says, pushing it to her.

"_'Went to the office....Logan, I need to speak to you,'_" she reads. Puzzled, she asks, "What's that about?"

He looks at her for a moment before answering. "Well, if I had to guess, I'd say he's mad about me sleeping with you last night...your dad was slamming the cupboards pretty hard this morning when he made his breakfast. I'm surprised he didn't wake you up," Logan says.

"No, I slept like a log. It's, uh...the first time since the operation started that I haven't had any bad dreams," she concludes quietly. She sees him looking at her with concern. _Don't tell him, don't let him see...._

He suddenly grasps, _I didn't realize...of course she's been having nightmares_. "I'm glad you slept."

"He's mad about you sleeping with me?" she presses, trying hard to keep her voice logical and unemotional.

"We had a discussion last night about the sleeping arrangements. We both agreed it would be better for me to sleep on the couch."

"So you and Dad discussed where you were going to sleep without consulting me?" she blurts out angrily. _'You're a damaged person, Connie. You can't function in society.' Damn it to hell!_ "You were discussing my...mental fitness, my..." She exhales in frustration. "Do I get a vote? Last night, I thought you were...I thought you didn't want..." she swallows.

"Veronica. Come on. We're worried about you. We've talked about this, about letting the people who love you take care of you."

"I really want you guys to include me in these decisions, okay?" she says, fuming.

"Veronica, it was hard enough for your dad to say what he did. He probably doesn't even like to think about us having sex, and you know he's been pretty cool with us. He just wants you to be all right, like I do. And I'm not surprised he was mad when he woke up and realized I was plowing his beloved daughter the night before." A note of self-disgust creeps into his voice. _I shouldn't have given in to her...goddamn, I'm such a fucking asshole._

Veronica squints at him and tries to read his mood, detecting something a little off in his comment. _This is so fucking hard. Stop it, Veronica. That's Logan...focus. Plowing...he's feeling guilty about last night. _She tries to calm down..._they don't think you're damaged, Veronica. Logan loves you, he's worried about you. _"Plowing?" she repeats aloud.

Logan attempts to deflect. "Okay...caressing your alabaster thighs and worshipping your quivering mound of Venus," he amends lightly. "...m'lady." He remembers what Friedman had said, _'I'd like you to think about telling her what you need from her,'_ but he rejects it out of hand as completely too intimidating.

Her anger about Logan and her dad being overprotective evaporates. Veronica shakes with the effort of repressing her laughter. "Mound of Venus...oh my god. Don't forget about your throbbing shaft," she finally adds, between giggles.

He pulls her to him and lifts her to sit on his lap. She rests her head on his shoulder and closes her eyes, and he puts his arms around her. Logan thinks, _Now I'm completely screwed. I gave in to her; if I try to go slow again, she'll think I'm rejecting her. She'll never understand that I'm just scared of hurting her. How the hell am I going to do this without making things worse?_ Logan asks aloud, "You're really feeling okay today?"

"Better than okay." She opens her eyes and looks at his worried face. "It wasn't too soon," she protests. "I needed to feel loved last night. I'll talk to Dad."

"Oh, I want to be a fly on the wall for that conversation. And Veronica, you probably should do it sooner rather than later. I think he might have plans to hurt me," he comments. Logan swallows and screws up his courage. "He loves you, Veronica; he's trying to help you and protect you. And so am I. I love you so much, Veronica. Just...try to remember, I'm scared, and I don't know how to do this. I need you too...more than you know." _Does that count as telling her what you need?_

He idly strokes her hair for a while before he says, "Veronica, I have to talk to you about Kendall."

"Now what?" she mutters. _I wish it could just be like this all the time,_ she suddenly thinks, closing her eyes and leaning against him. _Fuck Kendall._

"Sacks told your dad last night that they found a partial fingerprint in Kendall's room, and it looks like a pretty close match to your fingerprints. It was in one of the drawers...maybe when you were searching for videotaping equipment that night. Sacks said that Leo's going to try to surprise you with that. You need to be prepared."

"I don't understand what Leo's trying to accomplish. We clearly have an alibi for the time when she was murdered."

"He's trying to make our lives miserable," Logan replies. Nervously, he continues, "Veronica, I'm...I'm so sorry about Kendall, about getting involved with her in the first place. You know, when you came by that morning, after Alterna-Prom, I....Veronica, I wish I could erase that from our lives. I wish I could rewind to the night before. I would have stopped drinking and locked myself in my room and waited to see if you changed your mind."

"Changed my mind?"

"When you left, when you didn't want to...."

Veronica says, "It wasn't that I didn't want to, I just needed to think about it. You're not the only one who was drinking that night."

"You? You were drinking?"

"I had a couple glasses of champagne. For me, that's like...wasted. And...you scared me. I mean, I knew; I knew you didn't _hate_ me anymore."

"Veronica, I _never_ hated you," Logan objects.

"Umm, I don't think that's true. But you know, you can't really hate someone unless you love them."

"So what you're saying is you really hated _me_," he says.

She nods. "Yes, I suppose so. And I also loved you, and that was scary."

Logan says, "I don't remember what happened that night. I guess I blacked out." He sighs. "You know that that happened to me pretty often in the old days when I was drinking. I don't remember calling Kendall, but then again I don't remember much of anything after you left. She might have just shown up; she did that a few times. And I think I was too fucked up that night to send her away. I'm so sorry, Veronica. I wanted to spend the rest of my life making that up to you. I hate that she's still making trouble for us."

"She can only make trouble for us if we let her."

"I hope you're right," he replies.

Veronica nods at the papers spread out on the counter. "Anything interesting in the papers?"

"Not much about Kendall. Leo's keeping a tight lid on the investigation."

"Because if we're his best suspects, he doesn't really have anything at all."

Logan nods. "Exactly."

Impulsively, Veronica blurts, "Why the hell isn't he looking into her connection with the Fitzpatricks?"

He meet her eyes; they don't need to answer the question. The purpose of Leo's vendetta is all too obvious. Logan changes the topic. "How about that breakfast now?"

"Scrambled eggs, maybe?"

"Coming right up."

He moves to put her down, and she says, "Just hold me for another minute, okay?"

"Okay," he agrees. He hugs her just a little bit tighter, wishing they could just forget about Kendall and Briar Hill and everything.

"Logan...." she says quietly.

"What?"

"What are we going to tell Leo about Kendall?" she asks.

"As little as possible," he replies.

"No, Logan. We need to be careful. You know he's going to try to question us. Let's figure out what we're going to say to him," she says persuasively.

"Dick said he has video of us in the Neptune Grand elevator. So we can't deny being there."

"That's not a crime. We rented a room for the night," Veronica says thoughtfully.

"We don't volunteer going to Duncan's room. That was the only time I saw her," Logan adds.

"I only saw her one other time, after Duncan's press conference. She was waiting for him at the hotel. And I didn't know who she was at the time."

"You can tell Leo that," Logan suggests.

She nods. "And we were in Briar Hill when she was murdered."

"So we're agreed? We don't mention that Duncan was having an affair with her. And we also don't say that she broke into Mars Investigations."

Veronica says quickly, "Of course not. The next day, after we talked to her, Dad erased the video of her in the office. He said there was no way he would open up that can of worms by pressing charges against her in the break-in."

"What about...what about the fingerprint they found in the drawer in Kendall's room?" Logan asks nervously. "How do we explain that?"

"I don't know. You said that Sacks said it was only a partial?" she queries.

"How long do fingerprints last?" he asks suddenly.

"Up to forty years."

"I love that you know that off the top of your head, Veronica." He thinks for a moment. "Why not just say you've been all over that hotel over the years? I lived there in two different rooms, and you were over all the time. You've been involved in a lot of investigations over the years; maybe there was a legitimate reason you looked in a drawer."

"At Alterna-Prom, a lot of kids rented rooms for the night," she suggests. "Maybe that was one of the rooms." She stays silent, thinking. Finally, she sighs. "I think it's best if I just say I don't know how my fingerprint got there, but I've been in the hotel hundreds of times over the years. It's not enough evidence to arrest me, especially if it's true that it's not a good print."

"I hope you're right. You realize...we're assuming Duncan didn't tell Leo he was having an affair with Kendall," Logan states.

"He can't. He might lose custody; he wouldn't take the chance."

"What if Leo found evidence that they were together? Duncan would have to admit it."

Veronica exhales. "I think he would have arrested Duncan if that was true. No matter what, we can't talk about confronting Kendall. We committed about twenty crimes that night–" Suddenly, she stops short.

"What?" Logan asks worriedly.

Veronica gets up and goes to her bedroom. She rummages in her desk and finds the bug detector. She turns it on and begins to sweep the apartment.

"Here...give it here. I've watched you do it enough times," Logan suggests. She hands it to him and takes a seat on the couch as he wanders all over the apartment. Finally, he plops down beside her on the couch and shakes his head.

"I'm getting paranoid," she says quietly.

"Except that he really is out to get us," Logan remarks.

"We just have to say we didn't know it was Kendall. That's it. There's no choice, Logan. Even if Duncan admits he had an affair with her, he's not going to tell Leo about that night. There's no reason for him to tell; it wouldn't exonerate him from a murder charge. I hope to hell he has an alibi for Kendall's murder."

Tues. 3/17/09 late morning: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

"Thank you for seeing me again, Tina," Leo says, taking a seat across the desk from the Neptune Grand manager. He notes that she looks a little nervous. "I have a few followup questions."

"Of course, Sheriff."

"Why didn't you tell me that Duncan Kane was staying at the hotel prior to his surrender to the authorities?" Leo asks.

"Duncan Kane? I thought you were investigating Ms. Casablancas. Why would I volunteer information about an unrelated guest?" Tina says in surprise.

"I'm just wondering why his name was not listed on the register that you provided for me. You certainly knew that Daniel Gillman was actually Duncan Kane after the publicity when he surrendered himself."

"I gave you a complete list of everyone who was staying at the hotel during Ms. Casablancas' stay, with the names that they used when they registered. It's not my job to investigate whether someone is registered under an assumed name," Tina says defensively.

"Right. But it might have saved me a little time, and I think you've made a point of protecting your guests' privacy over cooperating with me."

"Of course I'm protecting the guests' privacy! People stay at the Neptune Grand because we have a good reputation for keeping the paparazzi out. As I mentioned to you before, we often have clientele recuperating from plastic surgery here who are purposely avoiding the press."

Leo stares at her without speaking.

Tina grows increasingly more nervous. "There's nothing to tell anyways. Mr. Kane kept to himself."

"Yes, that appears to be true. Do you know if Mr. Kane had any contact with Ms. Casablancas during his stay here?"

"I'm sure that I wouldn't know. I don't stick my nose in my guests' business, and the employees are cautioned to do the same."

Leo sighs. "Can you at least tell me if their rooms were near each other?"

Tina flushes, and Leo thinks, _Bingo._ Tina says, "They were across the hall from each other on the third floor: Mr. Kane was in the Triton Suite, and Ms. Casablancas had the Naiad Suite."

Taking advantage of Tina's nervousness, Leo presses, "And what about Logan Echolls and his guest?"

"What?" Tina replies, rattled by the abrupt switch.

"Your security footage shows Mr. Echolls and Veronica Mars in the elevator together, during the period when both Mr. Kane and Ms. Casablancas were registered guests. But neither Echolls nor Mars shows up on the register."

Tina sighs. "Mr. Echolls was a longtime resident several years ago. He paid cash for one night's stay. I don't remember the name he used."

Helpfully, Leo says, "It was Saturday, February 28."

Tina clicks a few keys on her computer. "Hmm...I think he registered under 'Charles Windsor.'"

"But you say he used to be a longtime resident, and you clearly knew who he was. And at the time he was here in Neptune, he was supposedly in Europe. Of course he wouldn't want to use his real name to register."

Tina says impulsively, "I'm quite certain Mr. Echolls only had a romantic evening in mind. Perhaps he was just seeking a little privacy."

"I suppose that's possible. I hope for your sake he wasn't taking advantage of your good nature to hide his presence here. I wonder what the corporate owners of the Neptune Grand would think of you knowingly allowing guests to register under false names."

Tina sputters, "You're being completely ridiculous. What difference does it make if Logan Echolls stayed for a night at the hotel?"

"Surely you're aware that Mr. Echolls had an intimate relationship with Ms. Casablancas three years ago? They were meeting here at the hotel," Leo asks.

"Logan and Ms. Casablancas? I had no idea," Tina replies, shocked. "You can't think Logan Echolls had something to do with this."

"I see. Getting back to Mr. Kane..." Leo says thoughtfully. "You said he kept to himself. Do you keep records from room service?"

"Not the specific orders, but if the food is charged to the room, the total amounts will be listed on the bill," Tina answers.

"Let's see the room service charges for Mr. Kane and Ms. Casablancas. Can you make a printout?" Leo asks.

Tina reluctantly prints out several pages of charges, and Leo places the two bills side by side on her desk. Starting on February 8, Kendall's room service bills drop off dramatically, while Duncan's almost double in size. The trend continues until March 1, when Kendall's tab resumes its previous size.

"Looks like Mr. Kane and Ms. Casablancas might have been dining together. Until March 1...the day after Echolls and Ms. Mars were here. So maybe something happened during their visit," Leo muses aloud.

"I wouldn't know," Tina replies. "This could all be a coincidence."

"No, I don't think so. When Veronica Mars is involved, there's not much chance of something happening by accident. Tina, this is starting to look like a conspiracy of some type. Mr. Kane meets Ms. Casablancas and begins to spend a great deal with her until Mr. Echolls and Ms. Mars get involved. Perhaps they inform Mr. Kane that she is really Kendall, not Katerina Beversdorf. Then Mr. Kane stops spending time with Ms. Casablancas, and, for whatever reason, Ms. Casablancas is murdered about ten days later. I suggest you start cooperating with this investigation, immediately." Leo looks at the room service bills again. "It looks like somebody with the initials J.R. signed off on Mr. Kane's deliveries most of the time. Who would that be?"

Tina clicks a few keys, frowning at her computer. "Jeffrey Ratner. He's coming on shift at four o'clock."

Leo checks his watch, thinking about everything he has to do today. "I'll need his phone number, please. If you think of anything else, I'd like you to call me right away. I don't want to have to ask for your cooperation again."

Tues. 3/17/09 early afternoon: Sunset Cliffs Apartment/Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Logan is lounging on the bed watching Veronica as she looks through her closet. She pulls out two selections and hangs them on the door, frowning. "What's the matter, sugarpuss?" he asks.

"The dress I want to wear is at school."

He props himself up on his elbows and points. "What's wrong with that one?"

"It's a little big on me normally." She looks down at her body, far thinner than normal. "It'll be a tent..."

"Right. What about the other one?"

"I'm trying to figure out if it will work with the sling."

"Let's try it." He gets off the bed and helps her remove the sling. She carefully pulls her t-shirt over her head with his assistance and steps out of her jeans. He stares at her, resisting the impulse to caress her and strip her out of her underwear.

"What?" she asks, using the mirror to look at him standing behind her.

"Nothing."

"No, what?"

"Just...it goes against my nature, to help you put clothes on," he finally mumbles.

She leans back against him. "We've got time."

"Don't tempt me, woman. You're supposed to be taking it easy." He takes the dress off the hanger and holds it for her to step into.

She steps into the dress, and he pulls it up and zips it for her. She looks in the mirror and suddenly says, "Crap."

"Now what?"

"I have to shave my legs," she replies. "I don't suppose...."

"A man's work is never done," he says with an exaggerated sigh.

"No, it's ridiculous." She leans forward into the closet again. "I'll just wear pants. These are probably small enough," she says, pulling a pair from the back of the closet. "Can you unzip me?"

"Yes, ma'am. My pleasure, bobcat." He helps her take off the dress, replacing it on a hanger. She steadies herself by holding onto him as he pulls up the slacks and helps her to fasten them. She regards herself in the mirror, frowning, as he looks on.

He says thoughtfully, "I think I remember these, Veronica. Freshman year, right? Pretty memorable embroidery on the back pocket, and I think they fit perfectly." Logan gives in to his impulses and runs his hand over her ass.

She turns a little and pretends to bat his hand away. "Freshman year? You weren't supposed to be looking at _my_ ass. You were going out with the hottest girl in school."

"No, I wasn't." He grabs her hand and gently pulls her to him. He kisses the top of her head, watching her eyes in the mirror. "I've been in love with you for so long, Veronica." She relaxes into him, pressing herself into him as he draws little circles with his thumb on her waist.

With a regretful sigh, she says, "C'mon, let me pick a shirt." He releases her reluctantly, and Veronica selects a dark-colored turtleneck that will fit under the sling. He assists her carefully; she winces as he eases the right sleeve up her arm and cautiously helps the top over her head. "Maybe I can dress it up with a scarf," she muses. He straps the sling on her arm again, and she looks at her reflection. She sighs and says, "It'll have to do. It does cover up the stupid tattoos." She fusses with her red curls, frowning. "I hate this hair."

"You'd look beautiful in a paper bag with a clown wig," he tells her.

They hear loud voices arguing in the parking lot. Logan walks over to the window and looks out. "It's Leo, discussing something with one of the deputies."

Veronica joins him, "That's Carl. He always liked my dad. He must have taken over watching out for the paps from Sacks last night." They watch as Leo turns away in disgust. Carl gets in the police cruiser and leaves the parking lot.

The doorbell rings, and Logan's eyes meet Veronica's. "I'll let him in," Logan says.

Veronica follows him more slowly into the living room. Logan opens the door, saying, "Sheriff."

"Mr. Echolls. Veronica," Leo replies. He stares at Veronica, taking note of the sling, her hair, the dark circles under her eyes, and her thinness. He looks around the room, frowning when he sees the wheelchair from yesterday's journeys.

"How can we help you, Leo?" Veronica asks.

"Don't you guys answer your phone? I've called several times this morning," he replies.

Logan says, "The phone ringer's turned off. There have been paparazzi bothering us, and Veronica needed to get her sleep last night. She was injured...I don't know if you know about that."

"I did hear about your adventure in Vermont. Pretty good detective work, sounds like. I also heard about an arrest for assault and battery," Leo comments. "I have to tell you, I was surprised to find one of my off-duty deputies sitting in your parking lot when I got here."

"Dad still has some friends on the force. I guess he didn't want to have to run a gauntlet of reporters when we got back late last night, so he asked for some help from his old friends. How can we help you, Leo?" she repeats.

"Well, I'm glad to find you both here. I'd like to speak with you down at the station about Kendall Casablancas." He nods at the newspapers spread out on the counter. "I see you've been catching up with the current events, so I'm sure you're aware that she was murdered."

"Is it really necessary to do this today, Sheriff?" Logan tries to keep his voice polite and respectful. "Veronica was released from the hospital yesterday. We've come back to town just to attend the Mackenzie funeral, and I was hoping Veronica could just rest today."

Leo checks his watch. "The funeral's not until 4:00. We've got plenty of time, assuming you can clear up some of my questions about Ms. Casablancas."

"Are you making this an official request?" Veronica asks. "We'd be happy to come by first thing tomorrow morning. I am feeling pretty tired today."

"This shouldn't take long," Leo replies. "I'd really like to speak with you today. It's already been almost a week since Ms. Casablancas was killed."

Veronica stares at him. "Of course we're happy to cooperate in any investigation," she says finally.

Logan says, "Give me a second to get changed." He glances at Veronica, mouthing, 'Cliff', and heads into her bedroom.

He goes into her bedroom and shut the door. He grabs her cellphone, still in its charger on her bureau. He notes the display, '112 missed calls', and thumbs through the menus, looking for an entry for Cliff McCormack. He dials and speaks in a low voice when Cliff answers. "Cliff, it's Logan Echolls...are you busy?"

"Mr. Echolls, one of my favorite clients. You always had such...ahem, colorful arrests. And...to be fair, you always paid your bills on time."

"Yeah, good times. I hope I still get the frequent flyer discount," he replies. "Did Keith talk to you?"

"I've been in depositions all morning. What's going on?"

"Sheriff D'Amato is taking Veronica and me in to the station for questioning in the Kendall Casablancas murder."

"You've been arrested?"

"Not yet," Logan says drily. "And we're sort of hoping to prevent that. Can you meet us at the sheriff's department? The sheriff has apparently been trying to build a case against us, and we'd feel a lot better with some legal representation."

"What is with you kids today? I wish you'd leave the murdering to the grownups. I'll meet you there in twenty minutes."

Logan disconnects; he gets dressed quickly, putting the phone in his pocket. He walks back out into the living room. "Do you think your dad would mind if I borrowed a tie?"

"Of course not, go ahead."

Logan ducks into Keith's bedroom and emerges a minute later, tying a red and blue striped tie. He walks over to Veronica and puts his arm around her. "Ready?"

"I need my cell," she remembers suddenly as she grabs her purse.

"I got it," he says, meeting her glance. She nods.

"Let's go," Leo announces. He escorts them to the parking lot.

Logan motions that Veronica should take the front seat, and he gets into the back of the cruiser. "I'm having the weirdest deja vu right now. Except it really should be Lamb in the front seat and my arms should be cuffed uncomfortably behind my back."

"Logan," Veronica says warningly.

Leo retorts, "Lately I've regretted that I didn't take you in when you showed up drunk at that eighties dance. It might have saved some heartbreak for all of us if you'd been sent to a rehab that night."

"Wow. And I thought you didn't remember the night we met," Logan says sarcastically. "I wrote in my journal that night: the cutest deputy in Neptune showed up at the dance. And then he broke my heart when he acted like I didn't exist." He clasps his hands together and leans his cheek against his hands.

"Logan, you do have the right to remain silent," Veronica says firmly. "Could you possibly exercise that right?"

Logan can't resist one last parting shot. "Of course, I can think of fifty thousand reasons why the sheriff should have a soft spot in his heart for me."

"Logan!" Veronica hisses, turning around in the seat to glare at him. She sucks in her breath loudly when she accidentally twists her shoulder. Under her breath, she mutters, "Fuck...fuck!" She leans forward with her eyes closed, waiting for the pain to subside.

"Veronica, are you all right?" Logan says quickly. "Sheriff, please stop. Please."

Leo glances at Veronica and slows the cruiser. "You really are hurt."

"Yes," she replies briefly, breathing through the pain. "They're going to have to do surgery on my shoulder to repair it."

Leo's face betrays him with a momentary expression of guilt and regret before he resumes his serious demeanor. He pretends to concentrate on his driving and again ignores his inner voice that keeps repeating, _'don't do this.'_

"Sheriff. I'm sorry I was screwing around," Logan says contritely. "Please, can we possibly wait on this? Veronica just got out of the hospital. She's supposed to be resting. You can talk to me today, just take Veronica back to the apartment."

Leo glances back at him.

Before Leo can respond, Veronica interjects, "No, it's all right, let's get this over with. Just...Logan, do you think you could possibly _refrain_ for once?" she says warningly.

"I'm sorry," he says sincerely. Logan manages to keep quiet for the rest of trip to the sheriff's department. When Leo lets him out of the back seat, he goes to Veronica and solicitously escorts her into the building, where Cliff is waiting.

"Sheriff," Cliff says, standing up to greet them.

"Counselor," Leo replies. He waits, expecting Cliff to leave; he finally realizes Cliff is there for Logan and Veronica. He half-turns to Logan and says, "You called him from the bedroom. You realize you don't need an attorney; I'm just asking you a few questions. I have to say, it makes me wonder why you're so nervous that you need an attorney."

Cliff replies for them. "Sheriff, my clients are just exercising their right to representation. They asked me to help them to clear this up as quickly as possible."

Leo frowns and leads them to his office. Veronica whispers to Logan, "Try to keep your wit under control, will you?"

"Sorry," he mumbles.

Leo motions to a seat outside his office door. "Who's going first?" At their expression, he explains, "Oh, you didn't think I was going to question you together, did you? No, I think it's better this way. I'm more likely to hear the truth."

"Go ahead," Logan says to Veronica. "Maybe if this doesn't take too long, one of the deputies can take you back to the apartment for a nap before the funeral." He kisses her on the top of her head. "Tell the truth, honey."

She snorts. "I'm made of truth, remember?" Veronica grabs his hand and squeezes it before walking into Leo's office, followed closely by the sheriff and Cliff.

He smiles, remembering the last outgoing message he put on his cell phone. '_When my love swears that she is made of truth, I do believe her though I know she lies, That she might think me some untutor'd youth, Unlearned in the world's false subtleties....Therefore I lie with her, and she with me, And in our faults by lies we flatter'd be.' William Shakespeare._ Logan pulls out Veronica's cell and accesses the call menu. _One hundred and twelve missed calls. _Most of the calls say 'Private Caller' or 'Out of Area', and Logan assumes that they are calls from reporters. He notes that Casablancas Jr, R. called five times. Duncan, whose cell phone is apparently under the name 'Daniel', called twenty-four times. _What the hell is Duncan calling her about?_ Logan really does want Duncan to get custody, but he can't help his flash of jealousy when he thinks of Veronica working with him. He hits '2' on the phone, and the display reads "Calling...Dad Cell".

"Veronica?" Keith says.

"No, it's Logan," he replies. Keith is silent in response. _He's furious with me,_ Logan thinks despondently. He says, "We're at the Sheriff's Department. Leo is questioning Veronica now. I'm next."

"I'll get Cliff–"

"I called him. He's in there with Veronica," Logan interrupts.

"Good," Keith replies succinctly.

_I'm sorry...I'm sorry I fucked your daughter last night,_ Logan thinks morosely. He waits to see if Keith is going to bring it up. When there is only silence on the line, Logan adds, "Umm, about uh...your note, I want to talk to you too. I understand why you're upset."

There is no response. _Keith's silence is more scary than a lecture_, Logan thinks.

Finally, Keith says, "We'll talk about it later. Thanks for letting me know what's going on. Be careful." He terminates the call.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Made of Truth**  
Leo questions Veronica and Logan; Keith  
reports to Ms. Denenberg; Mac worries  
about Veronica's safety to no avail.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Cliff: Daran Norris. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Stephanie Denenberg: Stacy Edwards.  
Alan: Ned Vaughan. Sacks: Brandon Hillock.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER NINETY-EIGHT: "MADE OF TRUTH"

Tues. 3/17/09 afternoon: Sheriff's Office, Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Leo comments, "I don't know what's more sickening, when you and Echolls are lovey-dovey or when you're fighting," Leo comments.

"We've had a complicated relationship. It's hard when your boyfriend's father murders your best friend," Veronica explains drily.

"It's interesting you say that, 'complicated relationship'. I've been looking into your history a bit." He pushes a sheet of paper across the desk to her. "See if I got it right."

Veronica, more curious than she is willing to admit, picks up the paper and begins to read. Cliff looks over her shoulder, reading along.

Fall 2002-Fall 2003:  
Duncan with Veronica, Lilly with Logan

Oct-Dec 2003:  
Duncan breaks it off with Veronica; rumors of Duncan's violent fits  
Lilly Kane is murdered  
Keith Mars suspects Jake Kane  
Keith Mars recalled in election  
Abel Koontz is arrested  
Veronica supports her father and is ostracized at school; Logan Echolls fans the flames of public opinion against Veronica

Veronica looks up. _How the hell does he know that?_ She purses her lips and starts to read again.

Spring 2004-Spring 2005:  
Keith Mars continues to investigate Lilly's murder

Spring 2005:  
Logan's mother dies; Logan gets together with Veronica  
Aaron Echolls is arrested for Lilly's murder

Summer 2005:  
Logan and Veronica together  
Veronica breaks it off with Logan; Veronica gets back together with Duncan  
Kendall marries Richard Casablancas, Sr.

Fall 2005:  
Logan has relationship with Kendall (Kendall possible cause of breakup with Veronica?)

"What the hell is this? 'Kendall possible cause of breakup with Veronica?'" she asks. Cliff touches her on the shoulder, reminding her to be careful.

"Was Kendall the reason you broke it off with Echolls?" he replies.

"No! We broke it off because...because...." she hesitates. _Because he was acting crazy. Because he was trying to start a class war in Neptune. Because he scared me with how much he loved me._ She concludes, "We broke it off because we weren't getting along. He was going through a lot at the time. He had been accused of murder, you remember."

"Oh, let me add that in there," Leo says, taking the paper back. He scribbles a few words and pushes the paper back to her.

She glares at him when she sees what he has written. Veronica resolves to read the rest of the summary before reacting again.

Summer 2005:  
Logan and Veronica together; Logan charged with murder, Veronica dumps him without a second thought  
Veronica breaks it off with Logan; Veronica gets back together w/ Duncan  
Kendall marries Richard Casablancas, Sr.

Fall 2005:  
Logan has relationship with Kendall (Kendall possible cause of breakup with Veronica?)  
Logan and Duncan living together at the Neptune Grand while Duncan is dating Veronica and Logan is sleeping with Kendall  
Kendall seduces Duncan  
Duncan breaks it off with Veronica; Duncan runs with his baby

Veronica realizes that someone who witnessed their public breakup has told Leo about her fight with Duncan. _Dick? I can't see Dick volunteering that information to the sheriff._ Veronica mentally reviews who witnessed that fight._ No, not Dick...I bet it was Madison._ She resolves to kill Madison, once and for all,_ if the bitch actually can be killed. Need to get my silver stake sharpened, if Leo doesn't arrest me._ She continues reading; each sentence is unfortunately and painfully true, and her stomach twists in knots.

Spring 2006:  
Cassidy Casablancas commits suicide

Fall 2006:  
Kendall Casablancas disappears

Fall 2006-Fall 2008:  
unknown status of relationship between Logan and Veronica  
Kendall changes her appearance  
Duncan, still on the run, changes his appearance

Fall 2008:  
Veronica's mother murdered  
Rumors of conspiracy between Logan, Veronica, and Duncan  
Logan and Veronica resume relationship

Spring 2009:  
Duncan comes back to Neptune; checks in to the Neptune Grand Hotel on Feb. 2, 4:38pm; uses the name 'Daniel Gillman'  
Kendall comes back to Neptune; checks in to the Neptune Grand, Feb. 2, 10:22pm; uses the name 'Pamela Hollister'  
Feb. 8-Feb. 28: Duncan and Kendall appear to have a relationship, based on room service records  
Feb. 9: Duncan signs plea agreement in Manning kidnapping case  
Feb. 28, 11:49pm: Logan and Veronica at Neptune Grand Hotel, as evidenced by security footage  
Mar. 5: Duncan closes on house purchase; deed filed at County Hall of Records  
Mar. 6: Duncan checks out of Neptune Grand Hotel, 10:07am  
Mar. 11: Kendall murdered; approx. time of death between 9pm and 1am.

Veronica is appalled at the specificity of Leo's notes. He has apparently worked hard to compile evidence that Duncan and Kendall had some connection. And she reflects that it looks bad that she and Logan were at the Grand right before Duncan and Kendall apparently ended their relationship. _Unfortunately, Dad was right. Leo is a good investigator; if only he was actually investigating the right thing._

Suddenly, it's all just too much, and she struggles not to burst into tears. _This is too hard...it's too much, I can't...I never should have helped Duncan, what was I thinking? I was so stupid...why didn't I see that Meg was lying to us? Instead I used Logan, used Dad, used Kendall...never thought about what might happen._ Leo is staring at her, wondering at her silence, and she fights to hold it together. _'You're going to have to do better. Connie needs to work a little harder on her honesty.'_

Cliff asks, "Vee? You okay?" He turns to Leo. "Sheriff, maybe we need to take a little break."

Veronica finds her voice and says, "I'm just tired. We just got back last night, you know." She hands Leo's notes back to him. "How puritanical of you, to spend all this time snooping into our love lives."

"The four of you have quite a history."

"Is there a question here?" Cliff acts. "This is all very interesting, but high school romances usually aren't a motive for murder."

Leo says, "Did you know that Kendall Casablancas was back in town?"

"No," Veronica replies.

"Were you aware that she had resumed her affair with Duncan Kane?" Leo presses.

_Resumed. Fuck. At the time, that ruse seemed like a good idea._ She takes a breath to speak.

Cliff interrupts before she can answer. "Ms. Mars just said she didn't know that Ms. Casablancas was back in town. How could she be aware who Ms. Casablancas was sleeping with?"

"Do you know why Ms. Casablancas disappeared in 2006?" Leo asks, changing tacks.

"Wasn't she involved with that Phoenix Land Trust with Cassidy?" Veronica asks. _There, that was completely honest. I can do this._ "Maybe it was something to do with that. You say she 'disappeared' and make it sound suspicious. Maybe Kendall just left town and started looking for a new sugar-daddy."

"Right." Leo thinks a minute. "You're saying you've had no contact with Ms. Casablancas since she came back to Neptune?"

"I met her in the hallway of the Neptune Grand. I didn't know it was Kendall. She introduced herself as Katya," Veronica answers. _There's no point hiding this. He knows Duncan was involved with her. Shit._ Carefully, Veronica continues. "I was with Duncan that day. I don't believe he knew it was Kendall, either."

Leo pounces. "So Duncan _was_ having an affair with Ms. Casablancas?"

"I don't believe that's what my client said. She said she met a woman named Katya in the hallway, and that her friend Duncan was not aware the woman was really Kendall Casablancas. I believe Ms. Mars was very clear in her statement," Cliff parses. "Shouldn't you be asking Mr. Kane that question?"

"Oh, I have. And he's been very evasive, and it makes me wonder why," Leo replies. "It must be very painful for you that this woman slept with two of the men you've loved."

"Is there a question on the table?" Cliff asks.

"Did you harbor resentment against Ms. Casablancas?" Leo asks.

"It was none of my business who Logan slept with when we were broken up. And when I thought Duncan had cheated on me with Kendall, I wasn't mad at her, I was mad at him," Veronica explains.

"Wait, when you _thought_ Duncan cheated on you?" Leo asks suspiciously.

_Judgmental...resentful...critical._ She imagines Leo running a finger down her moral inventory, checking off all the qualities that apply. She takes a deep breath and tries to explain. "I don't think he did cheat on me. Kendall might have tried to seduce him, but Duncan's a good person, and he wouldn't have done that to me. At the time of our breakup, he was focused on his baby, and I was...I was being a little girl, a petty bitch to tell you the truth. I was jealous that he still had ties to Meg Manning, the mother of his child, and I was looking for an excuse to get mad at him and break it off."

Cliff frowns at her.

She notices his look and continues, "Yeah, I was being immature. I was eighteen! I couldn't handle that my boyfriend had gotten another girl pregnant."

"Of course, it's good that you broke it off with him before he ran with the baby."

"What are you insinuating?" Veronica asks, her voice quavering.

"The FBI files indicates that they were suspicious that you helped Duncan flee the country with his baby. Odd behavior for an ex-girlfriend who supposedly was jealous about the pregnancy."

Cliff clears his throat. "I really wish you'd make up your mind, Sheriff. Is my client being questioned about Ms. Casablancas' murder or a three-year-old kidnapping charge?"

"Just wondering if there's a connection. Maybe Kendall witnessed something in the kidnapping case and decided to blackmail Ms. Mars. And of course there's no statute of limitations on aiding and abetting kidnapping."

"And Kendall waited until now to come forward, after completely altering her appearance for an unknown reason?" Cliff says sarcastically.

Leo leans forward. "I know something's going on here, Veronica. Don't let Logan Echolls and Duncan Kane ruin your life. I'd like to help you."

_'You're still not able to be honest with yourself, Connie. Why won't you let us help you?'_ She tries to ignore the persistent, nagging voice and focuses on Leo's face, twisted with the attempt to conceal his hatred of her. "Oh, I doubt that," she replies, as evenly as she can. She tries to appeal to his sense of logic. "Leo, you know that I was on an undercover operation when Kendall was murdered. I was wearing a wire. I was being observed by the FBI. You can't think I had anything to do with Kendall's murder."

Leo stares at her, trying to gauge her honesty. "We found a fingerprint in Ms. Casablancas' room that is consistent with your fingerprints, Veronica. Care to explain how that got there?"

Cliff interrupts. "Consistent with? How many points of comparison are we talking?"

Reluctantly, Leo says, "Three."

"Don't answer, Veronica. Sheriff, you know that evidence would probably be thrown out as inadmissible."

"Except as rebuttal evidence," Leo notes. "Ms. Mars is saying she had no contact with Ms. Casablancas other than a chance meeting in the hallway at the Neptune Grand, yet her fingerprint was found in Ms. Casablancas' hotel room. In a drawer, by the way. Why were you looking in Kendall's drawers, Veronica?"

"This interview is over, Sheriff. You're not trying to get information from my client, you're trying to sandbag her. And you are making accusations based on flimsy and circumstantial evidence, when clearly my client has an unbreakable alibi for the time of Ms. Casablancas' murder. I'm advising my client not to talk to you any further," Cliff says, rising from his chair.

"I might only have circumstantial evidence now, but I'm sure I'll be finding more evidence as I continue to look into this. And as for that unbreakable alibi? I'm thinking conspiracy. Mr. Kane doesn't have an alibi for the night in question, you know."

_Oh shit,_ she thinks. _Duncan!_ She opens her mouth to speak, but Cliff puts a restraining hand on her arm.

Leo continues, "We're not done here, Veronica. It's okay though, I'd like to see what Echolls has to say for himself."

"After this performance, I'm going to advise Mr. Echolls to stick to his name, rank, and serial number," Cliff comments.

"Veronica, why don't you tell Mr. Echolls to come in here? Unless he's got something to hide," Leo says.

Veronica stands up and exits the room shakily. Logan stands up; seeing her upset demeanor, he immediately hugs her. "Are you okay?"

"Damn him," she whispers. "Be careful." She realizes Leo has followed her to the hallway and puts on a light tone. "Have fun in there, sweetie. Play nice with the sheriff."

Logan looks at her with concern and asks, "Sheriff, can one of the deputies run Veronica home? She needs her rest."

Leo replies, "It's a busy day for us here with the security for the funeral later. It might be a while. You can call a cab if you want."

Veronica frowns. _Security?_ "You're providing security for the Mackenzie funeral?"

"Of course. The FBI is presuming it was a mafia hit. We're coordinating security with them," he replies brusquely. "Let's go, Echolls."

Veronica thinks, _The Russian mob was trying to take out Mac in the bombing. But she was already in witness protection. Didn't the mob already know that? I know the Russian mafia sometimes kills the whole family for retribution...but...retribution for what? It was Rick Picket who was investigating the flirt-bot program. _ She thinks back. _Wallace had told her, 'I did some checking, and the day before the bombing, the FBI arrested fifteen Russian guys in Florida on multiple charges of identity theft, racketeering, conspiracy, and fraud. There wasn't a lot of details, but it sounded like computer crime, and I'll bet Mac had something to do with the arrests.'_

_We know Mac is friggin' brilliant, and we're assuming she helped the FBI investigate, but how would the Russian mafia figure out that she was responsible for those arrests? It's not like the FBI would tell the mafia who investigated, especially if a civilian was helping them._ Her head begins to hurt again just thinking about it. _I'm getting so confused. Why would the mafia bomb the Mackenzies? Why can't I figure this out?_

"Leo...I mean, Sheriff?" she asks.

"What?" he replies in an irritated voice.

"Something's not right about this funeral. The whole bombing doesn't make sense. Why did the Russian mob go after Mac's family?"

"How the hell do I know? I'm not in charge of the investigation into the Mackenzie bombing," Leo says. "Let's go, Echolls." He motions that Logan should go into his office.

Tues. 3/17/09 afternoon: Denenberg Residence, Neptune, CA

Ms. Denenberg opens the door before Keith can ring the bell. "Mr. Mars, thank you for coming."

"Keith, please," he replies.

"Come in," she says, escorting him into the office.

He observes that she looks tired and upset. When they enter the living room, he sees the television tuned to CNN with the sound muted, and he realizes that she's been watching the news reports about the school since the story broke. He picks up a remote controller on the coffee table and turns off the television. Keith sits down on the couch. "Ms. Denenberg, how are you doing?"

"Stephanie. It's Stephanie," she mutters.

"Stephanie. This must be very difficult for you."

"They don't say much on the reports. They keep listing the charges against Peter Klein, aggravated assault and battery, child abuse, failure to report abuse to the authorities...." her voice trails off. "I keep picturing–"

He nods, "You need to know what it was like. Your imagination is running wild."

"Were they physically hurting Hannah? Is your daughter okay? I'm sorry, I should have asked right away. Is Veronica okay?"

"Stephanie, Veronica will be fine."

Ms. Denenberg looks stricken. "_Will_ be fine? She's not fine now? Oh god. I never should have done this."

Keith sighs. "Please don't say that. I believe we did a lot of good with this investigation." He summarizes the operation for her. He stresses at several points that Veronica had to push back against the school in order to gather evidence quickly. He explains that they did not want to have Veronica undercover indefinitely, and they needed to force the issue. Keith calmly details Veronica's injuries; he minimizes the psychological confusion she manifested when the operation ended, reminding himself that he will need to brief her again at a later date, before the trial and Veronica's testimony. Ms. Denenberg begins to calm down, hearing the facts of the operation recited in an unexcited narrative.

"Stephanie, we found out that one of the teachers at the school helped Hannah to escape. We located that teacher and spoke to her. Apparently, after her experience with your daughter, she decided to devote her life to helping the students at these schools. Several months after Hannah escaped, this teacher received a postcard from her that indicates that your daughter was happy and doing well."

"Doing well? I thought she was working as a...prostitute, taking drugs and...." Ms. Denenberg replies, confused.

"That might not be true." Keith takes out the postcard. He has protected it in a plastic bag; he shows it to Hannah's mother, who examines it closely.

Ms. Denenberg reads aloud, "'Thank you for everything. I am safe and happy because of you.'" She turns the over and looks at the picture of a meadow on the front. "'Safe and happy,'" she repeats. "It does look like Hannah's writing."

"The teacher explained that Hannah said that she used to imagine herself running through a meadow, completely free and happy, whenever she was being attacked in group therapy or punished for something at the school."

Ms. Denenberg begins to cry. "Why would they punish her?"

"Hannah insisted that she wasn't doing drugs, and they were trying to make her admit that she did. Stephanie...." Keith begins.

"What? Tell me."

"Your daughter was very brave. At one point, she used silverware to cut herself, hoping that a doctor would take her seriously and contact you," Keith says.

Horrified, Stephanie replies, "They said she was cutting...I assumed it was, you know, what you read about, teenagers and razor blades. The school said it was evidence she was disturbed."

"I don't think Hannah was disturbed at all, and based on what I saw there, I don't believe she was using drugs either. The school has a vested interest in declaring each student to be an incorrigible drug addict; they diagnose all the students as addicts and keep them there for treatment until they are eighteen or sometimes even longer."

"I don't understand. How did she end up in Los Angeles on the...on the streets, if she was in," Stephanie consults the postcard, "Rio Linda, happy and safe."

"I don't know. With your permission, I'd like to go up to Rio Linda and see if I can find anyone who remembers Hannah. Obviously, she was living under an assumed name, but there would have been limited options for a minor to earn a living."

"Of course. Of course!! I want to come with you," she says impulsively. "Please."

"Stephanie, I don't think that's a good idea. Let me find out what I can first." Gently, he adds, "I don't want someone's revelations to hurt you more than you've already been hurt. Let me handle this, and I promise, I'll tell you what I find out. I promise I won't keep secrets from you."

He looks at her sympathetically, and she nods that she understands. "You're right, Keith. I...I couldn't handle much more...." She stand up and begins to wander around the room. She touches various items, occasionally lifting them and examining them closely. Keith watches, uncertain what to say. Finally she says, "I...I keep thinking that she didn't think she could call me for help. She didn't trust her mother not to send her back to the school after she escaped..._her own mother_. She thought I wanted her to be in a place where she was being tortured and abused. I don't think I can forgive myself for that."

"Stephanie, you know that you are a victim of the school as well."

"I don't feel like a victim. I sent my daughter away...I let that man...I _paid_ that man to abuse her." She drops onto the couch and begins to sob, her head in her hands. Keith moves to her; he pats her on the back, and she stiffens in response. Stephanie weeps in earnest, her shoulders shaking compulsively. He pulls into a hug, and she cries desperately against his shoulder as he rubs her back. The sobs finally begin to lessen, and she pulls away. "I'm sorry...I'm sorry, Keith. I can't sleep, I can't eat. I don't know what to do."

"Stephanie, I feel certain that, given time, you and Hannah would have reunited and she would have realized that you were only trying to do what was best. I'm sure she knew that you loved her."

"I did love her. I didn't know...I didn't know."

Keith says gently, "It's not easy to be a parent. I know that firsthand. We try our best, and we make mistakes. I found out recently that I made a terrible mistake with my daughter five years ago. I feel like I'll never forgive myself for not seeing what she was going through. It's not easy to be a parent," he repeats. "You have to try to forgive yourself; you _were_ a victim of the school as well."

She nods, staring into space.

Keith hesitates. He knows that she needs to know what might be coming. "Stephanie, there's another matter we need to discuss." He sighs. "In these situations, the schools usually offer a substantial cash settlement in return for an agreement to drop the charges and not to discuss the terms of the settlement or the allegations. Have they approached you with an offer?"

"No, and I wouldn't accept it."

"You're sure? I'm quite sure they will be offering a very large sum for your silence and cooperation."

"Bastards," she spits. "No way in hell. I don't want a penny from them. It would be blood money."

"It might be years of litigation, Stephanie. Epstein may not tell you this, but you need to know what's going to happen. You are going to have to relive what happened to your daughter over and over again, in the press, in the courtroom, on TV talk shows...it's not going to be easy. Are you prepared to go all the way with this? I'll support you, whatever you decide. A large financial settlement would hurt the school. It might even force them to close."

"No," she says firmly. "I want them to go to jail, especially that Peter Klein. CNN ran an old interview with him. I vomited up my lunch, hearing him talk about dedicating his life to helping young people."

"That's not all. Parents of students at the schools who don't want the schools to shut down may begin to harass you or threaten you. I'm not telling you what to do; I'm just telling what it's going to be like. And the school will probably sue you, Stephanie. You signed a nondisclosure agreement when you enrolled Hannah that prevents you from revealing the copyrighted treatment methods used by the school."

"But it was false advertising, and it wasn't even treatment, it was...I don't know, it was insanity is what it was."

"Yes, those are defenses that you can use when they sue. And I will testify on your behalf, and we can use the videotape evidence collected by the FBI, which is not bound by the nondisclosure agreement."

"Would they...would they sue you too?" she asks, horrified.

He nods. "I'm expecting it."

"Keith, you will allow me to pay for your defense. This is unconscionable. The other parents in the class-action lawsuit will help as well, I'll make certain of it. I've been in touch with them, and we won't allow you to suffer because of this."

"Thank you, I appreciate that." Keith glances at his watch. "I need to get going. I'll take a trip up to Rio Linda as soon as possible, and I'll let you know what I find." He stands up, and she follows him to the door.

At the front door, Ms. Denenberg says, "Keith, please tell your daughter thank you for me. I'd like to...I'd like to meet her, when she's feeling okay, to thank her in person. And...Mr. Echolls was helping as well, wasn't he? I saw his name on the news...I was so horrible to him when he was dating Hannah."

"Logan did not always use good judgment in the past; I was so angry that I threw him against a wall once myself. I know he regrets what happened to Hannah and blames himself. He volunteered to help because he was worried about Veronica's safety, and I know he also wanted to try to redeem himself by helping with the investigation."

"Please...tell him thank you as well." She closes the front door behind him; he catches a final glimpse of her haunted face, and he thinks again that he is incredibly grateful that Veronica is okay.

Tues. 3/17/09 afternoon: Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

When Logan and Leo enter Leo's office, Cliff whispers quietly to Logan, "It's pretty much a fishing expedition here. I think your best bet is to keep your mouth shut."

"So, Mr. Echolls," Leo begins. "Tell me about your relationship with Kendall Casablancas."

"That's pretty sick, don't you think? What do you want to know...positions, duration, did I make her scream? The answer is 'yes, I did,'" Logan replies flippantly. Cliff glances at Logan; he realizes that Logan is trying to disguise his nervousness with sarcasm.

"Are we talking recently, or three years ago?" Leo asks.

"Let's see, the last time I made her scream, that would be...let's see, May, three years ago, which would be 2006. Do you need to know the details? I believe she started on top, but it might not have ended that way," Logan explains. "And of course, there was some kinky role-playing. I was the dirty cop, and she was the hooker with a heart of gold trying to get off. I think she _did_ get off, several times if I recall correctly." Pretending to think, he counts off 'one, two, three' with his fingers and smirks at Leo. More seriously, he continues, "Lookit...the woman was a tramp. We had a sexual relationship and that's it. I never cared about her, and I'm pretty sure she never cared about me."

"What about recently? Did you have any contact with her in the last few months?"

"No, I did not. And I would remember bodacious tatas like hers." Cupping his hands in front of him, he smiles in appreciation.

"Were you aware she changed her appearance?" Leo pulls out a photo from the file in front of him and places it in front of Logan.

Logan studies the photo. "Upgrade, I'd say. Although...a little too classy looking for her personality."

"Were you _aware_ that she changed her appearance?" Leo stresses in exasperation.

"No, Kendall did not consult me on her plastic surgery." He pushes the photo back to Leo. "I guess she's still hot, if you're not picky about fidelity."

"Did you know that she had started an affair with Duncan Kane?" Leo asks.

"An affair?" Logan looks at Cliff, who shakes his head slightly. "You think she had an affair with Duncan?"

"It looks like they were sharing room service together for a few weeks. Their rooms were directly across the hall from each other."

"Oh, well, if they were eating together, they must have been having sex. You must have gone to the same crime-fighting school Lamb went to. Did McGruff the Crime Dog teach you guys to jump to conclusions?" Logan asks sarcastically. "I'll need sperm, or I'm just not going to believe that Duncan was doing Kendall. He's a little backward in the sack, you know."

"I'll tell him you said that," Leo replies.

"I roomed with the guy, remember? I should know," Logan adds.

"Yeah, wasn't he doing your girlfriend at the time? Couldn't have been too backward," Leo comments.

Cliff puts a restraining hand on Logan's arm. "Cool it, Logan. You don't have to answer these questions." Logan grimaces in response. Cliff continues, "Sheriff, these kind of comments are not productive."

Leo shuffles some papers on the desk. "According to Homeland Security, you haven't crossed a border in the last six months. So you were never actually in Madeira, is that correct?"

"That's correct."

"Where were you when you were supposedly out of the country?"

"South Padre Island, Texas."

"And why were you there?"

"I needed to get away for awhile. My ex-girlfriend was murdered, and the paparazzi were hounding me," Logan replies.

"Oh right, that was the _previous_ girlfriend that got murdered," Leo remarks. "I see that you withdrew $50,000 in cash on January 27. What was that for?"

"You were looking at my bank records?" Logan turns to Cliff. "Can he do that?"

"If he had a subpoena," Cliff replies. Logan looks at Leo, who nods, eyebrows raised, to indicate that, yes, he had a subpoena.

Logan swallows. "Last time I checked, U.S. citizens are still allowed to withdraw cash from a bank account."

"Is there some reason you don't want to tell me why you needed cash?"

"I was hiding from Veronica. I wasn't ready to talk to her, and I knew she'd be able to trace me through my credit cards. So I used cash for a while. I have about half of it left. It's in the safe at Mars Investigations if you want to check."

"Logan," Cliff warns, "You don't have to explain this."

"I didn't do anything wrong. I left town for a while. I used cash, cash that belonged to me."

"Why did you hire someone to take your place?" Leo presses. "Were you trying to create an alibi for yourself?"

All of a sudden, Logan's anger surfaces. In a loud voice, he spells it out. "Are you _listening_ to me? The paparazzi were on me night and day...saying that I was just like my father, accusing me of...statutory rape and murder. Yeah, I hired a guy to pretend to be me, and I laid low for a while. If you'd grown up with the paparazzi like I did...they hounded my mother to an early death. Can you wrap your tiny brain around that, Sheriff?"

Leo stares back at Logan, processing his statements. "What do you think the paparazzi would do with the information that you used to be involved with Kendall Casablancas?"

The question is like a sucker punch to Logan's gut. "You wouldn't," he says without thinking.

"I bet Veronica doesn't like thinking about you and Kendall either," Leo adds.

Cliff puts his hand back on Logan's arm, trying to contain his seething anger. "Sheriff, I think you're just trying to provoke my client. Do you have any more actual questions?"

"Yes." He picks up a remote and plays the video of Logan and Veronica in the Neptune Grand elevator. He freezes the video on a frame of the two of them kissing. "Why did you use an assumed name when you checked into the Neptune Grand with Veronica? Of course, this was during the period when you were supposedly in Europe, and I'm guessing you didn't want to blow your alibi," Leo says.

"Well, if you know, why are you asking?" Logan retorts. "Yes, I was avoiding the paparazzi by using a fake name. Sue me."

"Why were you and Veronica at the hotel anyways?"

"We were looking for a little privacy. We've been staying with her dad," Logan responds.

"Oh, and you didn't want Keith Mars to hear you making his daughter scream in ecstasy," Leo says sarcastically.

"Sheriff, that's uncalled for," Cliff protests before Logan can answer.

Leo presses, "Are you sure you weren't at the hotel to speak to Ms. Casablancas? Perhaps you were coming to a financial arrangement with her, asking Kendall to keep her silence about Veronica's involvement in the Manning babynapping? That could explain your cash withdrawal."

"The _Manning_ baby?" Logan repeats incredulously. _As if Kendall would keep her mouth shut for fifty grand...fuck, the kidnapping...that's what he thinks this is about?_ Logan thinks for a moment, then says, "I promise you, Sheriff, Kendall was not blackmailing Veronica about anything."

Leo continues, "Perhaps she wasn't amenable to the amount you offered her, and you had to ensure her silence another way."

"You do know that I have what they call an ironclad alibi? I was in Vermont, assisting on Veronica's investigation," Logan answers.

"Yeah, I know, observed by the FBI, yadda, yadda. But your old buddy, Duncan Kane, doesn't have an alibi. And it's my understanding that he might lose custody of his daughter if his relationship with Kendall Casablancas becomes public knowledge."

"Let me get this straight. You think Duncan had an affair with Kendall, and then she threatened to go public with the affair. Oh, and by the way, she also decided to blackmail Duncan and my girlfriend for supposedly conspiring in a kidnapping three years ago. You are grasping at straws, Sheriff."

"Maybe Duncan wasn't aware that it was Kendall at first...maybe she used the affair to get close to him, and then she started blackmailing him. He could lose custody, and Veronica could go to prison. Duncan called you and your girlfriend for help, and just like three years before, you helped him get out of a mess. Except this time just fleeing the country wasn't going to do it."

_Fuck. He's actually gotten a lot of it right._ Sarcastically, he mocks, "You really missed your calling, Sheriff...I can hook you up with my screenwriting professor, and you can turn this fiction into the next big blockbuster movie. I'm thinking maybe we could get Rob Morrow to play you. I see a best screenplay Oscar in your future, Sheriff. Too bad you don't have any evidence to support your crackhead theories."

Cliff clears his throat. "I think we're done here. Sheriff, I'm concerned that this investigation is not being conducted in an impartial manner. If my clients are questioned so abusively again, I'll be filing a formal complaint with the district attorney. People are already wondering why you indicted Keith Mars for arson on such flimsy evidence; you might not survive a judicial inquiry into your bias at this point."

"Go right ahead, Counselor." Leo laughs mirthlessly. "I'm thinking about asking the district attorney to reopen the investigation into that DVR that Keith Mars supposedly erased two years ago. There were a questions at the time as to why Keith's buddies in the district attorney's office declined to prosecute. The DA's up for reelection; he might not want a lot of publicity about that."

Cliff ushers Logan out into the waiting area, where Veronica is anxious to see him. In a low voice, Cliff says, "What the hell is going on? I've never seen D'Amato act like this. What did you guys do to him? He's being completely irrational and jumping to conclusions without evidence."

Veronica shakes her head regretfully without saying a word.

Cliff sighs. "I suppose I don't want to know."

"Exactly," Veronica replies. "I think it's worse than jumping to conclusions. I think he's trying to make the evidence fit his theories." She rubs her forehead in fatigue. "Can you give us a ride home, Cliff?"

Cliff looks at his watch. "No can do, Veronica. I'm already late for an _ex parte_ meeting with Judge Bloom...on the golf course. I have to let him beat the pants off me once a week like clockwork. 'Nice swing, your honor...spectacular putt for the birdie, Judge Bloom,'" he concludes wryly, swinging a make-believe driver.

"Thanks for coming, Cliffy," Veronica says.

"Of course. Anything for you, kid. Say 'hi' to your dad. And uh...do not talk to the Sheriff without me there, okay?"

"I wouldn't dream of it," she replies as he walks out the door. Veronica turns to Logan. "Do you have my cell phone?" Logan gives it to her; she calls her dad, but he doesn't pick up. Veronica sighs and shakes her head. They walk over to the counter, and Logan asks Deputy Sacks for a ride home.

The deputy replies, "Sure. Give me a few minutes; we're really busy today with the security for the funeral. I have to find someone who's available."

Veronica leans on the counter._ The funeral...got to figure this out. Think, Veronica. What's the point of being irredeemably manipulative and suspicious if you can't use it to help your friends?_ she thinks sardonically. "So you're coordinating security with the FBI, right?"

"Uh, Veronica," Sacks replies, looking around, "I'm really not supposed to talk about it."

"Oh, you know me, I'm just curious. And it's my friend's family, you know," she explains.

Sacks leans in closer and whispers, "There are about fifty federal agents stationed in and around the church. And everyone in the department is on duty. No exceptions."

"Any leads?" Veronica queries. She whispers conspiratorially, "It's Russian mafia, right?"

"They're not saying anything, Veronica. The word is just to keep an eye out for anything suspicious." The phone rings, and Sacks picks it up. "Neptune Sheriff's Department." His eyes light on Veronica, then he looks away. "Yes, go ahead." Sacks writes on the pad in front of him; Veronica taps her fingers on the counter, smiling. When Sacks looks down to write, she quickly reads the words upside down and looks back up, feigning disinterest. Sacks punches a couple buttons on the phone and says, "Sheriff. It's the FBI, Agent Sheffield, for you on line 1." Sacks cradles the phone. "Have a seat, Veronica, Logan. We'll take you home in a few minutes." He walks back to the radio dispatch room.

Logan and Veronica walk over to the waiting area and sit down. Veronica's face is thoughtful; Logan turns to her and asks, "What's up? I know that look on your face. That's your basic cat-that-ate-the-canary expression."

"I really don't know. I think something is going on with the funeral," she muses. She whispers, "That call, it was a federal BOLO for a gray Camry, rental, California license KSW 9297. Detained this morning on a 22350 VC. Possible 646.9, possible 245."

At Logan's questioning glance, Veronica continues in a low voice, "The FBI is asking them to watch for a rental car with that license plate. The car was stopped this morning for speeding." She thinks for minute. "Those last two codes are stalking and assault with deadly intent."

Logan turns to Veronica and says firmly, "That's it, we're not going to the funeral. Assault with deadly intent? I don't want you anywhere near that."

"No! You heard him, there are fifty federal agents and the entire department is going to be there. And we don't even know that it's connected to the funeral. This BOLO could be for any case. If it really was dangerous, they would cancel the service."

He scoffs. "The Feds are all crazy like you. They'll run headfirst into a danger for the chance of catching some bad guy."

She thinks, _No! I don't do that. I'm not like that. I don't do that._ "I'm not doing that...I know I don't know everything, Logan. I'm trying to change. I don't want to keep making the same mistakes over and over again." _'You aren't as smart as you think you are, Connie. You aren't smart at all. Your actions that got you here prove it, and the sooner you accept that, the sooner you'll start to improve your life.' I'm not making the same mistakes I always made. I'm trying. Am I convincing him, or me?_

Veronica says as persuasively as she can, "I'm not running headfirst into danger. The entire sheriff's department is going to be there, Logan." She adds wistfully, "I just have this feeling...I need to be there. You know it's the last chance we'll have to see Mac ever again."

Logan sighs. "You're going to the funeral no matter what I say, aren't you."

She nods. Veronica says, "Let me call my dad again." Her dad finally answers and agrees to pick them up in a few minutes. Logan puts his arm around her; as she leans against him, he wishes that this day would finally be over.

Tues. 3/17/09 afternoon: Apartment, Neptune, CA

Alan escorts Mac into a room filled with agents. One entire wall is lined with video screens. Alan directs Mac to a chair near one of the larger screens. He explains, "We've got video coverage of the entire church and surrounding area. I'd like you to concentrate on watching people as they move toward the metal detector we've set up outside the entrance to the church."

_Frak! This is serious shit,_ Mac thinks. She takes a seat and looks around. Several agents are working with computer screens. She leans back a little, trying to surreptitiously see the data a nearby agent is working on. The agent notices and frowns at her, angling the screen a little to prevent her from observing. "I'm the target, you know," she comments. "And I'm not exactly a computer noob." The agent ignores her and continues to work in silence. She sighs and watches the video screen in front of her. There isn't much activity as yet. It's apparent that many agents are stationed near the metal detector; occasionally, an agent will accost someone and ask to see identification. She watches as someone sets off the metal detector; an agent has the person empty their pockets and then frisks the offender thoroughly before allowing them to try again. The person passes through successfully and collects their belongings.

Mac hears Alan's voice across the room, and she tries to block out the chatter in the room to focus. "Sheffield...Really?...Outside San Diego...Okay, put out an alert on the plate...No, nothing yet...Right. I'll call the Sheriff's Department." She watches as Alan makes a phone call; he keeps his voice low, and she is unable to distinguish the words. He terminates the call and comes to sit down beside her.

"What's going on?" Mac asks.

"That guy Sorokin was stopped on a routine traffic violation this morning outside San Diego. He has a rental car, and we've put an alert on the plates."

"That's great," Mac comments hopefully.

"If it means anything." He sighs. "I've gotten to know you, and I think you have good instincts. So I'm paying attention to you. But my supervisor...he thinks it's nuts. And I'm having a hell of a time convincing him to use any resources on this guy."

"Thanks for listening to me," Mac replies. "Maybe you'll catch him."

"He hasn't done anything. We wouldn't be able to hold him," Alan says.

"You said he was on parole. If he has a gun, or explosives...." Mac suggests. "Wouldn't that be a violation of his parole?"

"That doesn't do anything for your long-term safety," Alan explains. "If he is targeting you."

"And my friend. Will you please let me call her and warn her?"

"I can't, Mac. I've asked the Sheriff's Department to keep an eye out for her. I just talked to the sheriff personally, and he assured me that Veronica's safety, along with everyone at the funeral, will be his highest priority."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**In the Crosshairs**  
The Mackenzie funeral.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Dick: Ryan Hansen. Carrie: Amber Heard.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack.  
Alan: Ned Vaughan. Norman Phipps: Matt Czuchry.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER NINETY-NINE: "IN THE CROSSHAIRS"

Tues. 3/17/09 afternoon: St. John's Church, Neptune, CA

KEITH

Keith glances in the rearview mirror at his daughter and her boyfriend sitting in the back seat of the car. He taps impatiently on the steering wheel and looks at the line of cars in front of him. The traffic leading to the parking lot of St. John's Church is a mess; all cars are being directed to one entrance where ID's are checked and two police officers are watching each vehicle closely. Street parking has been blocked off to attempt to force all funeral attendees to use the parking lot behind the church. Random cars are asked to pull over to be inspected; the resulting delay has backed up traffic for several blocks.

"I didn't know the Mackenzies had so many friends," Veronica mutters.

"People are probably curious," Keith remarks. He thinks that she looks exhausted; when he walked into the sheriff's department, she was asleep on Logan's shoulder. Logan had looked at him, obviously wanting to say something to reduce the tension between them; Keith had just shaken his head, not ready to discuss it yet. But Keith couldn't miss the way Veronica was clinging to Logan; to Keith's eyes, she was leaning on him for more than physical support. Keith had asked in a low voice how the questioning went. Veronica replied briefly, "Later, okay? Let's just get through the funeral." Keith had noted that several of the deputies were staring at them as they exited the building, and he had reflected that if Leo truly was pursuing a vendetta against his family, it couldn't possibly be worse timing.

As they approach the checkpoint, Keith recognizes one of his old deputies, Jim, as one of the two officers checking each car. Jim is carefully checking every license plate, and Keith wonders what's going on. Another deputy unknown to Keith walks up to their car and begins to scan underneath the chassis using a mirror mounted on a long pole. Keith opens his window, and Jim walks over to speak to them. "Hey, Jim, how's it going? A lot of security for this, huh?"

"Yeah, like you wouldn't believe," Jim replies. "Feds all over the place."

"I see that. Do you need to see our ID's?"

"No, that's okay." Jim peers in the car. "Hey, Veronica."

"Hey, Jim," she says quietly.

Jim points toward the parking lot. "Just follow the line of cars. Someone will assign you to a space."

"Thanks, Jim."

As they wait to enter the parking lot, Keith watches the entrance of the church. People are lining up, waiting to go through a metal detector. Keith's old cop instincts are piqued by the heavy security. He carefully scans the crowd, looking for suspicious activity. People are milling around; standing in groups of three or four people. He sees Mac's old roommate, Parker Lee, with a boy that he doesn't recognize. Eli Navarro, looking somewhat uncomfortable in a dress shirt, is talking with Wallace on the sidewalk. Keith realizes that the beautiful woman with Wallace must be his girlfriend Candice. He looks back at Veronica again, thinking she's almost Candice's age; _she's not my little girl any more, she's a woman._ Veronica catches his eye and smiles at him.

They finally park the car and walk back toward the church. Veronica holds Logan's hand tightly; both of them are still very subdued after the questioning. Keith tries unsuccessfully to think of something comforting to say. She pulls out a tissue from her purse and wipes a tear from her eye. Keith leans over and kisses the top of her head. "It's okay, honey." She tries to smile back at him.

Federal agents are everywhere: Keith counts at least twenty agents who have made no effort to conceal their identity or purpose. He spies perhaps twenty more who are trying to blend in with the crowd; he thinks to himself that, even if you can't spot a holster, you can always tell a fed by their sensible shoes that are suitable for running down a suspect.

A limo pulls up to the steps in front of the church, and federal agents clear a path. Mac gets out of the limo, accompanied by four agents who press closely against her. Several people try to approach Mac but are immediately rebuffed by the agents. Mac is hustled through the metal detector, which immediately sounds an alarm due to the agents' weapons. She is escorted into the church, and the metal detector is reset.

"Keith Mars!! Mr. Mars!!"

Keith turns and grimaces when he recognizes Carrie Murray. "Carrie." The reporter, her blonde hair tied back in a ponytail, is accompanied by a young man. Carrie hurries to catch up with them.

"Oh, no," Veronica says. "Dad...."

"Veronica, it's all right," he reassures her. "Let me handle it."

"Mr. Mars, good to see you again. Logan. Veronica...." Carrie extends her hand toward Veronica, and Veronica reluctantly offers her left hand to shake. "Veronica, you were incredible at the school. I'm really looking forward to our interview." She turns to the young man beside her. "You remember my brother, of course," Carrie says lightly.

"Norman Phipps," Logan says tensely. "I can't say it's good to see you again." Veronica puts her arm around him, trying to somehow comfort him.

"Look, man, I was just doing my job–" Norman replies.

"Your job?" Logan shakes his head. "Fuck!" He stares at Norman in disgust.

Keith quickly intercedes, fearing an explosion. He pulls Carrie and Norman aside. "Carrie, I'm surprised to see you here."

Carrie continues persuasively, "Well, we said 'all access'. I'm hoping to speak to Veronica about the funeral, get her reactions."

Keith laughs without humor. "It's not 'all access' for the rest of Veronica's life. There's no more access, Carrie."

"I still haven't gotten my exclusive interview," she protests.

Norman adds, "It's my understanding that you brokered an agreement with my sister in exchange for her cooperation."

"I know. I haven't forgotten. Veronica is still exhausted from the operation. I promise you, when she's up to it, we'll be in touch, and we'll set up the interview."

Carrie smiles. "I'm looking forward to it. Would you consider giving me an interview as well?"

"Absolutely not," Keith says firmly.

MAC

Mac is watching the video screen. She is naming people to the agent sitting beside her, eliminating any one known to her.

"That's my old roommate, Parker, and her new boyfriend. Well, fiancé, I guess. That's Eli Navarro, Wallace Fennel, Candice Pauling....that's a guy from my game theory class, I don't remember his name."

She sees Keith Mars on the edge of the video screen talking to two people, a blonde woman and a dark blond man with their backs to the videocamera. "That's Keith Mars. Is that Veronica?" she asks, pointing. "No, she's too tall. Who's Keith talking to?"

The agent says, pointing, "You can see better on this screen."

Mac leans over. "Holy fucking crap. That's Carrie Murray, she's a reporter. And I think...I think that might be her brother Norman Phipps. Why is Keith talking to them? Wait...that's Veronica and Logan there, on the other side of Keith Mars. God, I almost didn't recognize her."

"What?" Alan asks. He walks over to join her in looking at the video screen.

"Veronica was just undercover, remember? She must have dyed her hair red. And...Logan's hair is different too," Mac adds.

Alan points at the screen. "Who's this guy?"

"That, believe it or not, is Dick," Mac says, suppressing a smile.

"The guy from the emails?" Alan says.

"Yes. Wow. He doesn't wear a suit very often...he looks nice. And...I think he got a haircut."

VERONICA AND LOGAN

"I can't fucking believe Carrie and her brother showed up," Logan comments bitterly in a low voice.

Veronica says quietly, "Logan. Forget about them. I'll do the interview my dad promised. It won't be that bad. She'll be out of our life forever....Oh my god."

"What?" he asks anxiously.

"Dude," Dick says from behind.

Logan turns around. He looks at Dick, who's wearing his best suit, with his hair neatly styled; even his shoes appear to have been polished. "Whoa. What happened to you?"

"Come on, man," Dick pleads. "Do I look okay?"

"I'm sure Mac will appreciate it when she sees you, Dick," Veronica says, taking pity. "It's good to see you."

Dick looks over his shoulder then back at Veronica. "You're talking to me?"

"Dick?" Veronica crooks her finger at him, and he nervously leans toward her. She whispers, "Thanks for giving us the heads up on Sheriff D'Amato. And if a certain video from the Neptune Grand elevator shows up in your inbox, you're going to delete it, right?"

"The elevator video? No peen, and not even a nip slip...not much chance that video's going viral. Completely safe for work, if you ask me."

"Delete, Dick," she replies firmly.

"You're right, absolutely. Cross my heart. Uh, Veronica?" Dick points behind her.

Veronica turns and sees a cruiser marked 'Sheriff' pulling up to the curb. Leo exits his car and strides toward her.

Dick says, "I'm getting in line; I'll save a place for you guys. If the sheriff asks, she told me she was nineteen." He heads for the line at the security checkpoint.

"Sheriff," Veronica says, with obvious distaste. "More questions?"

"Actually, the FBI just called and asked me to personally take charge of your safety today. What are the odds?" Leo asks.

Veronica narrows her eyes, assessing. "_My_ safety?"

"Yeah, it's hard to imagine someone wanting to hurt you, right? When you're so gosh-darned nice?" Leo says sarcastically.

Veronica ignores him and looks at Logan. He returns her gaze, puzzled. Both of them are paralyzed by the thought that the FBI is concerned about Veronica's safety.

Leo's radio crackles, "Sheriff, come in."

Leo thumbs the radio. "This is the sheriff."

"It's Lou. We got that car you're looking for, parked on Fifth Street near Radford. There's no one in the vehicle."

Leo barks, "Dispatch. This is the sheriff. Unit Seven has located the vehicle on Fifth and Radford. Start a building-to-building search."

They hear the dispatcher say, "Unit Two, proceed to Fifth and Main. Unit Nine, proceed to Radford and Sixth Street. Unit Eleven, proceed to Sixth and Main. All units, suspect is considered armed and dangerous."

Veronica says, "Fifth Street? That's a few blocks from here." She looks around.

Suddenly, they hear several shots. Leo says, "Get down, now!" He pushes them toward the ground and draws his gun. The rumble of the crowd's conversations dies away; a woman begins to scream loudly, and people begin running. In the chaos, no one knows where to go to get away from the gunshots, and Veronica and Logan quickly lose sight of Keith, who was just a few feet away from them moments ago. Leo says tersely, "Stay down. I need to check out the situation."

Ignoring him, Veronica scans the crowd for her dad; she sees him kneeling on the ground twenty feet away behind a stone bench. "Dad!" She tries to wrestle free from Leo's grasp; Logan grabs her as well, and together they try to push her toward Leo's cruiser. Veronica screams, "Dad! Logan, let me go!" She struggles against Logan's grip.

Leo yells, "Get in the car, Veronica, and get down!" With Logan's help, he manages to get her in the car as she fights against them. Leo locks them inside the car, his eyes meeting Logan's worried gaze momentarily. The sheriff assesses the situation quickly and sprints over to Keith, still kneeling on the ground and apparently performing CPR on a gunshot victim. Leo calls for an ambulance, describing the injuries and asking for additional officers for crowd control at his location.

Veronica ignores her injured shoulder and pushes herself to the car window, trying to see what's going on. She curses at Logan, berating him for preventing her from running to her father; he tries to comfort her, saying, "It's all right, it's all right," repeatedly, hoping that he's not lying. The crowd has scattered; people have taken cover anywhere they could behind cars, trees, and the stone benches around the church perimeter. Agents and police officers are shouting orders; people are crying, and the woman continues to scream repeatedly. The sound of approaching sirens can be heard in the distance. Gradually, the crowd dissipates as the authorities get the scene under control, and Veronica sees Norman Phipps lying in a pool of blood on the sidewalk.

MAC

When the agents hear gunshots over the radio frequency, the situation room is silent for a split-second before pandemonium breaks loose. Mac is watching as Norman Phipps falls over, hitting Keith Mars and pushing him to the ground. Carrie keels over a moment later. Agents are yelling in confusion, their voices combining into a chaotic uproar. "Shots fired!" "Three people are down, no, four!" "Is that a gun?" "Who the hell is that?" "What's happening?"

Mac is pushed aside; she watches in terror, trying to see what exactly has happened. She stares at the screen desperately, looking for her friends in the swarms of agitated persons on the scene. Finally she spots Keith Mars on one of the video feeds, his jacket bloodied, dragging Carrie Murray twenty feet behind a stone bench for its meager cover; almost out of view of the camera, Keith begins performing CPR on Carrie. Norman Phipps is laying unattended on the sidewalk, blood pooling around his body. Mac looks around wildly; the other video screens show agents and officers with guns drawn, trying to control the panicky crowd as well as locate the source of the shots fired.

"Where's Veronica? Logan?" she asks Alan, who shakes his head. "Dick was right there a moment ago too, can you see him?"

Pointing at the image of Keith performing CPR, Alan replies urgently, "You said that woman was a reporter?"

"Yes, Carrie Murray, and I think that's her brother Norman Phipps on the sidewalk. Carrie's been harassing Veronica...they're both tabloid reporters. Her brother...it's complicated. He pretended to be Logan's brother to get a story."

"What?"

"I told you, it's complicated."

Alan's phone rings, and he quickly stabs at the 'send' key. "Sheffield here...What?...You got him?...Two reporters, according to Ms. Mackenzie." He glances at Mac.

Mac says quickly, "Carolyn Murray and Norman Phipps."

Alan repeats, "Carolyn Murray and Norman Phipps...I don't know either...Okay, patch me through...Sheriff D'Amato, do you have a update on Veronica Mars and Logan Echolls?...Okay...Just the two victims then. Yes, that's we heard too." To Mac, he says, "They're all right." He returns to the phone. "It was definitely Gorya Sorokin?...No, I don't know the full story." He looks at Mac again.

Mac flushes.

"Yes, I would like to be present for the interrogation. Thank you, Sheriff." Alan ends the call and sighs deeply. "It's a good thing you told me about that guy, Mac. Because we had located his car, they were able to catch Sorokin leaving a high-rise apartment building on Fifth Street. Apparently he used a sniper rifle from one of the terraces on the building. They're not sure how he gained access to the apartment. The man, the one you called Norman Phipps, is dead. The woman, Carrie Murray, is on her way to the hospital; they're not sure if she's going to make it. One of the bullets must have passed through Phipps and grazed Mr. Mars. He has a minor flesh wound, and he's also being treated."

"Mr. Mars is going to be okay, though, right?" Mac interrupts.

Alan nods. "Yes, Keith Mars is going to be fine. Stay put, Mac, okay?" He moves off and begins discussing something with another agent.

Mac thinks, _It was Gory...it was Gory!! He must have been trying to get Veronica and Logan and...he made the same mistake I did and thought Carrie and Norman were them. Two years...Gory waited two years to get back at Veronica and Logan. And the only reason he missed them is because Veronica dyed her hair._ Guiltily, Mac remembers wishing that Carrie would just go away and leave them alone. They had all been appalled at Norman Phipps' heartless deception as well; still, Mac wishes she had been able to convince Alan to stop the funeral before anyone got hurt. Mac finds a chair in the corner of the room and sits down. She huddles in the corner, shaking slightly; she begins to cry silently, unnoticed by the busy federal agents.

Tues. 3/17/09 evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Keith knocks gently on the door to Veronica's bedroom and enters. She is dozing but wakes up immediately. "You're here," she says quietly.

"Yep. I'm here," he says, sitting down on the bed with her. He kisses her on the forehead, and she struggles to sit up; he arranges the pillows for her so she can lean back. Keith notes that she's still fully dressed; he suspects that Logan had quickly bundled her into bed when they returned home, only taking time to remove her shoes.

"They wouldn't let me come to the hospital. Are you all right? Dad, they wouldn't let me come, they said it wasn't safe," she babbles.

Keith nods. "It's just a big Band-Aid, Veronica. I'm fine." He smooths the hair from her brow.

"Carrie?"

"She's going to make it."

She nods. "Has anyone talked to Mac? I'm wondering if that was really her at the funeral. I bet it was all a set-up."

"I don't know about that, Veronica. But the lead agent said Mac was fine. And Veronica, Mac's family is alive. They weren't home when the house was bombed. They've been hiding in witness protection."

"Mac's family is alive?" she repeats, the tears beginning again.

"Yeah, honey, they're fine. They're all fine."

Veronica wipes his eyes and asks, "Is the agent still out front?"

"Yeah. I think they're going to have some more questions for you, honey."

"I thought the agent said Gory was so upset that he missed us that he confessed everything," she protests quietly. Veronica sees Logan hovering by the doorway, watching and listening.

"Not everything. Veronica, you need to tell me the whole story," Keith presses gently. "You're going to have to make a statement, and I need to know what was going on so I can help you."

Veronica thinks for a moment, still reluctant to explain. From the doorway, Logan says quietly, "Veronica, you have to tell him."

Finally she begins. "It was freshman year, when I was going out with Piz. Piz and Wallace were rooming together, remember? Gory bugged their room. He was tapping Wallace for the Castle, the Hearst secret society. And Piz and I were...fooling around, and the camera caught us," she admits hesitantly. At his expression, she rushes to say, "We didn't...it was just, you know..." she sighs, "I don't know, you'd say 'heavy petting'. But there was some...skin."

He looks at her sympathetically.

"Don't look at me like that!" she protests. "I'm going to cry if you don't stop that."

"I'm stopping right now," he promises. "I'm not looking at you, Veronica."

"It looked worse than it was...it looked like I was...everyone assumed I was...." Veronica explains, her voice shaky. "And Gory sent to the video to everyone. I was the slut who made a porno with her boyfriend."

"How did you find out that Gory did it?"

She looks at him, unable to answer. "Dad, don't make me...it was the hard drive."

"Jake Kane?" he says slowly. "That's what...that's why you were...."

"It was so stupid," she says in a sudden rush. "Everyone had already seen the video, there was no point, and you lost the election because of it."

"Jake Kane was involved with this guy Gory who was connected?" Keith asks, confused.

"The Castle, the Hearst secret society, kept an insurance policy on all their initiates so they would maintain a code of silence. They had videos of each of them confessing their darkest secret, and Jake was...collecting the confessions on a hard drive. It had seventy years of secrets on it, insurance that everyone in the Castle would always keep their mouth shut. Gory's confession was...he told a story about his dad and his Uncle Lev disposing of a dead body." She shudders, remembering the matter-of-fact storytelling about a power saw and several garbage bags being dumped into a lake.

"The Sorokin crime family is known to be responsible for at least twenty murders...that we know of," Keith explains.

Veronica looks at him, puzzled. "How do you know that?"

"I ran into Gory up in Lompoc, when I was visiting Vinnie. He seemed very interested in me, and I had him checked out. I assumed when I got his record that he was somehow connected to the Sukarenkos. I never dreamed he was interested in you, Veronica." Keith sighs deeply. "Soon after that, the arson investigation began, and the Briar Hill operation.... My contact said he would ask around, and I never followed up. Veronica, it was incredibly foolish to take that hard drive."

"I didn't know there was evidence of a mob hit," she protests. "I didn't even know for sure what was going on until we decrypted the hard drive." At Keith's expression, she nods. "We...Mac and I."

"You got Mac involved in this? Veronica...what were you thinking?"

_I wasn't thinking, like always. I used Mac...damn it. _"I didn't know it was the mafia, Dad. And then...." she glances at Logan, hovering in the doorway and listening. "Logan got involved too. Gory was mocking me in the cafeteria at Hearst, and Logan heard him brag that he was behind the video." Keith exhales loudly, suddenly certain what she's going to reveal. She glances at Logan. "I tried to stop him, but Logan wouldn't listen. He beat Gory up, and Gory swore that he'd kill Logan one day."

"Why did he wait two years? Mob guys aren't known for their patience, Veronica."

In a small voice, she explains. "I made a copy of the hard drive before I returned it to Jake Kane. I put a disc with the video of Gory's confession in a safety deposit box, and I let him know if anything ever happened to me or Logan, the confession would be sent to the feds. And...it seemed to work. He left me alone, and it looked like he was leaving Logan alone."

Keith turns to Logan. "Did you know...?"

"No, I had nothing to do with it," Logan swears. "I figured the guy was going to kill me one day when I least expected it. It's one of the reasons I moved to L.A. I had a bodyguard for a while, but it seemed like it was finally over, so I started living my life again. I didn't find out what Veronica had done until last fall when we got back together."

Veronica is pondering the timing of Gory's actions. "Get my laptop, will you?"

Logan retrieves her laptop from the desk and brings it to the bed. Veronica opens the PryingEyez website in her browser and runs a search on 'Lev Sorokin'. A story from the Newark Star-Ledger is the first result. Veronica angles the screen so they can see. "Sorokin's father and uncle were convicted of several counts of murder and conspiracy last fall and are serving multiple consecutive life sentences."

"If they've already been convicted..." Keith realizes.

"There's no reason to keep Gory's confession secret any more," Veronica concludes. "I never thought of...I never considered what would happen if that murder became public knowledge." She peers at the screen. "But that was months ago."

Keith explains, "Gory was convicted on a weapons charge in early December. He tried to buy an illegally modified firearm from an undercover ATF agent in Los Angeles. He probably intended to try to get you and Logan at that time; you were in the press every day after the Harmony shooting, and it wouldn't have been hard to find you. The weapons charge was Gory's first conviction; he only served sixty days before he was paroled. I bet we'll find out that the Sorokins were connected to the flirt-bot that Mac and Rick Picket were investigating. Sorokin took advantage of the situation to obscure his real purpose and planted the bombs, hoping to get Mac and Veronica. He might have even realized that Veronica would have needed help to decrypt that hard drive, and it's pretty easy to find out that Veronica's roommate is a computer expert."

"I don't think that's it," Logan interjects. "I think he was trying to get me to come out of hiding. I was AWOL when the bombing happened. Veronica, I bet he thought if he managed to kill you, or if you were hurt, I'd show up. And I would have. But he missed you; you realized it was a bomb and got out of there safely."

"After the first bombing didn't work, why didn't he just wait, and try to kill us some other time?" Veronica wonders.

Keith says thoughtfully, "He must have been desperate to try to get you and Logan to show yourselves and came up with the idea of blowing up Mac's house. I guess he thought for sure you'd come to support your friend in such a difficult time–"

"And he was right," Veronica comments. "I insisted that we come home."

"But it was a mistake to bomb the Mackenzie house. All it did was ensure that Mac would be placed in witness protection and that security would be ridiculously high at the funeral. He must have wanted to try to kill Mac too, but he miscalculated the amount of security there would be, and he had to settle for shooting at you and Logan," Keith theorizes. "You know, Gory might have been trying to locate Logan for quite a while, but first Logan was in Texas, and then he was with us in Vermont. Logan was only here in Neptune for a few days."

"And we were lying low the whole time. Wait...the bug at Logan's beach house," Veronica gasps. "The one we thought was planted by the paparazzi...and the tracking device on my car."

"Veronica! Why didn't you tell me about this?" Keith scolds, his voice harsher than he intends.

He turns away, trying not to let her see how incredibly scared he is, but she immediately mistakes it for anger and recrimination. She flinches, her whole body tense with emotion. Veronica imagines Peter Klein leaning towards her, his face smug and powerful, telling her, _'You just do whatever the fuck you what, whenever you want, and you expect everyone to just tolerate it. Your dad's given up on stopping you. He's locked you up here, hoping that maybe, just maybe, there might be something worth saving after all.' No, FUCK you...FUCK you, DAMN you to hell. I'm not a fucking user! I didn't know...I didn't know. And Dad was keeping secrets...how was I supposed to know? DAMN IT, I'm not a fucking user._

Defensively, she protests, "You were so busy with the operation and...you had enough to worry about. You haven't been yourself since Leo arrested you for the arson." Veronica says emphatically, "And I know...I know that the arson has something to do with Vinnie's defense. I _know_ that Vinnie blackmailed you into helping him; he threatened to testify that I helped Duncan run with baby Lilly, didn't he? And Weevil told me about the body you dug up at St. Mary's. Do you want to tell me about that?"

"Veronica, I'm your father. You don't need to know everything I'm doing!" Keith says, testily. He turns back and sees her chastened expression; he quickly amends himself, "I don't want you to know what I was doing, Veronica. It's for your own protection. Damn it. I don't want you to know! Can you understand that?"

They stare at each other for a long moment.

Finally, Logan breaks the silence. "Can we agree that the feds don't need to know about the hard drive? I'll bet Gory doesn't know the whole story about it, and Jake Kane isn't going to say anything about it at this point. Let's just say that I beat up Gory for insulting Veronica, and he swore that he'd kill us one day."

Veronica nods shakily. "If it comes out about the hard drive, it doesn't matter anyways."

"Right, the evidence is gone," Keith agrees.

"And you've already suffered the consequences for my actions," Veronica adds bitterly, clearly berating herself. "Your career was ruined, because I had to get my revenge on Gory. This was all because I couldn't just laugh off a sex video. Norman Phipps is dead and Carrie got shot because I just had to get revenge." She laughs ruefully. "It's the internet age after all. It's ridiculous to get upset because you're a little overexposed."

"Veronica..." Keith protests, realizing too late just how agitated she is. "This is not your fault."

Logan adds, "I'm the one who beat him up. You told me not to, and I didn't listen to you. Gory's responsible for this, Veronica. You can't beat yourself up about this."

Veronica still looks upset. She takes a breath to argue again but is prevented by the doorbell ringing.

Keith goes to the living room and answers the door to a federal agent stationed outside the apartment and Duncan Kane. "Duncan," Keith says. "I forgot you were coming over tonight in all the excitement."

"So you know this guy?" the agent asks.

"Yes, of course, we were expecting him. Come in, Duncan."

Duncan says, "I'm sorry, I should have called. It's just...the custody hearing is only a few days away. I thought I'd take a chance it would be all right."

"It's okay, Duncan. We were just talking in Veronica's bedroom. She's lying down...she's a little tired after all the excitement today."

"But she's okay?" Duncan asks worriedly.

"We're all okay," Keith reassures him. He leads Duncan toward Veronica's room.

"It's not just the custody hearing," Duncan says suddenly. "It's about Kendall. Sheriff D'Amato is asking a lot of questions."

Keith nods. "We know."

They enter Veronica's bedroom, and Duncan walks to the side of her bed. "Veronica, it's good to see you. I've been following the news reports about the investigation at the school. It sounds like you did a great job."

"I had a lot of help," she explains vaguely, obviously still caught up in the emotional discussion with her dad. "How's Lilly? How are you? I know there's a big hearing on Friday. You need me to testify right?"

Duncan sits down. "Yeah, I'll need you to testify. We think Mrs. Manning is going to try to get me to admit I broke into their house three years ago."

Veronica nods. "Duncan, I'm sorry it's been so hard for you and Lilly."

"But that's not why I'm here. Kendall was murdered while you were gone–" he begins.

"We know. Sheriff D'Amato already dragged us in for questioning," she interrupts, trying to focus and acknowledging to herself just how much trouble Leo's vendetta is causing. "He thinks it's some vast conspiracy, that we planned this together to cover up our involvement in the kidnapping."

Duncan looks shocked. "D'Amato thinks we killed Kendall because of the kidnapping?"

"Somebody, I think Madison, told him about our breakup fight, when everybody heard me accuse you of sleeping with Kendall. Leo thinks either Kendall was in on our plan or somehow found out about it, and she was here trying to blackmail me," Veronica explains. "Duncan...it's possible Leo's trying to get back at me and Logan for something...." Her voice dies away. "There's...there's more to this than just the evidence. He's furious at me," she concludes bleakly.

Keith, until now unaware of what had transpired at the sheriff's department, is visibly upset at the news. "Duncan, you didn't have anything to do with Kendall's murder, did you?"

"Of course not!" Duncan swears. "Veronica, while you were gone...I saw Kendall meeting with somebody in the park. They were arguing; the man was furious with her. I didn't know who it was until I saw him on the news recently."

"On the news?" Veronica asks, confused.

"I took a picture of them with my cell phone. I don't know why I thought to do that. Then when Kendall was murdered a few days later, I was worried that someone had seen us together at the hotel, and I panicked. I erased the picture from my phone. I didn't want any evidence that I knew her. But, Veronica...I sent the picture to your email when I first took it. Now I think that picture might be the only thing that will make the sheriff stop investigating us."

Veronica slides the laptop back onto her lap. "Which account?"

"Your old AOL account," Duncan replies.

Veronica frowns. "I don't use that one much any more. It's always full of penis enlargement ads and Nigerian investment schemes." She launches the AOL program.

"You've got mail," the computer voice intones.

Duncan leans over and points. "There it is."

Veronica clicks on the email. When the picture finishes loading, she gasps. "What's Kendall doing talking to Tom Griffith?"

* * *

McGruff the Crime Dog: Advertising campaign in the U.S., exhorting children to help police 'take a bite out of crime'.

peen: exposed penis, frequently used term on celebrity-watching sites  
nip slip: exposed nipple, frequently used term on celebrity-watching sites  
(see community•livejournal•com/ohnotheydidnt for examples)


	31. Chapters 100 to 102

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy and Poniesforall. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

**_Once again, sorry about the delay in getting this update posted. The fic has gotten so large and complicated that it takes me longer to make sure I'm getting things right (hopefully). I do appreciate hearing that people are enjoying my story! I have been pretty busy in real life and took longer than usual to respond to reviews the last time around; I would like to emphasize that I do respond to every review that is left here because I enjoy the interaction with my readers, and your opinions are very important to me._**

* * *

**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from chapters 95-99:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/74326•html )

_**OKAY--A LOT HAPPENED LAST TIME. SERIOUSLY BIG SPOILERS AHEAD--THIS SUMMARY REFERS TO THE UPDATE POSTED 10/20/08; GO BACK AND READ THE LAST CHAPTER IF YOU MISSED IT. HOLD ON--HERE WE GO....**_

_Leo reviews his notes from the interviews he has conducted with all the witnesses in the murder of Kendall Casablancas. He wonders if Logan and Veronica helped Duncan flee the country with his daughter, and if Kendall could have been blackmailing the three of them. He thinks that Kendall's murder could have been a conspiracy between the three of them. Once again, Leo interviews Tina, the manager at the Neptune Grand; he presses her for information about Duncan Kane and discovers some evidence that seems to point to Duncan and Kendall having a relationship._

_Keith discovers that Logan slept in Veronica's bedroom the night before, and he is furious. He berates himself for allowing the situation and for never noticing that something was wrong with Veronica when she was raped. At Mars Investigations, Wallace brings Keith up to speed on his progress working on Shawn's murder and shows Keith the organizational chart of the Fitzpatrick crime family that he has been compiling. Keith later visits Hannah's mother, Ms. Denenberg. He confirms that she is willing to pursue her lawsuit against no matter how painful the press coverage or how intense the pressure that will be exerted by the tough-love school. Keith tells Ms. Denenberg the story of Hannah's escape and where she was living, for at least a while before she turned up in Los Angeles._

_Logan makes contact with his therapist. He tells her about his time undercover, how hard it was both for him and Veronica, and how both of them experienced psychological problems. He expresses his guilt for sleeping with Veronica the night before and obsesses that, if Veronica examines her rape more closely, she will blame him because he provided the date rape drugs used on her. He worries about the impact of Kendall's murder on top of everything else. He talks about needing to take care of Veronica and focusing his efforts on getting her well again, but the therapist reminds him that he has been traumatized as well and also needs to be taken care of. When Veronica wakes up, she and he discuss the morning after Alterna-Prom. The converation is a good start on finally exploring how they feel about what happened._

_Logan informs Veronica about the partial fingerprint that was found in Kendall's room; they decide to say that the print could have been left any one of the many times when Veronica was in the hotel and agree not to mention that Duncan was having an affair with Kendall. Leo takes them in for questioning and interviews them separately._

_Leo shows Veronica the meticulous notes he has compiled on the relationship between Logan, Veronica, Duncan, and Kendall. Someone has told Leo about the public breakup between her and Duncan that identified Kendall as the problem. Leo has circumstantial evidence that points to Kendall and Duncan having an affair shortly before her murder. He also brings up the old kidnapping case and the fingerprint evidence._

_Logan is quite the jackass during his interview. Leo asks him about his relationship with Kendall and whether he knew about Duncan's affair with her. Leo probes Logan's period in Texas, questioning why he needed to hide. He insinuates that Kendall was blackmailing the three of them about Veronica's involvement in the Manning babynapping, and there was a conspiracy to murder Kendall to protect Veronica from being prosecuted._

_On the morning of her family's fake funeral, Mac tells her FBI handler about Gory Sorokin, although she omits some of the details that would incriminate Veronica or her father. Alan runs a record check on the name and finds that Sorokin was paroled several days before the package bomb was delivered to Veronica's and Mac's dorm room. They find out that Sorokin was stopped that morning on a routine traffic stop, but was let go. An alert is issued on Sorokin's car._

_At the funeral for Mac's Family, the security is intense. The agent who is portraying Mac arrives and is escorted into the church; Keith, Logan, and Veronica are a distance away and don't detect the substitution. They are confronted by Carrie Murray and her half-brother, Norman Phipps, apparently seeking another salacious story. There are gunshots; Norman is killed, Carrie is injured severely, and Keith has a minor injury. Leo is there, charged by the FBI with ensuring Veronica's safety, and he makes sure that Logan and Veronica are safe. Mac has a freakout watching the whole thing unfold on video monitors._

_They find out that Gory is the shooter, and he mistakenly shot the blonde Carrie and Norman because Veronica and Logan were both in disguise. Gory is apprehended. Veronica tells her father the story of the sex tape with Piz, the angry confrontation with Gory, and Gory's threats against her and Logan. She admits she used evidence against Gory's father and uncle to safeguard her and Logan's safety; however, Gory's relatives have been convicted of these crimes, and her blackmail evidence has become useless. Gory began targeting her while Logan was in Texas, hoping to get Logan to come out of hiding by killing Veronica. When he was unsuccessful, he bombed the MacKenzies' house, hoping to get both Veronica and Logan to show thermselves._

_Duncan comes over to the Sunset Cliffs apartment, and they look at the picture he took of Kendall arguing in the park. The man she is arguing with is Dr. Tom Griffith._

* * *

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Most Crime Is Personal, Not These Weird Conspiracies**  
They compare notes on Dr. Griffith.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack.  
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED: "MOST CRIME IS PERSONAL, NOT THESE WEIRD CONSPIRACIES"

Tues. 3/17/09 evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Veronica clicks on the email from Duncan's phone. When the picture finishes loading, she gasps. "What's Kendall doing talking to Tom Griffith?"

Logan reacts almost violently; he lunges toward the bed and swivels the laptop around to see the picture. "Fucking Tom Griffith was talking to Kendall?"

Duncan nods. "Not just talking, arguing. You're sure it's him?"

"Yes, definitely," Veronica replies. "You didn't recognize him?"

Logan says quietly, "That all happened after Duncan left. Even after Hannah's murder, most of the photos in the paper were shots of Hannah, not her father. Griffith's been in the news again lately because of the Briar Hill investigation."

"I saw him on CNN the other night, disputing the charges against Peter Klein," Duncan says. "Did you know that he knew Kendall?"

Veronica says distantly, "We knew that they both had a connection to the Fitzpatricks. Logan, in my desk, second drawer, find the DVD labeled 'Justin Timberlake videos'."

Logan looks at her questioningly before retrieving the disc for her. She slips the disc into the DVD drive of the laptop and a large photo of Justin Timberlake loads on the screen. She clicks on the graphic, and a username/password dialog box appears. Veronica types a long string of characters into each field, and a window opens with several hundred folders.

"Case files from spring 2006," she explains briefly. At Keith's quizzical look, she adds, "What? You thought I had a collection of Justin Timberlake videos?"

Keith shakes his head and sighs. "Veronica, what am I going to do with you?"

"It's just a few cases I worked on my own. Mostly things like background checks on parents for fellow students." She clicks on a folder labeled 'Echolls Witness Investigation' and opens a subfolder marked 'Thomas Griffith, M.D.'

"I don't understand," Duncan says.

"It was around the time when you and I were trying to find which of Meg's baby-sitting clients were the ones she was worrying about. Of course that was really the Mannings," Veronica explains. "The anonymous witness who supposedly saw Logan killing Felix on the bridge came forward, do you remember? A Dr. Thomas Griffith."

"I knew it wasn't the real witness, and I asked Veronica to check him out," Logan adds.

Duncan nods that he remembers. He explains, "Right, I...I'm sorry, I'm a little fuzzy about that. I was worrying about Meg and...."

"It's all right. Veronica followed Dr. Griffith and saw him go into Liberty Cigars. Keith told her that place was a front for dealing drugs," Logan relates.

"I remember that. Veronica, I really wish you wouldn't take these chances." Keith sighs. "I guess it's not worth discussing at this point."

Veronica tries not to look at her dad. She explains, trying to keep her voice matter-of-fact, "We found a connection between Griffith and Danny Boyd, one of the Fitzpatrick flunkies. Apparently, Dr. Griffith was sanctioned for repairing what looked like a knife wound. You're supposed to report wounds like that to the police."

"And Liam Fitzpatrick wasn't too happy about us looking into that," Logan recalls. Veronica glares at him, and Logan says firmly, "Veronica, your dad needs to know everything. We need his help." He turns to Keith and says, "Veronica followed Danny Boyd into the River Stix, and Liam and a couple of his stooges were there. Liam was about to mess up Veronica's face to scare her off, but I got worried when Veronica didn't come back out, and I went in the bar. I pulled a gun on him and got him to back off, and we got the hell out of there."

Keith's face looks nauseous. "Veronica, goddammit." His hands grip into tight fists, and he stands up and tries to walk off some excess energy.

"Logan, stop being an ass. He's completely exaggerating, Dad," Veronica tries to explain futilely. "Danny Boyd said that Griffith is 'like a friend of the family.'"

Keith says intensely, "You didn't think to talk to me about this before I sent you undercover at the school? That the Fitzpatricks were involved with the father of the girl we were investigating?"

"Dad! I'm sorry," Veronica protests. "It didn't have anything to do with the school–"

"You _think_ it didn't have anything to do with the school! What if there's a connection between the Fitzpatricks and the school? Did you think of that?" Keith yells. "Veronica, don't you think I needed this information?" He looks at her, unable to continue and unwilling to say something he won't be able to take back.

"Dad," Veronica says, her voice faltering. "I'm so sorry—"

"Veronica, I put myself on the line for you! Do you understand what I risked to try to keep Vinnie quiet?" he says, attempting to control his voice without success. "All I care about is your safety, your future; I would do it again, but Veronica!...the Fitzpatricks, _fuck._" The entire room is shocked into silence when Keith swears, uncharacteristically and emphatically. Keith massages his forehead, obviously distraught by the new information.

"Why are you so convinced that the Fitzpatricks are involved in this?" Veronica finally asks in a whisper.

"Because Vinnie told me they 'own' someone, either a cop or a federal agent, someone who could have had access to the serial killer files. Knowing that there's proof that the murdered girl's father was connected to the Fitzpatricks makes me think they're involved. And Wallace got confirmation of a mole from the old leader of the PCHers," Keith answers tensely.

"Wallace got confirmation?" she queries. "What are you talking about?"

"He's been looking into Shawn's death while we were away. Weevil's been helping him. The rumor is that someone in law enforcement was involved with Shawn's murder, too."

"You think Griffith is involved in his own daughter's death? The guy's a fucking cokehead, but his own daughter?" Logan asks incredulously.

"Cokehead?" Keith responds, whirling around to face Logan. "What are you talking about?"

"Griffith was supposedly a very successful plastic surgeon, but Hannah told me that her parents were always fighting about money before they got divorced. Weevil asked around for me and found out that Griffith had tried to buy some coke from one of the PCHers. When Griffith first tried to break us up, I told Hannah to look around, hoping she'd find some drugs or something around the house. She told me she found some coke in her dad's bathroom," Logan explains.

Duncan shakes his head. "I'm completely lost. This doesn't make any sense. You were going out with the daughter of the guy who was testifying against you?"

Veronica comments softly, "Logan started dating Griffith's daughter to try to compel Griffith to withdraw his testimony about what happened the night Felix was killed." Logan looks away, unable to meet her eyes. "Hannah was...innocent and naïve. She was just a freshman, and...Logan played up his bad boy reputation, showing her father that he had something to lose if Griffith testified against him."

"Veronica told me about your blackmail scheme, Logan," Keith says, rubbing his forehead. "And when Ms. Denenberg first came to me, she told me that Logan had tried to convince Hannah that her ex-husband was involved with the Fitzpatricks. But Ms. Denenberg didn't believe it, at the time or now. And I guess I thought it was just part of Logan's plan to blackmail Griffith."

At the word 'blackmail', Logan flinches visibly. "You know that I was desperate," he says defensively. "I didn't know what to do. I knew Griffith wasn't the witness, but there wasn't any way to prove it. Getting in trouble is about the only thing I'm good at. And Veronica didn't want to help me."

"Logan!" she protests.

"It doesn't matter anymore," he replies hollowly. Logan turns away, obviously upset by the conversation. He sits down, his head drooping and his body slumped in distress.

"Veronica, I want to know everything there is to know about Griffith and the Fitzpatricks," Keith demands.

"There's not much to know. I saw him in Liberty Cigars, and we know he was disciplined by an ethics committee for stitching up Danny Boyd's knife wound. I swear, Dad, that's all I know," Veronica demurs, still avoiding looking at her dad.

"And Kendall?" Duncan asks.

"Kendall's had a relationship with the Fitzpatricks for years, from long before she married Richard Casablancas. She took a rap for Cormac Fitzpatrick in 1999," Keith says.

"Back when she was still Priscilla Banks," Veronica muses.

"Wait...Kendall was with me when Dr. Griffith agreed to recant his testimony," Logan says suddenly.

"What?" Veronica asks.

_FLASHBACK: Logan opens the door of the suite to Dr. Griffith. Kendall has gone to freshen up in the bathroom._

_Dr. Griffith says bitterly, "All right, Logan, you win. I'm serious. This stops now." He walks past Logan into the room._

_Logan, surprised, finally finds his voice and replies, "Sure, come on in." He checks the hallway before shutting the door; he turns around to follow Griffith, who stares at him angrily. Griffith is about to speak when Kendall reenters the room._

_Smarmily, Kendall comments, "I see you have company....I'll let myself out, but, um..." She kisses two of her fingers and places them on Logan's lips. She adds, "Think about my offer."_

_Involuntarily, Logan grins in response. Kendall sashays to the door, making sure that both men are appreciating her figure. Logan turns back to Griffith, unable to stop himself from leering._

_Griffith says angrily, "Mark my words, some day that smirk is gonna get wiped off your face."_

_Laughing, Logan retorts, "Oh, please. Let the lying cokehead plastic surgeon lecture me on karma."_

_"It certainly caught up with me. It ends now," Griffith replies. "I'll make my testimony go away."_

_"What about the Fitzpatricks?" Logan asks sarcastically._

_"Let me worry about them. You just stay the hell away from my daughter," Griffith orders._

_Logan stares at him, deciding whether to believe him._

_Griffith reiterates, "I assume we have a deal?"_

_Finally, Logan nods in response and immediately regrets it. His face betrays his realization of just how low he has stooped to save himself._ "That confirms that Griffith was involved with the Fitzpatricks. I wish I had known about this before. And this means that Kendall knew you met with Dr. Griffith about his testimony," Keith wonders aloud.

"Well, at the time I didn't think she knew who he was," Logan says thoughtfully. "But...he was certainly shocked to see her."

"Shocked because you were sleeping with another woman besides his little girl or shocked because he knew who she was?" Veronica asks. Logan shoots her a glance of distress. She continues relentlessly, "Maybe even shocked because she might have overheard him and would rat him out to the Fitzpatricks?"

"Maybe," Logan admits with a pained look on his face.

"What exactly did Kendall hear?" Keith presses.

Logan thinks a moment. "I think all she could have heard was, 'All right, you win. This stops now.' Then Kendall made her entrance, showed off her ass, and left the room."

"And maybe listened from the hallway," Veronica comments shrewdly.

"I wouldn't put it past her," Keith agrees. "So Kendall finds out that Dr. Griffith made a deal with Logan. She threatens to tell the Fitzpatricks."

"We know she never told them, because Griffith is still alive," Logan comments wryly.

"Unless they killed Hannah for payback," Keith muses.

"Three years later? No, no way. The Fitzpatricks aren't known for their patience," Veronica contradicts.

"You guys are missing the obvious," Duncan interrupts.

"What are you talking about?" Veronica says, turning to him.

"Plastic surgery, Veronica. Kendall had a lot of plastic surgery done. Griffith is a plastic surgeon," Duncan says logically.

The realization dawns on Keith, Logan, and Veronica simultaneously. Veronica says slowly, "When Kendall needed plastic surgery to disappear, she remembered someone who had a very good reason to help her out. Someone who had a big secret to keep from the Fitzpatricks."

For several minutes, they are silent, stunned by this new insight and its implications.

Finally, Logan says, "So we give Leo the picture and tell him everything we know about Kendall and Griffith. Let him figure it out."

Keith and Duncan start shaking their heads. Keith says, "With this vendetta Leo's on...it's not going to be enough. He's going to ask why Duncan thought to take a picture of someone he just saw in the hallway at the Neptune Grand. He'll keep nosing around and find evidence that Duncan was involved with Kendall, and Duncan very well might lose his custody case."

"So what's the alternative? We let Leo arrest us for conspiracy and hope the evidence isn't stong enough to convict us?" Logan replies bitterly.

"I won't let you and Veronica be arrested," Duncan says strongly. "If necessary, I'll come forward and tell what I saw. Maybe it won't matter. My attorneys have been working hard to find evidence against Mrs. Manning, and with Lizzie's testimony, maybe it'll be enough."

Keith says, "I'm not just worried about the three of you being arrested in connection with Kendall's murder. I'm worried about Veronica and the kidnapping charges. I don't want anyone looking too closely at her involvement. Duncan, with your immunity agreement for kidnapping, you could now be compelled to testify against Veronica. At the very least, innuendo about the kidnapping could mean Veronica's career with the FBI is completely over. Although I have to say, at this point, I'd rather you give up on that career path anyways." Veronica trades a worried glance with Duncan. Keith stands up abruptly. "I want to think about this. I'm taking Backup out for a walk." The others watch wordlessly as he strides out of the room, whistling for the dog to come.

Veronica finally breaks the silence. "Logan, what did Leo ask you today?"

He sighs in response. "He asked me to confirm that I had a sexual relationship with Kendall in the past and asked if I'd had any contact with her recently. He wanted to know if I knew she had changed her appearance. Then he wanted to know why I left town back in January."

"Why you left town?" Veronica echoes.

"He insinuated that I was setting up an alibi," Logan explains.

"But that's ridiculous. You and I..." She glances at Duncan. "Logan and I met with Leo in his office the day before my dad's hearing."

"It looks bad, because I withdrew a lot of cash and hired someone to take my place. Not the actions of an innocent man, Veronica."

Veronica swallows compulsively. "I guess...."

Logan adds, "Leo threatened to tell the paparazzi that I used to be involved with Kendall."

"Oh, Logan," she says, rattled by this new facet of Leo's vendetta. Veronica tries to cover up her own distress and reassures him. "Logan, it doesn't matter. Who cares if you slept with her a long time ago?"

"Veronica, he's actually figured out a lot. Leo has realized that you could have used Kendall to make your breakup with Duncan look real," Logan relates.

"And he has my fingerprint from Kendall's room. If I try to deny that I talked to Kendall recently, he can use the print to cast doubt on my statement." She turns to Duncan. "You don't have an alibi for the night of Kendall's murder?"

"I was home alone," Duncan replies. "I didn't even make any phone calls." He laughs without humor. "There's no one to call. I don't have friends any more."

"Duncan, of course we're your friends," Veronica answers. "We have to trust each other; that's the only way we're going to get through this."

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Countergambit  
**Keith comes up with a plan.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Duncan 2.0: Chris  
Carmack. Backup: Lefty.  
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED ONE: "COUNTERGAMBIT"

Tues. 3/17/09 evening: Beach near Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

On the beach near the Sunset Cliffs apartments, Keith lets Backup off the leash and finds a stick to throw. The dog is ecstatic after his time in the kennel and barks madly, pursuing the stick as it flies down the shoreline. Backup retrieves the stick and races back to Keith, shaking his head and pretending to be reluctant to give up the stick. Despite his foul mood, Keith laughs at the dog's antics. He gets the stick away from the dog and throws it again, to the dog's delight.

_I've got to get this right. Somehow I have to protect my daughter and her friends. Goddamn it, Leo._ Keith stares out at the ocean, realizing that all of them are victims of their own mistakes along with terrible bad luck. The pressure feels incredibly intense: today his daughter and his boyfriend escaped assassination only because of their altered appearance. And like his daughter's rape five years ago, Keith reflects that he was almost completely out of the loop on a mobster's plot against his daughter. _What else did I miss? How else did I let her down? Why didn't I see these things? I knew she was in trouble, and I took care of the evidence for her. But...I yelled at her! Why didn't I find out what was really going on? The Russian mob...some kid putting a sex video of my daughter on the internet...why didn't I see how she was hurting, how she was taking chances with her life? I should have insisted she tell me what was going on...._

_What is it about our relationship that she always hides things from me? I always thought...I always felt we had a wonderful relationship–that we shared everything._

Suddenly, Keith thinks he hears something...or someone. He turns in place, listening carefully. The dog is romping at the end of the surf, oblivious to Keith's nervousness. Keith calls loudly, "Backup, come!" and Backup whirls around and hurries to his side in alert mode. He and the dog stand together, ostensibly alone on the beach, but Keith cannot shake the uncertain feeling that grips him. He says in a low voice, "Backup, find and bark!" and the dog responds as he was trained. Backup launches himself across the sand, patrolling at high speed and searching for anything unusual. He quickly sniffs a pile of driftwood and the remains of a beach bonfire, then moves on, examining a garbage can and circling a padlocked lifeguard shack as Keith watches and listens tensely, debating whether to draw his gun. After ten minutes of intense searching without results, the dog returns to Keith, who praises the dog lavishly and gives the release command, "OK." Backup stays close to his owner, sensing Keith's uncertain mood. The dog puts his nose to the ground, exploring all the delightfully noxious odors in the sand.

Keith calms his pounding heart and tries to reassure himself that it's just another false alarm after an incredibly stressful day. While waiting for a doctor to treat his flesh wound in the emergency room, Leo had approached and explained that the shooter appeared to have been aiming for Veronica and Logan. He remembers thinking that no amount of law enforcement training would allow you to take that kind of news calmly. Just the recollection of Leo's nonchalant recital of Sorokin's arrest and questioning causes Keith's heart to speed up to dangerous levels of anxiety. Keith wasn't sure, but he thought it was possible that there was the tiniest crack in Leo's unsympathetic facade as he related the details of Sorokin's evil plan to murder Veronica and Logan. Keith had thanked the sheriff profusely for his quick actions that had secured Veronica and Logan in his squad car and possibly saved their lives. Leo had mumbled, "Just doing my job" and turned away, but not before Keith had detected a look of..._what was that, embarrassment?...no, probably just exhaustion and stress._

Their meeting today in the hospital emergency room was their first encounter since the dismissal of the arson charges against Keith, and he is appalled at the change in Leo. Even during the tumult of his arrest and questioning, Leo had treated Keith well, as a colleague rather than a scumbag. The interrogations he had conducted were polite, even when Keith refused to say a word in response to the questions. Keith knew that the sheriff had also argued against the enhancement that was added to his charges, but the prosecutor had insisted due to the use of accelerants. Now, the sheriff's animosity at the Mars family is only too apparent. Keith remembers that Leo had tried to take his dismissal after the sex tape scandal professionally and had appeared grateful and penitent when Keith had rehired him a year later. _Was it just an act? Was Leo really as bitter and vengeful under the surface then as he is openly now?_  
_  
_He sighs loudly and seeks out a driftwood log in order to sit down. Keith stares at the ocean, with the waves roughly lapping at the shoreline and the dark, unfathomable water beyond seeming to mirror his uncertainty and tension. Putting this afternoon's awful events out of his head, he tries to focus on the new information about Kendall and to create some possible scenario that might save his daughter and her friends from Leo's vendetta.

For the millionth time, Keith wishes desperately that Veronica and Duncan had come to him for help when they were concerned about Meg's baby. _There were so many better options that fleeing the country; why didn't they trust me to help them?_ He ruefully admits that he's not being honest with himself; truth be told, he would have simply advised them to let the grownups and the courts sort it out, and Veronica knew him well enough to have surmised that. Keith knows that, to some degree, Duncan's actions were honorable and selfless, but the ramifications to his daughter's future seem overwhelming and insurmountable.

And Logan...Keith remembers that Logan was completely out of control at the time of his affair with Kendall. Unparented and practically unloved, Logan was acting out and flailing desperately. _He needed a dad, but all I saw was the hurt Logan was causing Veronica. I HAD to put my daughter's well-being ahead of his._ He thinks about how easy it would have been for an experienced master manipulator like Kendall to have seduced Logan in the boy's fragile state. It would have been simple for the older woman to twist Logan's brain and keep him off-balance in order for Liam to set Logan up to be the patsy...except Logan had outsmarted Liam, turning the sexual power play upside down by pursuing Griffith's daughter.

_Griffith...how much of this is his fault? What the hell was really going on here? Goddamn Fitzpatricks._ He stands up and walks toward the shoreline, the adrenaline surging through him just thinking about his old nemeses._  
_  
_When I think of the chances I took to get Vinnie out from under the Fitzpatricks...I'd do it again to protect Veronica's future, but, goddamn!, I hate those methhead lunatics._ Keith tries to retrace his steps over the last two months to see where he could have possibly changed his actions to prevent the current situation with Leo. _If I hadn't helped Vinnie, then Vinnie would have told what he knew about Veronica to make a deal for himself. But I shouldn't have let Veronica blackmail Leo; I should have just taken the rap._ Keith knows that even a relatively short prison term might very well have been a death sentence for him, serving his time with all the vengeful criminals he had incarcerated as sheriff. _Maybe I should have fled the country. Maybe Vinnie would have helped ME._ Keith chokes on a bitter laugh, thinking of his PI rival and his specialty of playing both sides against each other for maximum profit. _Vinnie probably would have sold my whereabouts to Liam for a tidy sum._

He shakes off the bitter reflections and tries to focus on the problem. _I have to get Leo to look at Griffith and the Fitzpatricks for Kendall's murder. Maybe if...maybe if I get enough evidence that he can't ignore it...._ He sighs loudly, thinking about all the times he had tried to put away the Fitzpatricks. Now, his lack of success makes sense, with the added information that the Fitzpatricks have a connection in law enforcement ready to assist them whenever necessary.

He begins to formulate a plan. _I don't know what else to do. We can't all just run away, and we can't wait around for Leo to file charges based on rumor and innuendo–especially innuendo that will ruin Veronica's future and probably ruin Duncan's chances for custody._ Keith tries to think of anyone who might owe him a favor from the old days; he comes up with several names, fellow law enforcement officers and several attorneys who he had dealt with in the past. _And...Weevil and Wallace. They've been nosing around the Fitzpatricks. I want to pick their brains, too._ Keith walks up and down the beach, trying to anticipate every detail and every possible problem in advance.

Tues. 3/17/09 evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

When Keith returns, he finds the three old friends sitting in the kitchen sharing a frozen pizza they had discovered in the back of the freezer.

"You know what they say, when the going gets tough, the tough start eating," Veronica remarks with her mouth full of food. Backup immediately goes to her and begs for a treat; she obliges with a bit of pepperoni from her slice. Veronica can't help noticing that her dad looks beaten and exhausted; he seems to have aged ten years overnight. Keith smiles in response to her quip, but she sees that the smile does not reach his eyes; she feels incredibly guilty for her role in causing all these problems.

Keith grabs the last slice and begins to eat. "I'm glad you're keeping your strength up." He looks at them seriously, commanding their full attention. "I'm been doing a lot of thinking. Here's what we're going to do. Duncan, you are going to concentrate on your custody case. I assume you have good security at your new house?"

Duncan nods.

"I'd like you to also consider hiring a security guard for the next few days," Keith suggests.

"Dad, what are you planning?" Veronica says nervously.

"I'm being cautious. Veronica, you and I have made too many mistakes. That ends right now. We tell each other everything, and we protect ourselves," he says strongly.

"You two are not the only ones who made mistakes," Logan interjects.

"No, we're not. You're not going to make any more mistakes, either. You're going to be protected as well. You've told us everything, Logan? Everything you know about Hannah and her father and about your relationship with Kendall? There wasn't any pillow talk with Kendall, speculations about Veronica helping Duncan leave the country?" Keith asks.

"No! Nothing. I never talked to Kendall about Veronica," Logan swears. "You have to understand, conversation was the last thing I had in mind when I was with her. I did say...I suggested she should go after Duncan because after all he had a lot more money than I did at that point. Of course, now...."

"Hey!!" Duncan interrupts. "Are we comparing portfolios?"

"Whip it out, dude. My investments would trounce your investments," Logan replies.

Ignoring Logan's comment, Keith says to Duncan, "What happened after Logan suggested Kendall should pursue you?"

Duncan answers, "She was waiting for me in my bedroom naked. I got rid of her, and I laughed about it with Veronica the next day. Kendall didn't give up, though. She tried to sell me one of Big D's cars and practically gave me a lap dance in the process."

"You're sure that there's no way that Kendall knew anything about the kidnapping?" Keith inquires.

"Duncan and I were very careful when we talked about it," Veronica swears. "We didn't want Logan to know either. He was...part of the plan. He had to be in the dark for it to work. Dad, when we questioned Kendall, she didn't say anything about the kidnapping, remember? She definitely would have thrown that in our faces if she knew anything about it."

Keith rubs his forehead and sighs. "You're right. Speaking of that...session...I want to compare our thoughts and make a list of everything Kendall told us that night."

"Wait, you said you want Duncan to concentrate on his custody case. What are we going to be doing?" Veronica asks curiously.

"We're going to try to find out more about Dr. Griffith. Now that we know there's a possible connection between Hannah's father and Kendall through the Fitzpatricks, if we can find proof of it...."

"Proof of what?" Logan asks.

"I don't know," Keith admits. "But if there's concrete evidence of something to do with Kendall, maybe we can get Leo to back off and focus his investigation on the Fitzpatricks."

"What are we going to do about my custody hearing on Friday?" Duncan asks. "Mrs. Manning has subpoenaed Veronica. You know that she's going to try to force Veronica to testify about breaking into the Manning house."

"I'm going to try make Veronica's testimony unnecessary," Keith says reluctantly.

"What? What are you planning?" Veronica asks anxiously.

"If we can come up with proof that Griffith and the Fitzpatricks are connected to Kendall's murder, I'm going to ask Leo to get Duncan immunity on that old breaking and entering charge in return for solid information on Kendall's murder. If Duncan has immunity on that felony, Mrs. Manning can't use it against him in the custody case. Duncan can testify about what you and he witnessed that night at the Manning house. It will substantiate the blackmail evidence that Lamb collected against the Mannings, and Mrs. Manning will be forced to drop her suit. Once Duncan obtains custody, he can testify about his relationship with Kendall and what he witnessed in the park."

"What makes you think Leo cares about the truth at this point?" Veronica asks despondently. "He hates us."

"He was humiliated when he had to drop the arson case against me. I think I can convince him that he can salvage his reputation with a big bust against the Fitzpatricks. I was never able to put them away. If he can get a solid conviction against them, he'll never have to worry about being reelected again. And...I think I can make him see that this vendetta is going to blow up in his face. He doesn't want to make an enemy out of me," Keith says intensely.

He pauses, then adds, "And if we're successful, we're going to take a trip up to Rio Linda and see if we can find out how Hannah Griffith went from living up there, happy and safe, to murdered in Los Angeles."

"Rio Linda?" Veronica asks.

"It's a suburb outside of Sacramento," Keith explains. "Your last day at the school, Epstein and I interviewed the teacher who helped Hannah escape from Briar Hill. She had gotten a postcard that she was pretty sure was from Hannah, postmarked Rio Linda." He gets his briefcase and locates the postcard, still protected by a plastic bag. He hands it to Veronica, who looks at it, frowning. Logan looks over her shoulder, curious.

Veronica muses, "Postmarked August 5, 2006. 'Thank you for everything. I am safe and happy because of you.'" She turns it over and looks at the beautiful meadow pictured on the front. "Logan, when did Hannah make contact with you that summer?"

"July, I think. It was a little while after our trip to Catalina."

Veronica nods. "You said the FBI were looking at your cellphone records to determine where that call originated."

"They didn't share that information with me."

"It's not in the file that Mike gave me. From three years ago, they probably would need a court order to access those cellphone records. You didn't save your itemized bills from then, did you?" Veronica asks.

Logan shakes his head 'no'.

"It would be helpful to know where Hannah was at that point," she adds. "What else did the teacher say, Dad?"

Keith says, "The teacher, Michelle Weisz, told us that she quickly became convinced that Hannah didn't deserve to be at the school. Hannah didn't appear to have a drug problem or psychological issues, and the more she protested, the worse the school treated her. Ms. Weisz was a new employee and was suspicious of Klein's methods. She helped Hannah get off the grounds of the school by hiding her in the trunk of her car and misdirecting the search parties looking for Hannah. Ms. Weisz dropped Hannah off at the bus station in Montpelier and later tried to get another student out of Briar Hill unsuccessfully. She quit not long after, and since then she's devoted her life to rescuing students from the tough-love schools."

"Dad...did you ask the teacher if she thought Hannah could have been blackmailing Peter Klein?" Veronica asks.

"Yes, honey. We asked her if Hannah could have witnessed anything like a payoff. What she said gibes with what we witnessed while you were there: the students are far too controlled to accidentally see something like that. And you know that the typical student experience at Briar Hill is not...."

"You can't blackmail someone if the world believes that their methods are successful," Veronica finishes his thought. With a slight quaver in her voice, she continues, "That's why we had to document everything so thoroughly."

Logan finds her hand under the counter and squeezes it. She looks at him. "That's why I had to keep going, I couldn't let him do his sick therapy on any other girls. I had to. I couldn't let you guys stop the operation," she adds tremulously.

Upon hearing her voice break, Duncan regards her in shock. "Veronica! Are you all right?"

She shakes her head, unwilling to respond. Finally she manages, "I'm all right. Stop looking at me like that. It was hard, okay? I'm still...." She looks around at the worried faces. "I would do it again," she swears. "Even if we only helped one girl to avoid that...I would still do it again." Veronica tries to pull herself together. "Dad, why Rio Linda?"

Keith shrugs. "At first, I thought the proximity to Sacramento meant something–that maybe she was trying to find Maria's family to...I don't know, to expose Maria's abuse, perhaps." Veronica looks puzzled, and Keith explains, "Maria had been at the school about nine months when Hannah arrived. The teacher told us that at the time Maria was insisting that her father had beaten and abused her, and then covered it up by sending her to the school. She would be sentenced to Observation Placement repeatedly for supposedly lying, but she stuck to her story for a long time."

"I suppose eventually she gave up and told them what they wanted to hear," Veronica says softly. "Nine months of no one believing her and being punished for telling the truth."

Keith nods. "So Hannah heard all of Maria's stories. Hannah knew that she was telling the truth about not being a drug user; maybe she suspected that Maria's stories were true as well."

Logan says thoughtfully, "Wasn't the school concealing Maria's true identity? How would Hannah have known that Maria's name was really Frazzino and Maria was from Sacramento?"

Veronica comments, "That's true...it's not like the girls can have a heart-to-heart talk there. It's always about working your program and admitting your flaws, and you're constantly supervised. It's the perfect place to hide a victim. But what if after Hannah escaped, she saw a photo of Maria, in some publicity about the Assemblyman, and recognized Maria? Logan, do you think Hannah would have wanted to...I don't know, investigate something like that?"

"I don't think so, but...we don't know how her experience at the school changed her," Logan says, thinking aloud. "Maybe she wanted to expose the cruelty of the school, and Maria seemed like the perfect opportunity. Or she wanted to punish her parents by showing them and the world the kind of place the school was."

"Dad..." Veronica begins hesitantly. "Are you thinking that there's a connection between Hannah's murder and Kendall?"

Keith says, "I don't know. But if Hannah truly was the victim of a copycat murder, I would say the only two possibilities for a motive would be her knowledge of something from her time of the school–"

"Or something about her dad and the Fitzpatricks," Veronica finishes. "And the timing...."

Keith nods. "Hannah was killed shortly before Kendall showed up in Neptune. Maybe it's a coincidence. But with the possible connection between Hannah's father and Kendall through the Fitzpatricks...." he shrugs. "And you can't forget that it still looks likely that someone in law enforcement is involved, someone that provided the actual details to make it look like one of the serial murders."

She nods thoughtfully. "I still don't understand why Rio Linda. Did you tell Ms. Denenberg that's where Hannah was?"

"Yes. She didn't have an explanation as to why Hannah ended up there," Keith replies.

"What about Hannah's friends?" Logan asks.

"I'm sure the FBI questioned them. And Ms. Denenberg had employed a private detective when Hannah first escaped from the school. I'm certain the PI would have talked to Hannah's friends here in Neptune," Keith says.

Logan scoffs. "Veronica, do you remember Hannah's friends from the funeral?"

She nods.

Logan continues, "They said, Hannah 'never did anything wrong, and she was punished as if she was a criminal.' They looked at Dr. Griffith as if they hated him."

"They would have protected Hannah's secrets, if Hannah had asked for their help," Veronica agrees. "Did you get to know any of those girls when you were seeing her?"

"Barely," Logan says, shaking his head.

"Dad, I think it's worth a shot. Maybe they would talk to me and Logan if we tell them about what we did at Briar Hill," Veronica proposes.

"All right. But I want to make it clear that we are going to share every bit of information we get, from now on. Is that understood?" Keith says sternly.

Veronica and Logan both nod in response.

Keith continues, "And we're not taking any chances. If we're right, they've killed twice, and they won't hesitate to kill again. Any ideas you have, you're going to run them by me first. We're going to watch our backs and err on the side of caution at all times. No going off your own, Veronica. You either, Logan...Duncan. Agreed?"

"You really think we're in serious danger from the Fitzpatricks or some rogue FBI agent?" Duncan asks incredulously.

"I hope I'm wrong. But I don't want to worry about you in case we stir up a hornet's nest," Keith responds evasively.

Tues. 3/17/09 evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

They spend the next two hours trying to remember everything Kendall said when they confronted her at the Neptune Grand. Between the three of them, they have managed to recreate everything that was said that night. Veronica prints out several copies of the notes she has been taking on her laptop, and they look over the document.

1) Kendall claimed that she hooked up with Duncan by accident--she was just looking for company, and he was suitably attractive. When she realized he was Duncan Kane, she began to plot a con to take his money. As a backup, she began to videotape their sexual encounters for a possible blackmail scheme.

2) Kendall was searching Mars Investigations looking for the money from the painting, which she had heard had been resold in the private market. She said she assumed Keith had taken the painting.

3) Three and a half years ago, when Kendall mentioned to Liam Fitzpatrick that Logan was flirting with her, Liam instructed her to sleep with Logan and keep tabs on him. Liam thought Kendall could help ensure that Logan was convicted of killing Felix, thereby keeping attention away from the Fitzpatricks' drug dealing arrangements with the PCHers.

4) Kendall bragged that Aaron had promised her 200,000 dollars for obtaining one of Duncan's hairs from the shower in the Neptune Grand. She had met with Aaron to collect her payoff the day Aaron was murdered, but he was killed before she could get paid. When she came out of the shower and found him dead, she bolted, abandoning her fee.

5) Kendall and Liam were working together to siphon funds from Richard Casablancas Sr.'s real estate scams. The total take was five million dollars, and Kendall's cut was half of that amount. Kendall never trusted Liam and expected him to screw her over. The money is deposited in a joint bank account in the Caymans; passwords from both principals are needed to access the funds, or a survivor must produce a death certificate for the other accountholder.

6) When Cassidy Casablancas killed himself, leaving the entire assets of the Phoenix Land Trust to Kendall, Kendall decided to forget about the money from Casablancas Enterprises and go on the run with Cormac Fitzpatrick. Cormac then double-crossed Kendall and shot her, leaving her for dead in the desert.

7) Kendall was back in town to try to somehow acquire Liam's password to the joint account. She had changed her appearance to hide from Liam. She claimed that she had come back to town now because Liam was in prison on the racketeering charge. With the indictment against Liam now thrown out due to evidence problems, Keith warned Kendall that she needed to leave town immediately.

"Okay, my head doesn't hurt as much anymore trying to understand what the hell she was up to," Duncan remarks.

"It was mostly about money. She had a stupid arrangement with Liam that practically guaranteed that he would try to kill her one day," Veronica comments.

"You think Liam killed her?" Duncan asks. When Veronica nods, he says, "So why was she arguing with Griffith in the park?"

"She was probably trying to blackmail him again," Logan theorizes.

"About what? Do you think Liam would still be angry about Griffith recanting on his testimony?" Veronica says. "It seems a long time to be mad about it. It never came out that the PCHers were working with the Fitzpatricks, even when Weevil was arrested."

Duncan interjects, "Have you guys seen any of Griffith's interviews? The guy is completely crazy. He's still insisting that Briar Hill was the best place for his daughter."

Veronica sighs. "I know. It makes me so mad. But Duncan, a lot of the parents refuse to believe the truth about what their children go through at the tough-love schools. There's a lot of psychological reasons why they want to believe they did the right thing for their children."

"I don't believe it," Logan retorts. "I can't believe that guy has any good in him."

Keith points to number four on their list, Kendall's involvement with framing Duncan for the murder of Lilly Kane. "I have another idea. If what I'm planning with Leo doesn't work, I think we should say that Kendall was trying to get Logan to pay Aaron's debt to her and was threatening to expose the scheme to the tabloids."

"That's crazy. Everyone knows I hate my dad and wouldn't pay a cent to cover up what he did," Logan protests.

Keith shakes his head. "No, everyone doesn't know that, Logan. You're obviously not eager for more paparazzi attention, especially about Lilly and your dad. The thing is, if we force that issue–Kendall's helping to frame Duncan for Aaron–Leo's involvement with the sex tapes could resurface. He won't be willing to take that chance, and he'll have to drop the investigation."

Logan, fuming, replies, "I don't want anyone to think that I would pay money to cover up what that bastard did."

"Logan...it's just in case. And it would be a bluff. We'd be taking a big chance that Leo would call our bluff. We're only going to do that if we have no other option," Keith says reassuringly.

Veronica suddenly realizes that Keith is much more worried than he's letting on. "Dad...do you think...are you really worried that Leo might be able to get enough evidence to arrest us?"

"No, honey, of course not," Keith lies. "Everything's going to be fine."

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Coping Mechanism  
**Keith and Veronica come to an agreement.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED TWO: "COPING MECHANISM"

Tues. 3/17/09 evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Duncan leaves after Keith makes a phone call arranging for a security guard to meet Duncan at his house. Veronica asks Logan to get her laptop, and she begins to google information on the town of Rio Linda. "Hmm. Population ten thousand...median home value 305,000 dollars...cost of living 8% higher than the U.S. average...close to average per capita educational spending and average employment level...slightly lower income than the U.S. average. Wait a second...violent crime and property crime are twice the U.S. average."

Logan comments, "Makes sense the crime would be high, if the cost of living is 8% higher and the income is lower than average."

She surfs to another website. "Okay, here's a comment somebody left calling Rio Linda a 'cow town'." She shakes her head and closes her eyes in fatigue. "Why Rio Linda?"

Keith replies, "Veronica, I think you should get to bed. You're exhausted. We'll work on this in the morning." He glances at Logan, who looks away, embarrassed.

Veronica notices the exchange and says, "Dad, can you help me get ready for bed?" She slides off the barstool and moves toward the bedroom with her dad close behind. After they enter her room, she says, "Shut the door, okay?" and sits down the bed. Keith complies and walks toward the bed, intending to help her remove the sling, but she shakes her head, 'no', and motions that he should sit down next to her. "Dad...."

"What's up, honey?" he asks.

"You know that I'm twenty-one years old now, right?" she says gently. "I'm...Dad, I'm a woman and..." Veronica closes her eyes, trying to find the words. "I'm in love with him. I need him."

"Veronica–"

"Let me finish. I know you think he pushed me to be together last night. It's not true. I pressured _him_. I begged him to sleep with me; he didn't want to because he was worried about me too."

"What? Veronica, what are you talking about?" Keith replies, confused. "I don't understand. You've been through a terrible experience, and–"

"Yes, it was terrible. I know you think...I know you think you saw what it was like at the school...but you can't _know_. Logan knows, he was there, he was affected too. He knows what it's like to not know your own mind anymore. And I trust him...I always had trouble with trusting him before, but...knowing that he was willing to do that for me, to put his own sanity in jeopardy to protect me...."

"Veronica, please, I'm just so worried about you. I'm concerned that...I'm...." He sighs and closes his eyes. "Veronica, I'm feeling very guilty that I didn't take care of you properly when you were...assaulted, that you didn't feel like you could talk to me about it. I don't want to do the wrong thing again. I'm concerned about you, that's all."

"I know I should have told you about the rape a long time ago," she says hesitantly. "It's just...what do you say, do you just sit down at dinner and say, 'By the way, Dad, someone raped me a few months ago because I was stupid and drank a drink that I didn't watch being poured?'" Her words begin to rush out uncontrollably. "I couldn't tell you–I was embarrassed that I let that happen to me. Not being able to remember everything from that night somehow made it worse; I was imagining the worst. Everyone at school was laughing about me, and I didn't know what I did that night to make them say those things. And I knew, I knew you would go crazy, you'd interrogate every male at Neptune High and.... I knew everyone would be talking about it and it would never end and...." She breathes in deeply, shuddering.

Keith regards her silently, waiting.

"I couldn't tell you," she finally says. "Even when I found out more about it...especially when I thought it was...well, it looked like Duncan and I had both been drugged, and for a long time I thought we had just ended up together in a bedroom and...." She stares blankly at the wall. "I told myself over and over again, it wasn't really rape, neither of us were sober enough to consent or to protest, it was just...chemicals and hormones mixing together." Veronica looks at her dad and says softly, "I think part of me wanted to get back together with Duncan again because that really made it 'not-rape'. It was just...a really bad first time, and going out with Duncan again was like...a do-over. I was fixing it."

"Veronica, I'm just regretting that you didn't have a mother to talk to. That was my fault, I drove your mother away with my obsession. And I wasn't paying attention to you. I should have seen...I've been trying to remember...that was when you cut your hair, you started dressing differently–harder, tougher. You threw yourself into your schoolwork and cases at the office. I didn't even ask, I just assumed it was boy trouble or a delayed reaction to Lilly's murder or the breakup with Duncan."

"That was part of it, Dad; you weren't wrong," she agrees.

"I should have seen that you were hurting," he protests. "I should have tried harder to find your mother. You needed your family, not an ex-sheriff with an obsession."

"Daddy," she says quietly, leaning against him. "You're always there for me. I know that."

"And then this sex video," he says compulsively. "Why didn't you tell me about that?"

"Dad...come on. Look how you're reacting to Logan sleeping in my bed. You would have gone berserk."

"The Russian mafia, Veronica," he says flatly. "How could you take such a chance?"

"It was my problem, and I wanted to try to fix it myself," she says, almost under her breath. "Besides, you lost your job for me. I felt so guilty. You had a chance to go back to being the sheriff, and I blew it for you."

They remain silent, each of them lost in their thoughts. Finally, Keith says, "I know you're a woman. I know you're in love with him, and he's not the same boy who was...who made so many mistakes in the past. I still think it's too soon for you. I'm afraid...because you said you couldn't remember that last day. I'm worried that...sex...will trigger some bad memory for you. Can't you see how dangerous it is? You're still just a few days out of that experience. You're still traumatized."

"I'm going to remember everything eventually, Dad," she vows. Veronica says emphatically, "I don't want to not know anymore!" She tries to calm herself. "I can't _stand_ feeling weak and victimized. I want to be strong Veronica again. I want to know what happened to me and understand it."

Keith thinks, _What if there's no way to understand it?_

Veronica continues, "Logan loves me without condition, without restraint. He's unable to not love me. That used to terrify me, that he could love me so strongly. I couldn't understand how he could be that way, because I'm not like that. And I knew love doesn't last, or I thought I knew that. I used to say 'I'm never getting married.' It seemed like we were spending our lives proving that true love doesn't exist, and here was this boy who was telling me that he would love me forever, no matter what. It made me want to push him away, to test him. I looked for flaws and found them to prove to myself that I shouldn't love him back, that I was right...that true love doesn't exist. But...you said it yourself, 'a good person is one who is there for you when you need them the most.' He's there for me now. When he holds me, it should make me feel weaker–that I need this man to hold me and protect me–but it doesn't. It makes me feel safe and strong again. Knowing that he loves me makes me strong again."

Veronica's words assail him with additional guilt. _While she was trying to deal with her mother leaving, I had her spying on cheating spouses, showing her over and over again that love is fragile and breakable–that your lover always leaves. I never thought about what that would do to a teenager just learning about love. And then on top of that, she had to cope with her...assault. I should have known something was wrong! What the hell was I thinking? No wonder she's holding onto him, trying to pretend that she's okay. I know Logan loves her and would never hurt her on purpose, but if she starts remembering what that fuck Klein did to her...._ He tries to reassure her, "He'll still love you in a few weeks when you're stronger, Veronica. Please...I really want you to–"

"Dad, when I'm asleep in his arms, I don't have nightmares. I can shut my eyes, and I don't have to worry about seeing Peter Klein's face in my dreams or imagining Gory aiming a rifle at me," Veronica responds decisively. "I'm not backing down on this, Dad."

"My house, my rules. Sometimes you don't know what's best for you, Veronica," Keith says firmly. "I'm putting my foot down."

"Dad, you're not listening to me. I need him to feel safe." A sudden thought strikes her, and she adds, "And he needs _me_. ...Dad, we're both struggling. You have to find a way to be okay with this, or we'll find a hotel room."

"Veronica!" he says, shocked. "With everything that's going on, this is not the time–"

"You're right. It's _not_ the time. I want to be able to keep my eye on you too and not worry about the crazy Fitzpatricks sneaking up on you. But I don't know how I can express it to you better than I have already. I can't help how I feel, Dad. I need him right now, more than I can tell you." She pushes herself off the bed. "We'll check into the Camelot for tonight and find something better tomorrow." Veronica walks to the closet and retrieves an overnight bag from the floor.

"Veronica, stop."

She walks to the bureau and awkwardly begins to pack some clothes into the bag.

"Veronica, please stop and talk to me," Keith begs.

She stops, her back still toward him. "Dad, you can't make my rape go away, and neither can I," she says softly. "You can't turn me back into your little girl again. It's part of who I am now."

They stay frozen in a tableau of uncertainty and regret for a long minute before Keith breaks the silence. "All right. But if he hurts you...Veronica, I will _never_ forgive him."

"Dad, it's okay to tell him how you feel–that you're worried about me. Just remember that I love him, and it was my decision to sleep with him last night," she comments gently. "He understands how you feel, Dad. He feels the same way. He wishes he could erase the bad things that have happened and the stupid things he's done, and he's worried about screwing up again. You said it yourself: we all made mistakes. But I don't think it's ever a mistake to love somebody."

He stands up from the bed and goes to her, kissing the top of her head. Keith takes the overnight bag out of her hands and places it on the floor. "You'll always be my little girl. ...Who's your daddy?"

"You are," she responds, turning to him and smiling through tears.

He wipes the tears from her cheek with his thumb and kisses her forehead. "It's not easy to be your father, Veronica."

"Ah, come on, you're doing a great job," Veronica replies lightly. "You make it look easy. I turned out okay, don't you think?"

"You turned out great."

She leans into him, hugging him tightly with her good arm as he strokes her back. "I love you, Dad."

"I love you, Veronica."

Tues. 3/17/09 late: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Keith leaves Veronica's bedroom, shutting the door behind him. She hears the murmurs of a brief conversation in the living room, and Logan comes in the bedroom, his face flaming red. He sits down on the bed, completely unable to speak, and Veronica joins him. He mutters, "You are so spoiled."

"What?"

"You have your dad wrapped around your little finger, Veronica. I can't believe you...what did you say to him?"

She replies, "We talked about me being a grown-up and making my own decisions."

"Veronica, I don't ever want to have to talk about having sex with you with your dad again," he says morosely.

"What exactly did he say?" she persists.

"'If I find out you hurt her by pressuring her to have sex, I'll track you down and kill you like the dog you are.'"

"He did not say that," she protests.

"Okay, he said, 'If you hurt her, I'll never forgive you.'"

"Okay. Nothing wrong with that. You're not allowed to hurt me," she says smugly. He glances at her, still upset at the thought of his discussion with Keith. Veronica adds, "I told him I need you, that you make me feel stronger."

She leans against him, and he puts his arm around her. Logan says, "You don't need me to be strong, Veronica. There's not a woman in the world who's stronger than you."

"Come on, help me get undressed," she says, changing the subject.

As he releases the straps on her sling and eases it off her shoulder, he comments, "You know, I think you might be milking this injury a little bit, Veronica. Undress me, dress me, wash my back, shave my legs. Humph," he says, pretending to be aggrieved at her presumption. "'Please' and 'thank you' would be nice."

"Please take off my clothes...baby," she replies teasingly.

He helps to ease her shirt over her head and admonishes her, "You know there's no way we're having sex tonight. I think the look on your dad's face killed any chance of me having an erection for about a week."

She whispers, "Well, then you'll just have to satisfy me some other way, if Little Logan is feeling self-conscious with my dad listening." Veronica suddenly yawns, the long day finally taking its toll on her.

"Okay, if you're going to name my penis, do you think you could come up something a little more virile than Little Logan?" he mutters.

"I'm too tired to come up with anything else." She closes her eyes in fatigue. With one finger, he pushes gently on her chest and eases her backward onto the bed. Logan pulls her slacks off and finishes undressing her. She mumbles, "I'm just going to close my eyes for a minute."

He finds the pajamas she wore the night before and brings them to her. She wakes up enough to help him get her pj's on and the sling secured around her shoulder. Veronica slides under the covers, already dozing as he gets ready for bed himself. Logan gets into bed, his front to her back, carefully cuddling against her. He strokes her hair, pushing the loose curled strands behind her ears, and she sighs in contentment. He says, "I keep thinking...if you didn't have this red hair, if I hadn't changed the way I look...."

"I know," she whispers. "Please...don't say it. Hold me tighter. Please."

He presses himself closer and puts his arm around her waist; he kisses her neck and breathes in her scent, grateful despite his embarrassment that she had talked her father into allowing them to be together. Logan says quietly, "I need you too...I need you to help me feel strong too."

She sighs in response before drifting off to sleep. _I wish...I wish it could always be like this._

* * *

_**Now, if you want to have some fun, I have a little poll up on my journal about the fic and what you think about my "previously on's"--go tell me what you think.**_

_**vanessagalore•livejournal•com/72624•html#cutid2**_

_**THEN: hit your back button, and leave me a review! (hint) Your comments and critiques not only help me learn, but they help spur me to write faster and better. These last chapters are kicking my ass, and your encouragement really does help.**_

_**Thanks for reading.**_

_**-VanessaGalore  
**_


	32. Chapters 103 to 106

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy and Poniesforall. Legal advice on a plot-point by zaftig-darling. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility.

* * *

**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from chapters 100-102:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/78812•html )

Keith, Veronica, Logan, and Duncan discuss Duncan's photo of Dr. Griffith arguing with Kendall. Veronica reviews her investigation of Dr. Griffith senior year, including her run-in with Liam at the River Stix. Keith is furious that Veronica didn't tell him this information before they went undercover at Briar Hill; Keith tells them that Vinnie Van Lowe told him that the Fitzpatricks 'own' someone in law enforcement. Logan remembers that Kendall was in his suite the night he promised Dr. Griffith that he would leave Hannah alone, and Kendall might have overheard the conversation. They realize that Dr. Griffith might have performed Kendall's plastic surgeries, possibly under duress of Kendall telling the Fitzpatricks about his deal with Logan.

Keith comes up with a plan. They will investigate Dr. Griffith and the Fitzpatricks, trying to find a connection and proof that Griffith was involved in Kendall's murder. Keith will try to convince Leo to give Duncan immunity for breaking into the Manning house in exchange for Duncan's eyewitness testimony of seeing Kendall with Dr. Griffith; as a bonus, they will give Leo as much evidence as possible about Griffith's connections with the Fitzpatricks. Afterward, they will travel to Rio Linda to see if they can find any clues to Hannah's true murderer. Veronica realizes that her dad is actually quite worried about Leo's vendetta and nervous about taking on the Fitzpatricks.

Veronica has a talk with her father about Logan and insists on being allowed to have a 'grown-up' relationship with him, including sleeping together at the Mars apartment. She firmly tells him that she needs Logan in order to feel safe. They discuss her rape at length. Logan is incredibly embarrassed by the knowledge that Keith and Veronica were discussing her having sex with him.**  
**

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•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Drunk and Disorderly**  
Logan dreams; St. Patrick's Day revelry.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Klein: Clancy Brown. Kavner: Eric Bana.  
Dave: Jason Wiles. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
Bray: Mark Sheppard. Sacks: Brandon Hillock.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED THREE: "DRUNK AND DISORDERLY"

Tues. 3/17/09 very late: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Logan awakens with a start; he checks the time and realizes he's late for his shift. He dresses quickly and hurries to the main building. Snow is falling heavily, and he shivers in the chilly Vermont air. Dave is waiting impatiently for him and bumps fists, saying, "'Sup." Logan nods in response, wondering where the rest of the guards are. He feels groggy and confused today after another sleepless night of worrying about the operation. As always, the silence of the school petrifies him; the absence of jostling, unruly teenagers never fails to unnerve him.

Dave says, "Come with me. We've got a tough one today."

Logan's stomach clenches and heaves; _if Dave thinks it's tough...._

Dave mutters something about most of the girls being on another hike. He leads Logan upstairs to a room he has never noticed. Dave unlocks and opens the door, motioning that Logan should go in.

Logan takes a deep breath and steps in. She is restrained to the chair, the heavy leather straps cutting cruelly into her limbs. Her head hangs down; her red hair is tousled and greasy. He hasn't seen her for a week; the operation has been going for three weeks, and still Keith insists that they need to continue. There's a bucket off to the side, and the room smells of urine; Logan feels nauseous, realizing that they've been humiliating her this way. Kavner is standing off to the side; he acknowledges Logan with a slight movement of his head.

Klein is seated in front of Veronica with a serious, intense express on his face. He acknowledges Logan. "Mr. Oakley, glad you could join us. We're doing some role-playing today, and I need your help. Connie's resisting; she won't give me the satisfaction of cooperating, will you, Connie?"

Veronica raises her head; there's a bruise on her cheek, and one eye is swollen partially closed. "Fuck you. If I was in California, this wouldn't be happening."

Logan's heart leaps. _She said the code. Let's get the fuck out of here._ He looks over at Kavner, who shakes his head warningly. Logan thinks, _What the fuck? End this now, goddammit!_

Klein laughs. "Connie, what the hell is your problem? You know that we love you here. You're not going to California, you're going to be here with the people who care about you until you get better. Come on now, I want you to go back to that night. I want to know everything. What happened when you got to the party?"

_Fuck! Klein knows about Shelly's party. _Logan panics; _what else does he know?_

Her head droops. "I told you. Somebody gave me a drink. I didn't feel good. I went out to the pool and laid down on one of the lounge chairs."

"You wanted somebody to find you there," Klein prompts.

"No! What are you talking about?" she protests.

"You know you went to that party looking for drugs and sex," he pushes.

"No. No! I just wanted to have some fun, I was...everyone hated me, I was hoping...." her voice trails off, breaking Logan's heart. He recalls laughing at her as she pushed her way through the crowd and telling the guy next to him to look at that stupid bitch Ronnie, who still thought she had '09er friends. Logan remembers just how much he had hated her that night, and the bile rises in his throat.

Klein continues, "Okay, Connie. What happened after you laid down by the pool?"

"Someone found me...I don't remember who...they were doing...body shots on me." Her voice is almost inaudible, and she refuses to look at him.

He thinks, _She absolutely knows who found her passed out by the pool that night. She remembers who called over all the usual suspects to have some fun at her expense._ He remembers deliberately ignoring that nagging inner voice that was protesting, _'She's your friend...why aren't you helping her? You know she wouldn't be doing that if she wasn't wasted. That's Veronica lying there, sweet, innocent Veronica who played 'I Never' with you.'_

Klein is staring at Veronica, impatient for her to continue. She says, pleading, "Please...I don't remember anything after that." Logan thinks, _I don't want her to remember. Please, god, let her forget this._

Klein snorts. "Come on, Connie, you've got to get your thinking right." He leans into her face and screams, "You wanted to get high! You wanted those boys to take advantage of you! In fact, you went off and had sex with one of them, didn't you?"

"No!...No!" she says again. "I just wanted...I just wanted...."

Sarcastically, Klein berates her, "You're pathetic, Connie. All this talk about a rape. You're just trying to put the responsibility for your behavior on someone else. You said you took a drink from someone; are you trying to tell me that someone drugged you on purpose?"

"It was Madi–" Veronica stops short, and the slip of her tongue scares Logan to death. "It was stupid, okay? I admit it. I was stupid. But I didn't take drugs on purpose. And I don't remember what happened after that. You can yell at me all night, and I still won't remember." She looks up at Logan and says, "California. _California, _goddammit_._" Her voice cracks on her last words.

Kavner pushes off the wall that he's been leaning on and walks over to Logan. He whispers, "Don't pay any attention to her; we changed the code words."

"So she's confused! We have to get her out now!" Logan says under his breath.

"No. _You're_ the one who's confused. You've got to do your job; she needs you to do your job. You're putting her in danger...get it together!" Kavner walks away. Logan's head pounds:_ why, why....why._

During this exchange, Klein stands up; he towers over Veronica and grabs her chin viciously, causing her to wince in pain. He examines her face as one would stare at a particularly vile insect. "Time for you to get honest, Connie. Dave, untie her." Dave begins to loosen the bonds on Veronica's ankles as Klein goes to a table on the far side of the room. Logan hears a glass bottle clinking against the side of a glass as something is poured.

He knows he shouldn't say it, but he does. "What are you doing to her?"

"We're going to reenact the night she says she was raped. She needs to face the truth," Klein explains calmly. "She can't get healthy until she admits she was a user."

"Why are you so sure she wasn't raped?" Logan asks helplessly.

"Because she's a liar and a user. She uses everyone around her, and the lies...the lies just keep on coming," Klein finishes smugly. He walks over to Logan and hands him a glass filled with a brown liquid. "I want you to give her this."

The smell of the alcohol wafts from the surface of the drink, and Logan feels nauseated and lightheaded. "You're giving her alcohol? I thought she was an addict. How can you give her alcohol?"

Klein says imperiously, "You don't understand what we're doing here. This girl is about to have a breakthrough. This method works every time, in my experience." He nudges Logan. "Go over to her. I want you to say, 'How about a little hooch, baby? Are you feeling horny?'"

It feels like all the air has been sucked out of the room; Logan's vision clouds over, and he staggers a little, feeling slightly faint. _How the fuck does he know that? Did she tell him that?_ He looks at Veronica, who stares back with frightened eyes.

Dave shoves him on the back, causing some of the alcohol to slop over the sides of the glass. "Do it, fucker."

Logan looks over where Kavner was standing; the man has disappeared. _Gone to get help? Did he finally realize that she's called for help?_

Dave becomes infuriated at Logan's hesitation; he grabs Logan around the neck and runs him backward until Logan hits the wall, his head slamming against the plaster with a thud. The glass is knocked out of his hand, spilling alcohol all over him. Logan is pinned against the wall with Dave's forearm against his neck. The scent of the alcohol soaking his clothes combines with the sour stench of Dave's breath. Dave says menacingly, "Are you going to do what you're told? Stupid fuck, did you think we wouldn't find out?" Logan hears her sobbing loudly as Dave hauls back and punches him in the stomach. Doubled over, Logan tries to get away from Dave.

Klein says, "That's enough. Get him over here." Dave grabs Logan by his shirt and hauls him over to Klein; Logan stumbles and falls to the floor in front of the headmaster. "Get up, Oakley." Dave pulls his leg back to kick Logan, but Logan scuttles away and stands up to face the headmaster. Klein walks over to Veronica and grasps her hair; he pulls, hard, and Veronica gasps loudly. Looking directly at Logan, Klein says, "Get the glass and fill it up again."

"Let go of her!" Logan cries, but Klein pulls even harder on her hair, jerking her head back, and Veronica screams. Panting, Logan hurries to retrieve the glass and fills it again from the bottle. He thinks wildly of options: he decides to throw the alcohol in Klein's face and punch Dave, then grab Veronica and run.

Dave taps on Logan's shoulder firmly and says quietly. "Don't even think about it, tough guy. We'll hurt her even worse."

"Please don't hurt her! What do you want me to do?" Logan asks, trying like hell to keep calm while the world goes insane.

"Give her the drink and say it," Klein directs. He releases his grip on Veronica's hair and pushes her forward, closer to Logan.

Logan proffers the drink and says in a quiet, flat voice, "How about some hooch. Are you feeling horny." _God...I'm sorry. Forgive me._

Veronica glances at Klein's contorted, evil face and takes the drink. She swallows it quickly, choking on the alcohol as it burns her throat. Coughing and sputtering, she pushes the glass back at Logan. He takes the glass and stands there, breathing heavily.

"Connie, tell him you want to have sex," Klein says.

Without looking at his face, she mutters indistinctly, "Want to have sex." She sways slightly, the alcohol hitting her hard almost immediately. Veronica passes a hand in front of her eyes and grimaces.

"Do it," Klein orders.

"What?" Logan replies in shock.

"Fuck her, or else Dave will." Klein explains, his voice rational and calm, "She has to take responsibility for having sex that night. She can't keep claiming it was rape. She needs to admit that she wanted to get high. She needs to relive that night so she can move on."

"Fuck you, I'm not doing it," Logan bursts out. "You fuck, you sick fuck...." Dave strides to his side and slaps his face with an open hand, almost knocking Logan down again. Logan tries to defend himself; he aims the empty glass at Dave's forehead, but Dave grabs his arm, twisting it and forcing him to drop the glass. Dave forces Logan's arms behind his back and holds him in place.

Klein shakes his head in distress. "You're not seeing the big picture here. We're trying to help Connie." He grabs Veronica by the shoulders and forces her down onto her knees. He takes a lipstick out of his pocket and roughly grasps Veronica's jaw. He letters 'S L U T' on her forehead as she begins to cry. Logan begins to struggle against Dave, and Klein forces Veronica's head near Logan's crotch. "Connie, just show us how you did it that night. I'm trying to help you."

"No...no..." she wails, keeping her eyes closed and resisting against Klein's strong grip.

With a sudden jerk, Logan twists out of Dave's grasp. He lurches forward and pushes Klein away from Veronica. "Run, Veronica," he pants as he tries to hold Klein down. Veronica scrambles to her feet and scurries to the door; Logan tries to punch Klein. Without warning, Dave's fist crashes into his skull, and the lights go out.

When he comes to, he is lying on the floor in a different room, completely dark except for a strip of light at the bottom of the door. Logan stands up and fumbles along the walls of the small room for a light switch; he flips it on, and the room is bathed in a soft light from recessed fixtures. _I know this room._ He turns, and he sees the belts hanging on the walls, framed by lavish mahogany woodwork. He knows what he's supposed to do; he touches one belt, an expensive and exotic lizard skin number with an etched design. Remembering those hard edges that opened up vicious welts on his back, he rejects it for another, slightly safer option. He opens the door and walks to the library where a man is staring out the window. Keith Mars turns around and says, "You've really fucked up this time, Logan." He puts out his hand, and Logan gives him the belt.

Veronica shakes him awake. She is sitting beside him on the bed, regarding him with a worried expression. His eyes gradually focus, and his breathing slows. She caresses his face, frowning when she encounters his sweaty brow. "Hey," she says quietly. "It's okay."

He swallows, completely unable to speak. He meets her eyes briefly before looking away.

Veronica asks, "Logan?"

He looks at her again. In the darkened bedroom, he thinks he still sees the angry red writing on her face. He closes his eyes and shakes his head, trying to clear the nightmare vision. When Logan reopens his eyes, her face is blessedly free of lettering.

"It's okay," she repeats. She carefully arranges herself back on the bed, pressing her body into his, cursing the sling and her injured shoulder that limit her from throwing her arms around him. "Do you want to tell me about it?" she whispers.

He shakes his head 'no'. He glances at the clock: 3:38am. "Let's try to get some more sleep," he replies at last.

He closes his eyes, pretending to sleep; next to him, she watches and listens, quite certain that he's still awake.

Wed. 3/18/09 early morning: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Sheriff D'Amato enters the department; Sacks, on duty behind the counter, hands him several sheets of paper. Leo scans the papers quickly and asks, "You arrested three guys at McHale's last night? Drunk and disorderly?"

"The St. Patrick's Day celebration got a little out of hand last night," Sacks comments. "One guy, Kevin Bray, is insisting on seeing you."

"Let me see his file, Jerry," Leo requests. He opens the file and reads that Bray was arrested ten years ago for receiving stolen goods; the charges were dismissed. Keith Mars' notes indicate that he assumed Bray was a minor Fitzpatrick flunky. "Anybody get hurt at McHale's?"

Sacks shakes his head. "No...just a bar fight. A couple chairs got broken."

"Anything else?"

Sacks replies, "A message from that FBI agent, Alan Sheffield. He has a few questions and needs to speak to you. And...Lloyd Blankenship from The Dispatch called; he's looking for a quote about the shooting."

"All right. I'll talk to Bray now." Leo heads back to the holding cell. Three men, scuffed up and hungover, are lying on the cots.

One man, upon seeing the sheriff approach, pushes himself up and unsteadily walks to the bars with a pronounced limp. He rests his hands on a crossbar and says quietly, "Sheriff."

Leo flinches at the smell of booze; the guy is still half-lit. "Are you Bray?"

The man nods. "Listen...I got info that might be useful to you. Any way we can make this charge go away?"

"Info on what?" Leo says suspiciously.

"You know that broad who got killed in the park?"

"Are you talking about Kendall Casablancas?" Leo asks.

"Yeah, that's the one. That blonde chick with the ass and the tits," Bray specifies. "I saw her with someone that night."

"What were you doing there? In the park at night?" Leo queries.

"Oh, you know, this and that," Bray replies vaguely. "You interested? The ball and chain is not going to be happy with me if I have to pay another fine. She'll cut me off again."

Leo thinks for a minute. "Just tell me what you saw, and then I'll see what I can do for you."

"Unh-unh. C'mon, Sheriff, it's just a bullshit D&D."

Leo purses his lips. "You'll pay for the damage you caused last night?"

"No problem, Sheriff. We're real sorry we got so drunk last night. It's just...you know...St. Paddy's Day and all, sometimes we get a little carried away."

Leo replies, "Let me talk to McHale, see what he says. If he'll accept restitution and doesn't want to press charges...."

"We're his best customers. He'll be okay with it," Bray swears.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Knight in Shining Armor**  
Discussion question: who is more damaged?  
Support your thesis with quotations.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FOUR: "KNIGHT IN SHINING ARMOR"

Wed. 3/18/09 early morning: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Keith taps lightly on Veronica's bedroom door. When he hears her say, 'Come in', he opens the door slightly, making sure to keep his eyes averted. "Veronica, Logan...I'm going out for a while."

From the bed, Veronica says, "Is that a sanitation department uniform? Doing a little dumpster diving, are we?"

"Yes. I'm going to get Dr. Griffith's garbage. Can you meet me at the office in a couple hours? We'll go through everything. Just so you know...Kavner's sitting in the parking lot keeping watch. I hired him to help for the next few days. For now, I just asked him to help keep an eye out. He said he chased a few paparazzi away already. I know you guys are tired, but you need to get up pretty soon. We've got a lot to do today. I left a note with a few things I'd like you to start researching. Wallace will be at the office soon too."

"Okay," Veronica replies. "Love you, Dad."

"Love you too, honey," he remarks, closing the door.

"Being a PI is so sexy," Logan comments dryly. "Picking through garbage, that's just great."

"Yeah, well, you can help too," Veronica retorts. "You know, pull your weight around here." She stretches, wincing a little as she moves her shoulder. She turns a little to look at him. "Are you going to tell me what you were dreaming about last night?"

"I don't remember," he lies.

"Bull." She stares at him, but he steadfastly refuses to answer. She sighs. "Logan, you know we won't get through this unless we talk to each other."

"I can't, okay?" he says finally.

"You're scaring me," she presses, but he just shakes his head. She breathes out and decides to drop it for now. She huffs a laugh. "Your manparts are safe, okay? I'm going to be careful. Kiss me, will you?" He kisses her gently, and she grabs the back of his neck, making the kiss more passionate than he had intended. She hums a little, expressing her contentment. "That's to hold me over until we get out of the slippery shower," she explains. "After that, I can't guarantee the safety of your manparts."

"Come on, woman. Let's get you clean," he says, escorting her to the bathroom. She walks carefully, holding her injured arm close to her side, and waits patiently while he adjusts the water temperature. He steps in first. "Hold onto me," he instructs. Grabbing onto his arm, she follows him into the shower and stands under the stream; she braces herself carefully with her good arm on the wall and faces him. "Hmm, I could get used to a Veronica Mars who cooperates with me," he mutters.

She closes her eyes and tilts her head back slightly to wet her hair. "I don't know what you're talking about; I always do what you say. Oh, man...this feels so good. After those showers at the school, I'll never complain about the water pressure here again."

He reaches for the shampoo and squirts a small amount into his palm. Logan rubs his hands together, working up a slight lather before applying the shampoo to her hair. He kneads carefully, rubbing her scalp with his fingers, working the shampoo into her hair patiently and thoroughly. "Okay, let's rinse." He guides her head back into the water flow and works the suds through the strands of hair.

"Again, please," she murmurs, with her eyes still closed. "Why didn't we ever do this before?"

He chuckles quietly. The soap suds from her hair are traveling down her body and glistening in a very enticing way, and he is experiencing a definite physical response to the sight. "You're so beautiful," he says under his breath. He applies more shampoo to her head; he lets himself work the shampoo into her hair for far longer than necessary.

When she leans back to rinse again, she moves slightly, and his cock brushes against her leg. "Are you sure we can't misbehave...a little?" she suggests. Veronica wriggles a little and manages to rub her thigh against him. She opens her eyes and looks at him with a direct challenge.

He groans a little; the intensity of his response is slightly disorienting after the disturbed nightmare. "Stop it, Veronica. I don't want you to slip and fall, okay?" He backs off enough to break contact with her.

"All right," she agrees, pretending to be petulant. She looks down at her torso and says, "I'm pretty dirty. Do you think you could do something about that?" She glances at him with a knowing smile.

Logan doesn't quite trust himself to speak at this point. He tries to focus on his job here: _it's just like being a nurse_, he tells himself. _She's not actually...hot and wet and slick with suds just a few inches from me._ He takes a washcloth and reaches for a bottle of liquid soap.

She touches him on the arm. "No, the other one."

He puts the bottle back and takes a different one; he reads the label aloud. "With tea tree oil and colloidal oatmeal? What kind of girly stuff is this?"

She laughs. "It's non-irritating. For _everywhere_. You know what I mean," she stresses. Her hair is plastered to her scalp, and she looks....

He pops open the lid on the bottle and sniffs the gentle, subtle aroma of the body wash. _Oh, crap. It smells like her, it's her scent...it's how she smells when she opens herself to me...._ He is suddenly overwhelmed by a vision of her leaning against the wall, while he slathers the body wash on her ass, slipping his hand between her legs and massaging as she moans and thrusts back compulsively against his growing, throbbing erection...or she's riding his cock, as he holds her up against the tiles with her legs wrapped around him, and he is thrusting, and, with her head thrown back in ecstasy, she is sinking down, down on him, her breasts covered in a foamy lather that smells like..._oh holy fuck._ He closes his eyes and tries to dismiss the images.

She looks at him quizzically. "No, really, it's great stuff. It's my favorite. I'll let you borrow it if you're good." She smiles wickedly, and he realizes that _she_ has absolutely no intention of being good. Veronica reaches toward him and trails her fingers down his chest, and he winces with the effort of holding himself away from her. If he just moved a millimeter, he could relieve this pressure by...he tries to think about anything but those breasts and that dampened thatch of hair leading to..._fuck_.

"Okay," he replies. He looks at the label, expecting it to say 'Compulsion' or 'Erotomania' but finding only the text, 'Recommended by gynecologists'. _I'm so fucking horny even 'gynecologist' isn't turning me off. _ Trying to keep his voice steady, he asks, "What do you call this scent anyways?"

"It's 'fresh meadow right after a rainstorm'," she teases, laughing at him. "When I use it, I always have an uncontrollable desire to skip through a field of daisies wearing a flowing white dress."

He pours a little of the body wash on his hands. It's not really a traditional soap–it glides on his fingers and feels sensuous and smooth. He rubs his thumb against his fingers, appreciating the tactile slickness, and loses his focus again for a moment as he imagines rubbing his thumb against her as she gasps her pleasure.... He tries to concentrate on his breathing and to forget about the demands of his persistent erection as he applies the liquid soap to the cloth. He begins to wash her, pretending to pay extra attention to the back of her neck and the underside of her arms. His eyes keep straying to her breasts; finally he soaps her chest, attempting to be clinical and asexual with his strokes, but failing completely.

"Logan?"

"Mmm?" he answers in a strangled voice, completely consumed by his restraint and the effort to concentrate on thinking about Mrs. Hauser, which in his experience was the absolute best way to kill an erection.

"Logan, the washcloth is a little...rough. Do you think you could soap me with your hands?" She smiles and pouts a little.

"Fuck, Veronica. What are you trying to do to me?" he replies hoarsely.

"Please, Logan...." she begs, her need suddenly raw and apparent, and he can't take it any more.

Logan drops the washcloth into the tub. "I give up," he mutters. He upends the bottle and applies more body wash to his hands. Fiercely, he warns her, "You better hold on to that wall, Veronica." With his palms, he begins to massage her breasts gently, rubbing against the erect nipples and sliding around the soapy skin. He squeezes gently, rubbing the pads of his thumbs across her nipples to tease her.

"I think I might be dirty...a little lower if you don't mind," she suggests slyly.

He moves his right hand to her belly and, spreading his fingers wide, caresses her belly. "Here?"

"Mmm...that's pretty nice, but even a little lower please."

He laughs at her directness. He squeezes out a little more of the slick soap and spreads it on his cock before slipping it between her legs. He returns his hands to her breasts and thrusts gently, not wanting to off-balance her; he rubs his cock smoothly against her opening, and she moans loudly and throws her head back. "Is that what you had in mind, Veronica?" he asks huskily, and she manages to nod her approval.

The water suddenly turns cold, and Veronica says, "Oh, no...."

"Fuck!" he swears. "Don't move, okay?" He aims the showerhead, rinsing the two of them in the icy blast of the water; she yelps, protesting, and he pulls her to him, kissing her forehead to comfort her. Logan rips open the shower curtain, and steps out of the tub. He reaches behind her and shuts off the taps. He grabs a towel and throws it over his shoulder. "Come on," he growls hoarsely, extending his arm for her to hold. She steps out of the tub, shivering a little, and he gingerly picks her up into his arms, careful to hold her so as not to hurt her. She gasps a little in surprise. "I'm not hurting you, am I?" he asks quickly.

"No, no, you just shocked me," she exclaims. She grabs on to him, running her fingers through the damp hair at the nape of his neck.

He carries her back into the bedroom, setting her down cautiously on the bed. He spreads the towel and lays her down in the middle of it, with her head on the pillow. "You're all right?" he asks breathlessly, as he lays down beside her, making sure to keep his weight off her upper body.

She laughs, "Better than all right," and reaches down with her good arm to stroke his cock. "You're still a little soapy," she says mischievously.

He stretches his arm behind him to the nightstand, fumbling for a condom in the drawer. He throws several on the bed before he leans over to nuzzles her neck, kissing under her jaw and sucking gently as she continues to caress him. "Fuck, Veronica, you control me, do you realize that? I can't control myself when you touch me like that...fuck, I can't even control myself when you just talk to me." He moves to her face and kisses her mouth, probing and tasting her with his tongue. He steals a glance at her beautiful breasts, still damp and glistening with suds, and he reaches for her, toying with her nipples and making her arch underneath him.

He pulls back from kissing her to look at her flushed and relaxed face, so ready to give herself to him. She looks down at her hand around his cock, taking in the sight of his intense arousal. "I love looking at you when you're...like that," she admits when she catches him staring at her. "You're so...excited by me," she adds, a little shyly.

"Fuck, you have no idea," he says. He reaches down and takes her hand off him; he pulls her hand to his lips and brushes his mouth against the back of her fingers. He looks at her face so intensely that she trembles. Logan moves down the bed to position himself between her legs with his mouth at her pelvis. He parts her legs a little wider and brushes her hair out of the way so he can really look at her. The smells of her arousal and the subtle scent of the body wash–that he'll now forever associate with her pussy–make for an intoxicating combination. He licks her lips gently, tantalizing her with his strokes. Slowly–so slowly–he brings her to the brink, avoiding her most sensitive area in order to prolong it for her. She feels him experimenting, ever inventing, trying to surprise her with his ingenuity and responding to her cues whenever she writhes or moans her pleasure.

He pauses for a moment to look up at her, and she catches his eye as he bends to titillate her clit. She gasps at the increased sensation; he watches her losing control, bending her legs and futilely grasping at his head as he torments her. He tongues her furiously once he sees her excitement magnify; his tongue begins to tire from his efforts but he persists, determined to keep up the intensity. She begins to vocalize, her guttural moans telling him that she's close, and he reaches for a condom. He sucks on her clit, trying to keep her going as he fumbles to sheath himself. Finally, the condom is smoothed into place, and he hauls himself up to her opening, desperate to enter her.

He pulls her leg up, forcing her a little wider apart, and maneuvers his cock into position. "Yes, god yes," she breathes, as she hitches herself under him. He slides in; she is so wet and aroused, and her soft skin is pliant and willing. He spreads his arms on either side of her, keeping his weight up and off her; he knows, the condom will help him last longer, and today it's all about her...the way she makes him feel, the way she has somehow forgiven him after everything that's happened and everything that's been revealed. He tries to concentrate on _right now, right this moment with her under me,_ but suddenly he starts seeing her as she was in the dream and as she was at Shelly's. Logan shakes his head, trying to eradicate the images, and focuses on her face, her body. _Think about sex in the shower. Veronica riding me, the water cascading down upon us...almost drowning and not even caring._

His brain refuses to cooperate; he remembers seeing her stumbling off the lounge chair, heading back into the party to be mauled by '09ers. Then he imagines he is watching Beaver staring at her, plotting and scheming, and he is standing by, doing nothing, even...encouraging him, egging him on. And somehow Klein is there too, tsking at their debauchery. _No! Fuck._ He closes his eyes and seizes at the fantasy of her leaning against the tiles in the shower, and he is sliding in, so deep, and she is loving it. _Focus. Focus. Focus! You love her, you'll never hurt her again. You will never hurt her again._

Veronica notices his hesitation and mistakes it for fatigue. She begins to move her hips, taking over the lead to encourage him. His body, his fucking traitorous body, responds to her and meshes with her movements. _You love her, you're not hurting her,_ he tries to tell himself. He thrusts compulsively, concentrating on that look of love on her face to block out the guilt that he feels. With each stroke, he feels like he's asking for her forgiveness: _I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I didn't know what I was doing that night, I didn't know Beaver would...let me make it up to you, please._ She's losing herself in the sensations now, unaware of anything but the nerve endings clutching and convulsing, and oblivious to everything except what he's making her feel. _I love you, don't leave me, I love you, don't leave me,_ he thinks on every in and out stroke. She gropes helplessly with her hand, trying to caress him even as she loses all control because of his efforts. She whispers, "Kiss me, Logan." He bends to her face and kisses her desperately as he vows, _I can't ever fail her again._

He whispers, "I want to try something...tell me if I'm hurting you, promise?" He wants, somehow, to make it even better–somehow make everything better. She nods. Her eyes never leave his; he gently urges her legs up and over his shoulders. She wraps her ankles around his neck, and he turns his head to kiss her shin, all the while keeping eye contact with her. Now, in the new position, he can keep his weight off her and concentrate his efforts more precisely. He strokes deeply, and she moans, her eyes fluttering shut. He watches her face and her body as he plunges inside her, trying to fill her and consume her all at once. She tries to meet his thrusts with her own, but she is losing the ability to control herself; he feels a pulsing around him, and an answering sensation begins at the base of his cock. An intense wave of emotion consumes him; there is so much love for her, so many feelings that he can't begin to express to her. He thrusts one last time, staying deep within her as the rush begins.

Logan feels completely attached and connected to her in an impossible way; in his orgasm, it seems as though as he's lost track of where the vibrations of his body end and hers begin. Still inside her, he eases her legs down and coaxes her onto her side so he can lay down next to her; he thrusts his waning erection fully within her, wanting to keep this feeling–this connectedness–going as long as possible. _Just in case...just in case it never happens again._ He caresses her satiated face gently. Her eyes remain closed, with her breathing gradually slowing to normal. Logan presses the back of his hand to her chest, feeling the soft thump of her heart as it calms to its normal rhythm.

"I think I'm dirty again," she whispers, a small smile on her lips. "We did it wrong. We better take another shower."

"Huh! You are a slave driver," he whispers back. She opens her eyes and looks at him. He hesitates, and then, stroking her face gently, he says it. "Please don't ever leave me. I'll be your slave forever, Veronica."

"Logan, what–" she tries, startled by his words.

"Just promise me you won't leave me," he repeats. "I'm sorry for everything I ever screwed up."

"Logan, stop. What are you talking about? Of course I won't leave you. I promise."

He carefully grasps the condom and extricates himself from her; he disposes of it in the wastebasket and repositions himself on her other side, his front to her back. He buries his head in the back of her neck and throws a leg over her; his hand holds onto her hip as he tries to relax against her. "I'll get up in a minute," he mumbles. "I just want to hold you for a little while." He strokes her hip gently, tracing patterns with his forefinger. He draws his name with his finger, branding her as his, even if no one can see it but him, and she shivers in his arms, somehow knowing the significance of his touch without specifically comprehending the actions of his finger. He thinks, _'My knight in shining armor'...if only I could manage to be that for her...if only I'd actually been that for her when she needed me. Please...let her forgive me...please let her forget that night at Shelly's._

"Logan?" she persists. "Talk to me. What are you thinking?"

He doesn't want her to know about the nightmare; he's still trying to make sense of it himself, and he's convinced that telling her will just make everything worse. The images from the dream the night before are still vivid and raw–a projector flashing visions of pain and misery to torture him. The memories themselves are bad enough; but when they are twisted and perverted even further, he thinks that he cannot possibly bear it. Logan keeps remembering Keith in the dream, extending his hand for the belt, and he aches with confusion and guilt. He holds onto her more tightly.

In a quiet voice, Veronica begins to speak. "When I was at the school, I had a lot of time to think. You know how I am...I'm always doing something, talking to people, investigating, stirring up trouble. I never just sit around and wait for life to happen to me. Sometimes, I think I do that...so I don't have to think about how awful things are. When you left me, I didn't just lie in bed all day crying. I started looking for you, until I finally found you."

He tries to hug her a little tighter; _until she finally found me, _he thinks. _She didn't give up on me._

She continues haltingly. "But..._there_...they kept locking me up alone, and I couldn't _do_ anything. All I could do was think...think about everything I had screwed up in the past, everything I should have done differently. And you were there, I knew you were acting a part, but it kept upsetting me, reminding me of the time when we were...enemies. After a while, I started thinking you were mad at me, for insisting on going undercover, for making you go undercover too."

"Veronica, no–" he protests, completely miserable that he had, in fact, telegraphed his feelings to her during the operation.

"I know you would do anything to keep me safe, and it seemed like you were willing to sacrifice_...us..._to do it. I know...it sounds crazy, I can't explain it, it was so..._insane_ there."

She takes a deep breath, exhaling tensely, and continues. "I made a promise to myself...that if I ever got out, I would make it up to you for taking you for granted, for making you go undercover and having to hurt me. I remember that. I _remember_ making that promise to myself. I _know_ I remember that. And then...that last day, everything got so jumbled...I couldn't understand why you guys didn't rescue me. Do you know how hard it was for me to call for help? That's not what I do, Logan! I thought...it was too late. Everyone realized that I really was a user like Klein was saying and it was too late for us, too late for me and Dad, too late–"

He tries to stroke her back, to settle her, like you would calm a skittish animal. "Veronica, it's all right; it's not too late. I don't want to lose us either. Are you kidding? It's all I care about."

She glances over her shoulder. "Why won't you tell me what's going on? I'm trying so hard to show you that I love you and trust you. I've told you over and over how much I need you–it's what you've always wanted from me, and I'm really trying." She turns back to face forward and avoid his concerned gaze. Veronica whispers intensely, "I've told Dad everything; I'm not keeping any secrets, and I'm not taking chances. You guys keep reminding me how..._foolish_ I was...about Gory, about Duncan. I'm sorry! And I'm so sorry I took you for granted, Logan. I know now how wrong that was, and how hard it is to find someone who will love you no matter what. You've got to tell me...why are you so worried that I'm going to leave you?"

Logan thinks, _Crap...she's right...she's trying so hard._ He closes his eyes and haltingly tells her about the nightmare. "In the dream...Klein and Dave were making me help them confront you about Shelly's party. You kept using the code words, and Kavner was telling me that we couldn't stop the operation. I tried to fight them, but they wouldn't stop. I couldn't stop them. I had to help them.... They were trying to make me...." He can't tell her the final details of Klein attempting to force him to reenact the rape.

Veronica's body tenses. "I don't understand...why did that make you think I'm going to leave you? They're the ones who were doing that to me. You were trying to stop it."

"No! Veronica...you don't understand. It's not the dream that's upsetting me. I _saw_ what was going on that night at Shelly's. You were my friend! You were practically passed out. And what did I do? I laughed at you; I called everyone over to do body shots off you. Shit...I was the one who suggested getting the Liquid X in the first place! Veronica, I was the one who tried to turn everyone against you; I'm the one who made all the '09ers hate you. I'm the one who let that happen, _made_ that happen that night. I'm the one who's supposed to protect you! I'm so scared that you're going to remember everything from that night. You're going to remember me laughing at you and urging them on. I know that Shelly's party is why you've never been able to trust me...and...."

"And what?" she demands relentlessly.

"Now your dad knows too," he finishes morosely. "He's been trying too...he's been trying not to kill me for letting them...fuck, for _helping_ them rape you that night. But...I know he thinks that I'm a total fuckup, that I should have done a better job undercover and then afterwards given you more time before we....After all, it's just the latest stupid thing I've done." His voice is filled with self-loathing.

Veronica turns around and stares at him in shock at his bitter tone.

"I'm sorry," he protests again. "I'm so sorry that I didn't do a better job of protecting you, then or now. I don't blame you or your dad for not trusting me. I wouldn't trust me."

Veronica tries to roll over to really look at him and winces at the pain from her shoulder. "Damn it!" she swears. "Will you...come on this side? I want to look at you."

He sighs gently, scared of what she's going to say, but he maneuvers his body up and over her and lies down on his side facing her. Logan closes his eyes, unable to withstand her intense expression.

"Look at me, Logan." She waits until he opens his eyes before plunging in. "It's true, I _didn't_ trust you. Every time I tried with you, something happened. I tried to forgive you for the Liquid X and the salt lick, and then I found the videocameras and learned you had lied about your alibi. I tried to be with you that summer, and you burned down the community pool." She starts to cry, and her voice begins to shake. "You made that stupid epic speech, and I so wanted to believe you...I came to you, and Kendall was there. And then...after we broke up at Hearst, I came back to you again..._begged_ you to take me back, and I found out you'd been with Madison. And this fall...we got back together again, things were great, then Hannah was killed, and _you ran away!_ Every time I tried...." She begins to cry in earnest.

Logan is overwhelmed by nausea and fear; each enumerated sin stabs him in the heart. He thinks, _What do you want me to do? How can I make this right?_ He remembers begging her for forgiveness after he fucked up with Madison, and she couldn't get past it. She just _couldn't_; and now...he's certain she's not going to get past this. _Once she remembers everything about that night at Shelly's...._ He tries desperately to think of something, _anything_ to say. But the words fail him, and he rolls away, looking up at the ceiling...wishing...wishing....

"Don't you dare turn away! Dammit, Logan. Come back here," Veronica demands.

Nervously, he rolls back toward her and forces himself to meet her eyes.

Her chest heaves with a great, shuddering sigh as she tries to calm herself. "You can't change anything you did, and _I_ can't change all the foolish things I did–and all the times I didn't believe in you when I should've had a little more faith and a lot more forgiveness. Logan...it's not all _your_ fault that I can't trust you. I mean, things happened, _terrible_ things. But...you know my mother...abandoned me and my dad."

He looks at her in surprise; Veronica _never_ talks about her mother like that.

She stumbles on, "It's...hard for me to believe you won't do that too. Logan, I never really believed in happily ever after. But I'm trying. Dammit! I'm trying."

Veronica continues on, the words spilling out incoherently. "All I know is...we have to decide to try to go from here, together. I know that I love you, and I _want_ to trust you. I don't know how to erase what's happened between us. I do know I want to be with you more than anything, and I want to try to learn to trust you. I know you love me too. And I'm not going to run away from you this time or blame you when things get hard. But don't you _dare_ push me away or hold back. If you do, I can't do it. I can't do this alone!"

Logan stares at her, unable to speak.

"Say something, goddamn it!" she begs. "I'm putting it all on the line for you; are you going to be able to do that for me? You have to let me help you when you need it. I can't wonder what the hell is going on with you! We are _so_ past that, Logan. We have to be able to do this together, or we should just give up now."

"No!" he finally manages. "I don't want to give up. Of _course_ I don't want to give up!"

After a moment of silence, Veronica asks, "Was Dad in your dream too?"

"How the hell did you know that?" he exclaims.

"Logan, he knows you love me."

_It's not enough,_ he thinks suddenly. _I want HIM to love ME. Wait...where did that come from?_

She continues, "And Dad knows that I love you. You've got to give him time. He just found out his little girl was hurt...and Logan, he feels so guilty that he didn't know. He's pretty upset about the operation too–he feels that he made a bad call sending me undercover."

"I know," he responds. "And this shit with Leo–"

"Can't you see? He wants to fix everything, Logan; he wants to make everything all right again for his baby girl. And I'm not sure that's possible. Sometimes things don't work out okay. Logan, Dad is really scared. He's trying not to show it."

"What the hell are we going to do, Veronica?" he asks.

"We're going to try to get through it together. I know I can't do it alone, and neither can you."

"How are you not completely terrified right now? With Leo breathing down our necks, threatening to reveal what you did to help Duncan?" he says compulsively.

"It's what I said...as long as I can _do_ something, I'm okay. We are going to find out what the connection was between Griffith and Kendall, and we're going to make Leo see it. And we're going to find out who killed Hannah and why." Her voice is determined and resolved.

"Remind me never to piss you off," he says, half-joking.

"You always say that...and yet? You. still. do," she replies lightly, poking him in the chest on each word.

He grabs her finger and brings it to his lips. "I'm sorry."

She knows exactly what he's apologizing for. "You're forgiven."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Counterintelligence**  
Keith does some dumpster diving; Veronica,  
Logan, and Wallace compare stories.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Dick: Ryan Hansen.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FIVE: "COUNTERINTELLIGENCE"

Wed. 3/18/09 early morning: Medical Offices of Dr. Thomas Griffith, Neptune, CA

Keith parks around the corner from Griffith's offices and walks back several blocks. Frank, his contact at the Neptune Department of Sanitation, promised that the garbage truck that services the medical complex would be here by 8:30 and would be watching for him. Keith hears a truck approaching, and he steps off the curb into the street. The truck slows down and stops, and Keith jumps on the rear bumper, joining a similarly dressed man with the name 'Bob' embroidered on his shirt. Bob nods a greeting, and the truck moves down the street. As the truck makes its stops, Keith helps toss garbage into the rear of the truck. The truck turns into the medical complex and heads for the rear of the building.

Keith identifies Griffith's doorway and picks up a garbage bag. He notices a locked fenced-in area next to the building; he tries to see inside, but can only see a sliver of the area through a crack in the fence. He notes the brand of padlock securing the area for future reference. He takes the garbage to the back of truck and then continues around to the passenger side, putting Griffith's garbage in the passenger seat of the truck. Keith returns to the rear of the truck and hops on the bumper as the truck moves to the next stop. As the truck rumbles on to the next building, Keith looks around for possible vantage points for surveillance and identifies an adjacent parking lot that overlooks the complex.

At the next cross street, the truck turns the corner and deposits Keith, along with Griffith's garbage, at his car. He passes several twenties to the driver and to Bob and gives them a slight wave as they drive off. He puts the garbage bag in the trunk of his car; thankfully, it appears to contain primarily office waste and not much in the way of food. Keith drives to the surveillance point he had identified. He boots up his laptop and checks to see if Griffith has a wireless internet connection; as he suspected, Griffith's Wi-Fi signal is heavily protected and not susceptible to the few hacker tricks Keith knows. Keith pours a cup of coffee from his thermos and settles in to wait and watch.

His thoughts turn to Hannah Griffith as he watches her father's place of business. When she had first arrived at the school, it must have been immediately apparent to her, as it was to him and the others on the undercover operation, that Briar Hill was an insane place. After she escaped with Michelle Weisz's help, he imagines that the girl must have been terrified, unwilling to call her parents for help and fearful that the school had sent pursuers after her._ Sent away..._he thinks again. _How could a dad send his daughter away to a place like that? I'll never understand that._ Keith tries to put himself in Hannah's place: she would have thought long and hard before asking people for help. She would have needed a place to live and a job–a job that a fifteen-year-old could do without a parent's or guardian's permission. _Waitress? Baby-sitter? Store clerk?_

Keith scribbles a few notes detailing ideas for investigating Hannah's time after her escape. She would have needed identification as well. The private investigators hired by Griffith and Ms. Denenberg three years ago had checked national driver's license registries with no success. Hannah would have probably changed her appearance as well; he makes a note that Veronica should use Photoshop to come up with a few possibilities before they go up to Rio Linda.

He suddenly sighs in frustration; his thoughts always come back to _why? Why murder Hannah? Retribution? To ensure her silence? Did she know something about her father's arrangement with Kendall, whatever that was? Maybe Hannah is the key to understanding Kendall's murder as well._ He scribbles: _did Hannah know Kendall?_ Keith reflects that he has a lot of new questions for Ms. Denenberg.

A truck pulls up to the rear of the medical complex. With binoculars, Keith is able to read the lettering on the cab door, 'SteriDispose' and an address on the outskirts of Neptune. A man exits the truck, opens the padlocked area next to Griffith's office and removes a large red barrel on a dolly. Keith is surprised when the man picks up the container and hoists it easily into the back of truck. The man unloads another red barrel and wheels it into the secured area; he closes the gate and relocks the padlock. The truck drives off. Keith runs a quick computer check on 'SteriDispose'; according to the Neptune Department of Consumer Affairs, it is a medical waste recycler. As Keith checks its business profile, he realizes that the company is a shell corporation, and discovering the true principals of the corporation will take a bit more digging.

Keith watches for the next half an hour; there is no activity, and he decides to try to find a place where he can observe the front entrance to the complex. He drives around the block and settles on the parking garage across the street. He drives up to the mostly deserted third level and parks facing Griffith's office. Keith observes the office for about an hour; only two clients enter the building during that time.

Thoughtfully, he calls Griffith's office. When the receptionist answers, he introduces himself as a drug company representative and asks to speak to the doctor. The receptionist tells him that Dr. Griffith is very busy with patient consultations and to try back later. Keith terminates the call and watches the office for another hour, but Griffith's medical practice seems to be anything but busy. Keith makes a note of all the license plates in the parking lot. The two patients eventually exit the building, and Keith takes their photos and tags their plate numbers with a brief physical description.

Wed. 3/18/09 morning: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Veronica is working on her laptop at her dad's desk, trying to make some headway on the research her dad had left for her while Wallace works out at the reception desk on a different topic. Logan is observing over Veronica's shoulder, asking questions as she works. Veronica's cellphone rings. She checks the caller ID display and laughs. "It's for you," she says, turning to Logan. She thumbs the send key and says, "He's right here," before handing Logan the phone.

Logan says, "Hello?" frowning at her.

"Yo. What's up with Ronnie? I thought we were friends now...she doesn't even want to say hello?" Dick says aggrievedly.

Logan laughs. "My girlfriend has accepted that you're a part of my life, Dick. That's progress, you know."

"Dude, that was completely fucked up yesterday at the funeral...the news is saying that Gory Sorokin was arrested...Carrie was hurt, and that other reporter guy was killed. What the hell happened?" Dick asks.

Logan explains briefly. "Did you hear that Mac's family is all right?"

"What?" Dick asks. "I don't understand."

"Yep, they weren't home when the bomb went off," Logan says. "And check this out: it looks like Mac's not going to have to go into witness protection either."

"Sweet!"

Logan hears the phone crash. "Dick? Dude!" Veronica looks at him questioningly.

There is a fumbling sound on the receiver, and Dick comes on to say, "Sorry...I was doing a little happy dance and dropped the phone. My bad."

Logan whispers to Veronica, "Dick's a little excited that Mac might be around again."

"Hey! Have you guys talked to her?" Dick asks excitedly. "Will you tell her...oh shit, I don't know what to tell her...tell her I'm stoked her family's okay."

"All right. Try to calm down, Dick. You're going to scare Mac acting like this."

Dick is oblivious. "Tell her...I've completely given up porn," he says impulsively.

"No one is going to believe that, least of all me," Logan replies. He explains to Veronica, 'Dick says he's given up porn,' and she rolls her eyes. From the reception area, Wallace snorts loudly. Logan speaks into the receiver, "Seriously, dude, no need to go all radical. Try to take it easy."

"Easy, sleazy," Dicks says scornfully. "I'm going to woo her."

Logan laughs. "Woo her? You've completely lost it, Dick. Get a grip."

Veronica motions that she wants the phone. She takes the handset from Logan and says, "Dick? We might need you to do some counterintelligence for us."

"What? Are you saying I'm not smart?" Dick says, slightly confused. "Ronnie, I really thought we were past that."

"No," she chuckles. "Just...we may need you to give Leo a little more information about Kendall. You might put a certain spin on things, shall we say?"

"Ronnie, I never understand what you're up to. But okay; for my bro's best ho, anything you want."

"You silver-tongued devil, it's really hard to understand why Mac totally dumped your ass," Veronica responds. Wallace smothers a laugh, exchanging a look with Logan.

"Come on, you're going to put in a good word for me with Mac, right?" Dick pleads.

"I am _not_ getting involved with that," Veronica swears.

"But you won't make it worse for me, will you?"

Veronica sighs. "Dick, you don't actually need my help to blow it with Mac. Take my advice, think before you speak. That actually would be a good general rule for you."

Wallace chimes in, "Give it up, Veronica. Ain't gonna happen."

Dick protests, "You know my humor's my best feature, Veronica. Well...other than my hair."

"No doubt, Dick, no doubt," Veronica agrees. "We'll talk to you later, okay?" She terminates the call and looks over her shoulder at Logan. "Some things never change."

"Some people, you mean," Logan comments. "What are you planning?"

She confides, "I'm not sure yet...it's just an idea. Leo's so sure that we're in some crazy conspiracy to cover up the kidnapping; I'm thinking I want Dick to push him in another direction."

"What direction?"

"We've got to get Leo thinking about Kendall's con artist past and her connections with the Fitzpatricks. Dick might have seen something suspicious about her when they were living together. I've got those pictures of Kendall handing off a bag to someone. Maybe Dick saw her with that guy and never thought about it."

"Yeah, I'm sure he never thought about it," Logan says dryly.

Wallace overhears them and joins them in the office. "Are you thinking the bag man was working for the Fitzpatricks?"

"Had to be," Veronica muses. "Why?"

"I ran into Weevil at the funeral yesterday. He's been staking out Liam, Ciaran, and Padraig Fitzpatrick, following them around whenever he's off work. He's got pictures of everybody they've been hanging out with for the last week or so."

"You're kidding," Veronica says. "Why is Weevil staking out the Fitzpatricks?"

Wallace says, "I asked him for help with Shawn's murder, and he–"

"Weevil's been helping you?" she says in surprise.

"He took me up to Chino to talk with the old leader of the PCHers, Emilio Vargas. Emilio told us that the Fitzpatricks were helping Shawn with distributing drugs; Shawn had the connection, and the Fitzpatricks were moving the drugs for him. But then Shawn tried to double-cross the Fitzpatricks. Emilio said that there was a dirty cop pulling the strings, making sure that the Fitzpatricks never got convicted, and that was probably who took out Shawn. And Weevil told me your dad was pulling some sort of scam with the Fitzpatricks in St. Mary's cemetery, and I–"

"Wait–you found out what Dad was doing? Something in the cemetery?" Veronica says breathlessly. "Spill."

Wallace shakes his head. "Veronica...you should ask your dad. I'm not supposed to know about it."

"He won't tell me!" Veronica retorts, upset. "What do you know?"

Logan interjects, "Veronica, your dad's trying to protect you. Maybe you should leave it alone."

She shoots him an aggravated glance.

Logan shrugs. "Veronica...your dad did some very bad things to try to help you. He almost went to prison."

"I thought we were all going to be open and honest from now on," she says sarcastically. "I guess we were just talking about _me_, huh? Everyone else is allowed to hide things."

Logan frowns. "I know, it doesn't seem fair. I also know that you told me how worried your dad is, and maybe you should pay attention to that." He thinks, _For once, Veronica, do what your dad says; _everyone in the room hears his unspoken thought.

Veronica's anger deflates a little as she remembers how upset her dad was the evening before. She turns to Wallace again. "I promise not to go crazy. Just tell me what you know...what you and Weevil found out."

Wallace hesitates. He sighs and continues, "I told you about the ground-penetrating radar. We knew your dad was probably trying to find a body buried somewhere. He hired Weevil to help him dig up a grave at St. Mary's. He wouldn't let Weevil see what he was doing."

"Dad dug up a grave?" Veronica asks incredulously.

Wallace nods.

Veronica ponders this information. "What could he want in a grave? Did Weevil remember which grave Dad dug up?"

Wallace says cautiously, "I asked Weevil that. He said it was in the section where all the Fitzpatricks are buried."

"Not that guy Matt Dannon we were wondering about?"

Logan says, "Who?"

Veronica explains, "Dad was researching a guy named Matt Dannon who was a suspect in a liquor store robbery twenty-five years ago. He disappeared after the robbery."

Wallace says, "No, Weevil said it wasn't Matt Dannon."

Logan inquires, "What was that about ground-penetrating radar?"

Wallace explains, "Keith asked me how to find something that was hidden maybe ten feet underground. He said not metallic or radioactive, maybe plastic or wood. Candice has done a lot of research in hydraulics, and she suggested ground-penetrating radar. Keith got the equipment. He did the scans himself–never told me what exactly he was scanning–and I showed him how to interpret the data."

Shrewdly, Veronica asks, "Is the data still on his computer?"

"No, Veronica. You must be rubbing off on me, girl! I was pretty curious. I looked for it while you guys were gone, and Keith took everything relating to the GPR off his hard drive."

Logan says, "He probably erased all the evidence during the arson investigation."

Veronica nods thoughtfully. "All right, so you and Weevil decide to investigate the Fitzpatricks. What happened?"

"We tried to set up Liam, Ciaran, and Padraig to flush out the dirty cop; Weevil heard they were taking delivery on some stolen BMWs. We staked them out, and, when the cars were delivered, we dropped a dime on them. The sheriff arrested them."

"Ni-i-i-ice," Veronica says with admiration. "I've taught you well, young Jedi. Up high." She puts her hand up, and Wallace gives her a high-five.

"So, you know, after they were arrested, we headed over to St. Mary's. Your dad has the entire rectory and church bugged."

"No way," Veronica gasps. "Even the confessional booth?"

"Yep," Wallace nods. "That's not all. Mac wrote him a program that remotely collects all the input on his computer via Bluetooth."

"And?"

"Liam called Father Patrick from the jail. He told Patrick to call their attorney, Stephen Tramser, and 'you-know-who'. Patrick called the lawyer and then he sent an email." Wallace sees that Veronica is practically peeing her pants, wanting to know what the email said. "Damn, Vee, try to control yourself."

"Come on, what did it say?" she asks impatiently.

Wallace writes down the message and hands it to her. Logan looks over her shoulder with curiosity.

To: roastbeefmanATyahoo•com  
Re: LF  
L arrested tonight by NSD, receiving stolen goods. Need you to intercede if possible.

"LF is Liam. NSD...Neptune Sheriff's Department, I guess. Roastbeefman?" Veronica muses.

"I have to say, I was kind of hoping it would say mfieldsATfbi•gov," Logan comments. Veronica frowns at him, and he gives her a sheepish glance in return. He mumbles, "Sorry. I just don't like the dude."

Veronica frowns.

Wallace prods, "What?"

"I don't know. Roast beef means something, but I can't remember what. So what happened after Father Patrick sent the email?" Veronica asks.

"We went back to the Sheriff's department. Liam and his brothers had to stay overnight. I don't think anybody helped them. Nobody unusual came to the department," Wallace replies.

"Maybe it's Leo," Logan suggests.

"Why would Patrick have to contact Leo if the Fitzpatricks were in the Neptune jail? Leo would know about it already," Veronica says logically. "It can't be Leo."

"Why does Leo think you guys are involved in Kendall's murder anyways? He's done such a great job since he was elected, and this just seems dumb," Wallace says, puzzled. "You weren't even around when she was murdered. You were undercover across the country!"

Veronica and Logan share a glance.

Wallace says worriedly, "Uh, oh. What did you guys do to piss off Leo?"

"It's not important. Leo thinks we were in a conspiracy with Duncan. We just have to make sure that Leo starts looking at other suspects and leaves us alone," Logan explains, with obvious tension in his voice.

Wallace shakes his head. "I know things have been rough for Duncan, but I really hate that he came back to Neptune. He should have stayed away."

"Wallace!" Veronica protests.

Wallace says spitefully, "No, come on...he messed up, Veronica! He kidnapped his baby and ran. And now he's fussing at you to help with his custody hearing, and it looks like he got you involved in a murder investigation. How the hell could you get back together with him senior year after what he did to you, freezing you out and not telling you that he could have been your brother? What a frickin' douche. I remember what you were like when I first came to Neptune: bitter and hurt and lashing out at everyone."

Veronica stares at him in shock.

"I know you like the guy, Veronica, but I can't forgive him for hurting you like that," Wallace concludes.

"Wow. If this is how you feel about Duncan...I can't imagine how much you hate me," Logan mutters.

"Yeah, well, you pretty much get a free pass for life for saving Veronica on the roof of the Neptune Grand," Wallace says matter-of-factly. "But I have to say, you really pissed me off when you ran away in January. Veronica needed you, man."

Logan swallows and looks uncomfortable. "You're right."

"Enough!" Veronica interrupts. "We don't have time for this. So Weevil's been following the Fitzpatricks around? He didn't happen to...say...witness Liam killing Kendall, by any chance? Or meeting with Dr. Griffith?"

"I don't know about Liam meeting with Dr. Griffith, but the night we got Liam, Ciaran, and Padraig arrested? That was the night Kendall was murdered," Wallace explains. "The Fitzpatricks were sitting in a Neptune jail cell when Kendall was being killed."

"Damn it," Veronica swears. "I suppose that would have been too easy."

"Wait...so the Fitzpatricks got arrested and called roastbeefman to help them. But no one came to help," Logan thinks aloud.

"Maybe roastbeefman was busy killing Kendall," Veronica suggests.

"So maybe Dr. Griffith didn't kill Kendall?" Logan asks.

"We know Griffith was involved with her somehow," Veronica states. "Duncan witnessed them arguing and took a picture. And we know both Griffith and Kendall had a history of dealing with the Fitzpatricks."

"This shit makes my head ache," Wallace complains.

"Tell me about it," Logan agrees morosely.

"Why did Duncan take a picture of Kendall? How did he even know it was her? She looked completely different," Wallace queries.

Veronica sighs. "He was involved with her. He didn't know it was Kendall until–well, we figured it out when we were talking to her."

"Involved? You mean, he was getting freaky with her? I get it now. He can't just say what he witnessed because he'll look like a sleazoid at his custody hearing!" Wallace shakes his head in disgust.

Veronica nods.

Wallace scowls. "The Fitzpatricks, Kendall, scumbag plastic surgeons. This sucks." He stomps out of the office and sits down at the desk in reception, muttering to himself. He starts tapping at the keyboard, a little harder than necessary.

Veronica stares into space, thinking about roastbeefman and Wallace and Weevil tailing the Fitzpatricks. She walks out to reception and sits on the edge of the desk. "Wallace? You said Weevil's been taking surveillance photos of the Fitzpatricks?"

Wallace nods. "Weevil's totally gone off the deep end, and he insists that he's gonna take the Fitzpatricks down. He's still pissed about Felix and getting sent to Chino."

"Weevil was lucky he only served an assault charge," she replies. "With the eyewitness they had, he could have gone down for murder."

Wallace shakes his head. "He's out for revenge, Veronica." He sighs. "Weevil gave me a lot of shit because I backed off on the investigation. Candice made me promise, though. She wanted me to wait until your dad came back to town."

"Let's see if Weevil can stop by later," Veronica suggests. She picks up the telephone and dials Weevil's number.

As she is talking to him in a low voice, Keith, still wearing the sanitation coveralls, enters the outer office carrying a large garbage bag. Wallace grimaces and moans, "My favorite...garbage duty."

Logan walks over and takes the bag from Keith. "I got it. Tell me what to do." _Tell me how to help._

Keith looks at him quizzically before relinquishing the bag with a slight nod. "We have to sort out anything useful. Any papers need to saved. Obvious garbage we can toss. Anything you have questions about, set aside for me to look at. Anything, Logan. There are garbage bags in the kitchen area; spread everything out on one of them."

Logan busies himself following Keith's instructions. He spreads out a garbage bag and seats himself on the floor in the reception area. He starts to dig into the bag, scrutinizing each item he pulls out. He begins to separate out all the paperwork into a file, carefully smoothing each sheet as he goes.

Keith walks over to Veronica and kisses her on the head. She leans back and looks up at him. "Did you have fun playing garbageman this morning, Dad?"

"Sanitation engineer, Veronica. Don't let Frank hear you say 'garbageman'. I staked out Griffith's office for a while. He doesn't seem to have many clients."

"I'm not surprised. I made an appointment with him three years ago, and he refused to do any work on me," Veronica explains. "He said I was perfect the way I am."

"Well, that's true, but you're not going to stay in business long as a plastic surgeon if you don't believe in pursuing body perfection. Tell me about the appointment, Veronica."

_FLASHBACK: Veronica waits in Dr. Griffith's office. The doctor enters and proffers his hand. "Veronica? Hi, I'm Dr. Griffith."_

_Veronica enthusiastically says, "I'm so grateful you were able to fit me in. I know there's a lot of work to be done, and I'd really like to get started as soon as possible."_

_The doctor motions for her to take a seat and asks, "What kind of work are you thinking about?"_

_Veronica hedges, saying, "Uh, well, you tell me."_

_Griffith surprises her by replying, "Well, that's not really how I work."_

_Veronica enumerates her flaws. "Okay, uh, well, definitely implants. Um...not, like, clown boobs, but, like a generous 'C'. Um, and then there's...." She points to her nose. "The bump, and I-I think my lips could use some work."_

_Dr. Griffith looks at her with concern and says, "You don't really want to have these procedures done."_

_Puzzled by the doctor's reluctance, Veronica protests, "If you're worried about money, my mother said I could have work done for my eighteenth birthday."_

_He replies decisively, "Veronica, I don't want to waste your time. Okay, there's absolutely nothing you need to change. You're a gorgeous young woman. I wouldn't perform a single procedure on you."_

Keith comments, "So he's a surgeon who doesn't want to do surgery."

"Right," Veronica agrees. "He said he had to do a procedure and gave me a brochure on 'Body Dysmorphic Disorder' before he left."

"Do you think he knew who you were? Maybe he recognized you," Keith suggests.

"You mean, he somehow knew my connection to Logan?" Veronica says, puzzled. "Or that I'm a private investigator?"

"Maybe he knew who you were from the publicity about Aaron's arrest. Or the Fitzpatricks told him who you were–"

"I don't think so," Logan chimes in from the reception area. "They didn't seem to know who Veronica was at first in the River Stix, until Molly told Liam she was 'Keith Mars' daughter'."

Keith ponders. "Doesn't make sense," he concludes finally. "Show me what you've found in the databases."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Pressure**  
Bray's eyewitness account; Keith, Veronica,  
and Logan talk to Ms. Denenberg.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
Stephanie Denenberg: Stacy Edwards. Dave:  
Jason Wiles. Bray: Mark Sheppard. Sacks:  
Brandon Hillock.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED SIX: "PRESSURE"

Wed. 3/18/09 early afternoon: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Sheriff D'Amato approaches the holding cell. Bray and his cellmate, finally sobering up after their debauchery, look up anxiously. Leo says, "Okay, McHale okayed dropping the charges in return for restitution. Let's hear what you have to say about Kendall Casablancas."

Bray comes to the front of the cell and leans against the bars. "Well, I saw her talking with someone the night she got killed. Someone she shouldn't have been talking to."

"Stop jerking me around, Bray. Who was she with?" Leo says with irritation.

"Logan Echolls," Bray replies smugly.

"Really," Leo comments. "What were you doing in the park again?"

"I told you, no big deal," Bray says evasively.

Leo presses, "What were you doing in the park, Bray?"

"I was collecting some money this guy owed me."

"What guy?" Leo asks.

"I don't remember his name. The guy bought something from me."

Leo sighs. _This is complete bullshit._ "So tell me exactly what you saw."

"Echolls was talking with the broad. When they saw me, they looked all guilty. I guess they didn't want to be seen."

"Define 'looked guilty'."

"Um...Echolls looked over his shoulder, and uh, he took her arm and walked away with her."

"Right. How do you know it was Logan Echolls?" Leo persists.

"That guy's on TV all the time! One of those rich Hollywood brats that always walks when they get arrested. Not like me...I never got a break."

"Oh, poor you," Leo says sarcastically. "You're on permanent disability from a car accident, and you spend your life drinking in bars."

"What the fuck?" Bray says indignantly. "Like I asked to be run over by that prick!"

"Just relax, Bray. So you're saying you definitely saw Logan Echolls with Kendall Casablancas the night she was murdered? How do you know it was March 11 that you saw them together?" Leo asks.

"Oh, the next day, I read about her getting offed in the papers," Bray says.

"And you didn't come forward about this because..." Leo says doubtfully.

"I make it a policy not to volunteer information," Bray explains defensively. "Just look at how you're treating me now! Acting like I'm the criminal when I'm helping you!"

"All right, all right. You're willing to testify to what you saw?"

"Of course. Are we done here?" Bray questions.

"We're definitely done." Leo unlocks the holding cell. "See the deputy for your personal belongings." Leo watches as the two men walk toward the front of the building. At one point, Bray looks over his shoulder at the sheriff, and Leo tries to figure out what exactly is going through his mind.

Leo goes to his office and shuts the door. He locates the information Deputy Sacks had obtained about Logan's recent arrest in Vermont. Leo skims the report until he finds the name he is looking for: Agent Thomas Lynley. He calls the FBI San Diego field office and asks for Agent Lynley to contact him as soon as possible. When he hangs up, he opens Bray's file again and reviews his arrest for receiving stolen property ten years earlier. The witnesses who alibied Bray are all known Fitzpatrick cronies; all swore up and down he was in the River Stix when the alleged crime took place. Leo taps the folder on the edge of his desk and thinks about Bray's revelation. McHale had agreed to restitution quickly, almost as if he had expected Leo's proposal. Leo muses that bar fights are probably par for the course in Fitzpatrick territory, and no bar owner would want to cross the Fitzpatricks.

He presses the intercom. "Sacks, can you come in here?"

A few seconds later, Sacks knocks and opens the door. "Yeah, Sheriff."

"What do you know about McHale's Bar?"

Sacks shrugs. "There's not much to know. It's a dive. It's not a college hangout; it's more like working guys bitching and moaning about their wives and drinking away their paychecks."

"Do we get a lot of calls from McHale's? I don't remember ever getting a call to go there when I was a deputy."

Sacks thinks a moment and shakes his head. "Actually, this is the first incident I can think of. McHale's a really big guy...6'4", maybe 240...works out a lot. I think he fought Golden Gloves when he was younger. If there's a problem at the bar, I bet he usually just busts heads himself and doesn't bother calling us."

"But this time he got two of his most loyal customers locked up for a bar fight," Leo suggests.

"Looks like it, Sheriff. What are you thinking?"

"I'm wondering if someone is getting impatient," Leo says cryptically.

Wed. 3/18/09 afternoon: Denenberg Residence, Neptune, CA

"What if she won't tell us about Griffith?" Logan worries aloud as he, Keith, and Veronica walk up to Ms. Denenberg's front door. "She must have been in love with him once. And she might tell him what we're doing." _Not to mention–she must absolutely hate me._

Veronica reaches for his hand and grasps it firmly. He looks at her determined face and reminds himself, _if she can be strong, I can be strong. We can do this._

Keith says shortly, "Let's just see what she says before we start to worry," reflecting that Logan has merely voiced his own concerns about the woman. He pushes the doorbell.

Stephanie Denenberg answers the door. If anything, her personal appearance has deteriorated further since Keith's last visit. He realizes that she perhaps made an effort the last time he was here that she is unable to perform on a daily basis. Keith says, "Stephanie. We're sorry to bother you like this. Something's come up, and we're hoping you'll help us. This is my daughter, Veronica, and...I believe you've met Logan Echolls."

Ms. Denenberg begins to cry. She steps forward and puts her hand up, as if to touch Veronica's face. She drops her hand listlessly. "Veronica," she whispers. "Thank you...I'm so sorry they hurt you." She reaches again toward Veronica, motioning toward the sling on Veronica's shoulder.

Veronica closes the gap between them. She puts her good arm around Ms. Denenberg's waist, hugging her and burying her head in Stephanie's chest. Ms. Denenberg cautiously puts her arms around Veronica's back to return the hug. After a few moments, Veronica pulls away and says quietly, "I'm so sorry about what happened to Hannah. You're doing the right thing by suing the school. It will save a lot of girls. It's already saved Maria Frazzino."

Ms. Denenberg looks at her with disbelief.

"They were going to send her to an even worse hell than Briar Hill, Ms. Denenberg. There was another girl there, Tara, who reminded me a lot of your daughter. And I think we shut down the school before she could be seriously hurt by Peter Klein."

Ms. Denenberg nods wordlessly, trying to process Veronica's words.

Keith clears his throat. "May we come in? It's important that we talk to you."

"Of course," Ms. Denenberg says. Distracted, she continues, "Where are my manners? What's wrong with me? Come on in."

They enter the house. Veronica notices a large stack of unopened mail on a table beside the door. Ms. Denenberg leads them to the living room. She appears slightly unkempt, her hair unwashed and her clothes stained and wrinkled. Veronica pulls Logan aside. "Go to the kitchen and make us some coffee or tea." He nods and heads for the kitchen.

Stephanie sinks onto the couch and Veronica and her dad takes seats facing her. She repeats, "I'm sorry...I don't know what's wrong with me. Before I was...I was doing better. I was concentrating on hoping that the school would be closed and those bastards would be arrested."

_And now Briar Hill has closed, and it hasn't actually helped,_ Keith thinks. He says quietly, "It's a bit of a letdown, and it feels strange that it doesn't make you happy."

"Of course...I knew that. I knew it wouldn't make me happy," Stephanie protests dully.

"Stephanie, you did a good thing. You're doing the right thing," Keith says.

Veronica adds, "It's not just Briar Hill. People are looking at all the tough-love programs now because of the publicity about Maria Frazzino. Maybe we'll actually see some regulation in the industry now. You know, a lot of state child welfare agencies have been sending kids to these places, and that might stop now."

Ms. Denenberg nods.

"Stephanie, we need your help," Keith presses. "It's not about the school."

Her eyes slowly focus, and she looks at him questioningly.

"Something's come up about your ex-husband. Would you be willing to talk to us about him?" Keith asks.

"Tom?"

"Yes."

"I don't understand," Ms. Denenberg says in confusion.

"How much did you know about your husband's medical practice?" Keith begins.

"He was quite successful when he first started out. Tom got lucky; he had a few clients in the beginning who made it big in Hollywood, and he got a lot of referrals and publicity. He seemed to have a knack for knowing what the patient really wanted, and his skills were always very good."

"But something happened?" Keith asks.

Ms. Denenberg nods. "He started having difficulties about six years ago. He blamed it on the rising cost of malpractice insurance after litigation."

"Yes, we discovered that he had been sued, but it looks like the case was dismissed without prejudice and sealed." It had taken a call to a friendly prosecutor at the Balboa County courthouse before Keith had been able to discover any of the details of the well-hidden claim. Someone had apparently worked hard to expunge most of the details of the lawsuit from the public record.

"Adverse results are always a possibility in plastic surgery. And one of his clients unfortunately was left badly scarred, and she sued. This particular woman's case was actually very tragic. She was killed in a car accident before the case could go to trial, and she had no relatives to continue the suit," Stephanie explains. "Tom was very worried when the suit was filed. Apparently, she had a very good case, and he was certain he was going to lose his practice. He swore up and down that it wasn't his fault, that he hadn't made any errors, but the pretrial depositions were a nightmare. The woman refused to settle; she was angry and vindictive. I hate to say it, but Tom was so relieved when she died. Without her testimony, and with no living relatives to continue the suit, there was no case, and it was dismissed. Tom's attorney convinced the judge that the mere existence of the lawsuit was damaging to my husband's reputation, and the judge agreed to seal the docket."

Keith and Veronica exchange a glance. Veronica thinks, _Perhaps the Fitzpatricks made a deal with the doctor and made the victim go away...permanently._

Stephanie looks at them apologetically. "At the time, I supported him. But now...I think Tom did make a mistake in that woman's surgery. He began drinking heavily and couldn't sleep at night. He started being cautious in his surgeries, and a surgeon can't be afraid to cut and still do his job. And then, even with the suit resolved, his insurance premiums quadrupled. The final blow was Tom's best anesthesiologist leaving the practice."  
_  
_Keith asks, "There were also a few tax liens around that time."

"Yes, shortly after the lawsuit, my husband was audited, and the government obtained a large judgment against him."

"Do you remember what the scope of the audit was?" Keith scribbles a few notes.

Ms. Denenberg thinks for a moment before responding. "All I remember is that it was extensive. On top of the lawsuit, the pressure of the audit was devastating."

"And around that time, you separated."

Stephanie nods. "It sounds awful...I deserted him when he needed me...but Tom was unbearable. His drinking was out of control. I wanted to try to come up with a plan to save us financially, and he refused to discuss the business with me. He started staying out all night, and that was the last straw. I took Hannah and left."

"But it looks like he somehow scraped together the funds to buy you out of your community property share of the practice during the divorce proceedings," Keith comments.

"Yes. You could have knocked me over with a feather when my attorney told me that Tom had secured the funds to buy me out. Frankly, it was a relief. I was concerned about being in business with my ex-husband over the long term, especially if he was having problems," Stephanie explains.

Logan walks in to the living room with several cups of tea. He puts them on the coffee table and begins to walk back to the kitchen.

Ms. Denenberg says, "You found clean cups...."

"Yeah, I washed a few dishes and loaded the dishwasher. I was going to clean up a little."

"I'm sorry, I haven't been...."

"It's all right; I'd like to do it for you," he says before disappearing back into the kitchen.

"Maybe I misjudged him," Ms. Denenberg muses. She takes a cup and sips at the hot beverage; she holds onto the cup just a little too tightly, her white knuckles betraying her tension. Her eyes are vacant and bloodshot.

"A lot of people did, myself included," Keith replies.

Ms. Denenberg asks suddenly, "Why are you asking all these questions about my husband?"

Veronica says cautiously, "There's a possibility Dr. Griffith is involved in a murder, someone that perhaps he performed surgery on a few years ago. We have a picture of them together recently, and our witness said they were arguing." Keith pulls out a copy of Duncan's photo and lays it on the coffee table in front of Ms. Denenberg. Veronica continues, "And...it looks like both he and this woman had a connection to the Fitzpatricks."

"The Fitzpatricks? I don't believe it. Hannah was saying the same thing...it's just not possible that my husband was connected with the Irish mob," Stephanie protests. She picks up the photo and examines it closely, frowning.

"Your husband was prepared to perjure himself at Logan Echolls' murder trial," Keith explains. "Why would he do that?"

"You mean it's true? Logan really was dating my daughter to try to...I don't know...scare my husband into recanting?" Ms. Denenberg replies. "I never really believed that."

Logan reenters the living room and takes a seat. He says quietly, "It's true. The Fitzpatricks wanted me to be convicted, and they somehow convinced your husband to lie and say that he was on the bridge that night. We located the real witness, who exonerated me."

"Why would Tom do that?" Ms. Denenberg asks, still resisting the idea.

Veronica explains, "What if the Fitzpatricks helped him out by murdering the woman who was suing him? And I bet they supplied the funds to buy you out in the divorce settlement."

"That's crazy! For what purpose? Why would they do all that for my husband?"

"We think the Fitzpatricks are using your husband's practice for money laundering," Keith says. "We haven't figured out exactly how he's doing it, but we think he's taking fake patients and not performing procedures. They pay cash; he pays his vendors, who are actually fronts for the Fitzpatricks, and, voilà, the money is suddenly legit. It looks like he's paying Workman's Comp on more employees than he actually seems to have as well. So perhaps he's running some more money through payroll as well."

Veronica comments, "It's perfect. Most plastic surgery procedures aren't covered by insurance, so he doesn't have any insurance companies checking up on him."

Ms. Denenberg is silent. She stares at the photo again. She looks up and exclaims, "This is that woman, Richard Casablancas' wife. The one who had...."

"A lot of plastic surgery," Keith finishes. "We think she blackmailed your husband into performing the surgery for her. She knew about Logan's deal with your husband."

"Deal?"

Logan explains, "I promised to leave Hannah alone, and your husband said he would withdraw his testimony." He sighs. "I had every intention of keeping my end of the bargain. But Hannah...Hannah didn't want to end it. And I was weak. She was...she was probably the last person alive who believed I was a good person. It was...I cared about her, Ms. Denenberg. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have...." He sighs again, his shoulders slumping forward. "Kendall Casablancas was there when I was talking with your ex-husband."

Keith says, "Stephanie, Kendall was a con artist. She was connected to the Fitzpatricks, but they had a falling out. When she needed help to disappear and get away from them, she called your ex."

"You know this? Or you're guessing? Keith, this is all very far-fetched," she comments, upset and incredulous.

"Some of it we know. We know about Kendall's cons, and we know she was intimately involved with Cormac Fitzpatrick. And we're certain that your husband lied about his presence on the Coronado Bridge that night."

"And the money laundering?"

"It's extremely hard to prove without access to his files."

"You want me to help you get into his files," Ms. Denenberg realizes.

Keith nods. "We're going to try to access his computer system tomorrow. We have an actress who is going to portray a patient, and we're going to plant some surveillance devices."

"I don't understand...why are you doing this? Why isn't this being handled by the sheriff?"

Keith glances at Logan. Logan clears his throat and speaks. "I had a relationship with Kendall Casablancas in the past, and the sheriff thinks Veronica and I are involved in her death."

"Wasn't she...she's quite a bit...?" Ms. Denenberg wonders aloud, and Logan flushes deeply. Realization dawns on Ms. Denenberg's face.

"I wasn't a good guy," Logan says, his voice cracking a little. "Ms. Denenberg..." he swallows, trying to get up the courage to continue. Veronica takes his hand and squeezes it a little for encouragement. He glances at her momentarily before redirecting his attention to Ms. Denenberg. "I'm so sorry for everything. I wish I could take back everything I did. Your daughter was such a beautiful person; she made my life better just for knowing her. I know I can't ask for your forgiveness–because what I did was unforgiveable–but I wanted you to know how sorry I am."

Ms. Denenberg stares at him for a long minute; Logan wishes he could sink into the ground forever and disappear from that harsh gaze. Her expression suddenly changes, and Ms. Denenberg just looks incredibly sad. She asks quietly, "My ex-husband was really going to send you to prison based on a lie?"

Logan nods.

"For the goddamned Fitzpatricks?!" she continues, suddenly viciously angry.

Keith hurries to say, "He may well have been afraid for his life, or for the safety of you and Hannah."

"The safety of...." she repeats. She looks at Keith; conflicting emotions of fury and horror play across her face as she begins to comprehend her husband's actions. "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

As gently as he can, Keith says, "We think it's possible Hannah wasn't really killed by a serial killer...that someone tried to make it look like she was, but in fact–"

"I'll kill him myself! If my husband was involved in something and caused this...I'll kill him myself," she repeats. She begins to weep, and Keith moves to sit beside her on the couch. He takes her in his arms and rocks her as she cries.

The doorbell rings. "Are you expecting someone?" Keith asks gently, and Ms. Denenberg shakes her head 'no'.

"I'll get it," Logan offers. He walks to the front door and opens it.

It's Dave, the guard from Briar Hill, and Logan is too shocked to speak. He shakes his head, momentarily considering the possibility that he might still be dreaming.

"What are you doing here, you fucking traitor?" Dave asks harshly.

Logan recovers his voice. He tries to keep his voice calm and steady. "Get out of here. I don't know what you want, but you shouldn't be here." His fingers automatically curl into tight, hard fists, and he forces them to straighten.

"I just wanted to talk to Ms. Denenberg about a few things," Dave explains. "It's my right. It's still a free country, Roger. I mean..._Logan._"

Keith and Veronica, having heard the angry voices, join Logan in the vestibule. Veronica gasps audibly when she recognizes Dave, and she sags against her father, who grips her in a tight hug.

"Oh, look. It's Connie McConArtist, and Daddy Dearest," Dave sneers.

Keith says in a strong voice, "You need to leave now."

"All right, all right, I'll leave; I just wanted to make sure that Ms. Denenberg knows that we're going to fight this lawsuit with everything we got. We're not going to roll over. We did nothing wrong at the school; we followed every bullshit regulation there is. We're going to countersue, and we're going to make her life a living hell."

"How are you not in prison right now?" Logan asks venomously.

"It's called bail, you douche. And I'm glad I ran into you. 'Course, the next time I run into you, it's going to be in a dark alley. There's nothing worse than a fucking turncoat." Dave spits at Logan's feet. "We don't like investigators very much. You'll get yours...when you least expect it."

It takes every ounce of Logan's strength to resist the impulse to strike Dave. His struggle plays out on his face, and he breathes heavily with the effort to control himself.

Keith draws his gun from his holster and points it at Dave. "You're leaving _now_. You're going to leave Ms. Denenberg and my family alone. And I'll be filing a complaint with the courts that you've tried to intimidate the plaintiff and the witnesses. I'm going to ask the judge for a restraining order against you and your colleagues, and I don't doubt that we'll get it. You might've even violated the conditions of your bail with this stupid move."

Ms. Denenberg has joined them; when she sees the gun in Keith's hand, she backs into the wall and looks completely terrified. Dave leans around the door jamb and mock-salutes her, saying, "Nice to meet you, ma'am. See you in court...unless of course you change your mind about the suit." He turns around and walks off the porch. Keith holsters his weapon and follows him to his car. Dave backs his car out of the driveway and pulls into traffic, giving Keith a little wave as he goes.

When Keith walks back in the front door, Ms. Denenberg has collapsed in hysterics in Logan's arms. Veronica appears to be more than a little upset at this turn of events. Keith rubs her shoulder comfortingly, and she turns to him and asks, "How can people be so evil?"

* * *

_A/N: There were some comments (concrit) about the smut in this section, so it has been revised accordingly. Thank you to the people who commented; I think it's better now. See? Reviews make a difference._


	33. Chapters 107 to 113

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy and Poniesforall. All mistakes that remain are my responsibility

Many apologies for the delay in updating. Thank you for reading my story.

* * *

**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from chapters 103-106:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/86277•html )

_**THIS SUMMARY REFERS TO THE CHAPTER POSTED 11/21/08; GO BACK AND READ CHAPTER 32 IF YOU MISSED IT.**_

Logan has a terrible dream about Briar Hill. Veronica is in restraints, and the operation has been going on for weeks. She uses the code words repeatedly, and Logan pleads with Kavner to stop the operation; but Kavner says that Keith insists they don't have enough evidence yet. Klein and Dave try to force him to reenact Veronica's rape to help her 'confront her issues'; Logan resists. Dave hits Logan, and he blacks out; when he comes to, he is in Aaron's closet, selecting a belt. He exits the closet, and it is Keith who is going to punish him.

Several men are arrested for drunk and disorderly conduct on St. Patrick's Day; one man, Kevin Bray offers to give Leo information about Kendall's murder to trade for dropping the charges. Leo reluctantly agrees; the man claims that he witnessed Logan talking with her the night she was killed. Leo is dubious about the story; he researches Bray and finds he has a history with the Fitzpatricks.

Logan helps Veronica take a shower; she seduces him, aware of his morose mood. He keeps remembering the vicious nightmare and begs her not to leave him; he is consumed by worry that she will remember all the events at Shelly's party and blame him for her rape. Veronica is upset that they still don't seem to trust her and keep reminding her how foolish she was in the past; Logan tells her about his nightmare. Veronica reveals that she spent a lot of time while she was in isolation vowing to make it up to Logan for taking him for granted. She admits that she still doesn't trust him completely, because every time she has in the past, he seemed to let her down; but she swears that she's trying to trust him. She tells him that they both to commit to telling each other everything and to work together to forge a new future. She admits that she's getting through this difficult time by trying to throw herself into investigating, the way she always does.

They begin investigating Dr. Griffith. Keith gets his garbage and observes the office; he notices a truck picking up a barrel. When he runs the company name on the truck, it turns out to be a sham corporation. Keith also notices that Griffith's medical office seems not to be very busy. Wallace tells Keith, Veronica, and Logan that Weevil has been surveilling the Fitzpatricks to try to identify the dirty cop.

Keith, Veronica, and Logan visits Hannah's mother, Ms. Denenberg. They tell her their theory that her ex-husband's plastic surgery office is actually a front for a Fitzpatrick money laundering enterprise. Ms. Denenberg tells them that a woman who was suing her ex-husband was mysteriously killed, and the lawsuit was dropped; she also informs them that Dr. Griffith somehow had enough cash to buy her out of her share of his medical practice when they divorced. They tell her that they believe Dr. Griffith was somehow involved in Kendall's murder and ask her to help them investigate. Logan apologizes profusely for his role in getting Hannah sent away to boarding school; Ms. Denenberg realizes that her husband was willing to lie and send Logan to prison for the Fitzpatricks. They cautiously tell her that Hannah may have been killed by a copycat killer; Ms. Denenberg immediately understands that it may have been related to her husband's involvement with the Irish mob. She vows to kill her husband herself.

While they are digesting all the new information, Dave, the guard from Briar Hill, shows up at Ms. Denenberg's, intending to intimidate to try to get her to drop her lawsuit. He threatens Logan and vows to make their lives miserable. When he sees Veronica, he uses the nickname the guards had for her at Briar Hill: Connie McConArtist. Keith draws his gun and forces Dave to leave.

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•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Confidence Game**  
Veronica obsesses; Keith takes steps to protect  
Ms. Denenberg; Leo interviews Jeff Ratner.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
Stephanie Denenberg: Stacy Edwards.  
Rebecca James: Paula Marshall. Jeff Ratner:  
David Magidoff.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED SEVEN: "THE CONFIDENCE GAME"

Wed. 3/18/09 late afternoon: Denenberg Residence, Neptune, CA

Veronica watches as her dad tries to calm down Ms. Denenberg. Logan stands nearby, not knowing what to do with himself as Keith asks her if she has anyone she can stay with. Keith directs Logan to make another cup of tea for Ms. Denenberg over her protests.

_That look in Dave's eyes,_ Veronica thinks. _Contempt._ Her dad looks over at her, and she attempts to smile back to reassure him. _Connie McConArtist, what the hell...._ She suddenly remembers: _'Shut the fuck up, you little con artist. We know all your tricks here. We've seen 'em before, and we know how to handle them....Gonna control yourself, cunt?'_

Her shoulders slump as she recalls Dave's threats and what he did afterward. She pictures herself on the witness stand, testifying about what happened while everyone in the courtroom stares at her and pictures her crouched over the bucket, exposed and dirty...and Klein, sitting behind the defense table, smiling benevolently at the girl who got away and is still just a raging black hole and a callous user. She swallows, trying to get rid of that goddamn lump in her throat.  
_  
Everyone's going to see, everyone's going to know, they're going to say...._ Her eyes begin to fill up with tears. _No, don't you dare cry, don't let them see. Think about...think about anything else, think about tomorrow, going after that sleaze Griffith._ She blinks rapidly, trying to dismiss the tears before the others notice.

Logan brings another cup of tea for Ms. Denenberg. He sits down next to Veronica and puts his arm around her.

It's like picking a scab; she knows she shouldn't ask–it can't possibly help anything. But she does it anyway; _what the hell, everyone knows I can't help but stick my nose where it doesn't belong. _She flinches a little, remembering Logan's frustrated accusation. She whispers, "What did he mean?"

"What?" he asks, confused.

"Connie McConArtist." She sees the pained expression on his face, but he doesn't reply. "What was he talking about?" she presses.

"Veronica, don't." He tries to stand up, but she grabs his sleeve and forces him back down.

"What was he talking about?" she repeats.

Logan sighs. He avoids looking at her and mumbles, "That was the nickname the guards used for you."

She stares at him, the feeling of panic threatening to overwhelm her. "Did you...?"

"Veronica, I had to. Please don't do this. Connie was your character. You were playing a role, and so was I," he pleads, trying to convince himself as much as her.

"'Connie McConArtist'," she mutters, looking away from him. '_You're filth, a fucking animal. You're not even worth looking at.' They're going to tell everyone, Logan's going to have to testify about...._

He sees that she is lost in her thoughts. _Is she remembering me hurting her when she was escaped? Maybe holding her down in group. Putting restraints on her, telling her to behave. Hurting her when I put her in restraints, holding her harder than I had to. _Logan says intensely, "It's going to be all right. Please don't...please don't do this. They _are_ evil; we have to remember that. Veronica, you know how much I love you."

She nods. She listens to his words as she tries compulsively to make them fit what she remembers. _When he said it–when he said, 'we have been pretty tolerant of your wiseass remarks'–he didn't mean it. I know he didn't mean it. That was Connie. I know Logan loves me. I'm not a wiseass...except I guess I am._

"Veronica...are you okay? Maybe we should...." he suggests quietly, seeing her distress. "I don't know. We should be letting you rest. Let's tell your dad that we should hold off on–"

"No!" she protests. She tries to control the quaver in her voice. "I'm all right. We can't wait on this. I think Leo's going to file charges soon. You _know_ what that would be like. And this is how we're going to help Duncan too. We can't take the chance that he might lose Lilly. And I don't want to have to testify at Duncan's hearing." _I can't handle testifying. I can't do it. Please, don't make me._

He wants to hug her again, but he is afraid to touch her, frightened of whatever she is clearly recalling from the operation...scared to death she's going to think _(remember)_ that he hurt her on purpose.

She feels his tentativeness and thinks, just for a second, that he is embarrassed by her, he is ashamed of her 'using' ways. Or...even worse...he pities her for her weakness. Veronica reflects that Dave has reminded Logan just how fucked up she really is. _I couldn't even manage to complete the operation without breaking down, because I really was...everyone saw how I was...it doesn't matter how hard I try, they KNOW...._

Veronica struggles to push the thought away. _No! That's not right. Logan's not ashamed of me...he loves me. Dammit! I know he loves me._ She tries to focus on the memory of their lovemaking from that morning, joined together and determined to get past this. But then Veronica thinks about how upset he was, even perhaps compulsive in his confession to her. _It's all fucked up now. We're never going to figure this out._ She stares straight ahead, afraid she'll break down if she looks in his eyes.

Keith is making a phone call, oblivious to their intense conversation as he concentrates on the situation at hand. "Yes, probably just for tonight....that would be great." He terminates the call and turns to Ms. Denenberg. "Okay, we're going to help you shut up the house. I found a place for you to stay for tonight, while you try to get in touch with your cousin. I think it's an excellent idea for you to get out of town for a little while. Why don't you pack a few bags, Stephanie? Enough for several weeks."

Ms. Denenberg nods. She stands up shakily and leaves the living room.

Keith tells Logan to clear out the refrigerator of anything that would spoil and to take out the garbage. Keith busies himself with unplugging appliances and checking the locks on the windows and doors. He spies a family photo album; he puts the album along with several photos on display in a box. He adds a few books and CDs, trying to select upbeat topics for her. He makes a few more calls.

Veronica watches the others working. She wants to help. It would be so much easier, if only she could be helping–if only she could be doing something. _Goddamn fucking shoulder_...she tenses up, and the arm hurts even worse. She holds her breath, waiting for the twinge of pain to pass. _If only I could be doing something, goddammit...._ But instead of helping...she's just remembering and worrying. She keeps her face blank, scared they will see how upset she is by Dave's appearance in Neptune.

Ms. Denenberg returns to the living room with two suitcases. Keith suggests gently that she might need her checkbook and an address book, as well as any cash she has on hand. She nods and gathers a few items from a desk in the adjacent room.

When Ms. Denenberg indicates that she is ready, they head to the Neptune Sheriff's Department, where they file a report on the incident. Keith is relieved that Leo is not around; he knows that he needs a lot more solid evidence before he can approach the sheriff with his theories. They take Ms. Denenberg to an apartment just outside the 90909 zip code. Kavner is already sitting in his vehicle in the parking lot; he nods to them as they walk by.

Rebecca James answers the door. "Hello, Keith."

"Rebecca, thanks for doing this," Keith replies. "You remember Hannah's mother, Ms. Denenberg?"

Rebecca nods. "Of course. Hello, Stephanie. Come on in." Keith escorts Ms. Denenberg into the apartment. Rebecca indicates the guest bedroom, and Keith leads the way, carrying Ms. Denenberg's overnight bag.

Logan and Veronica wait uncomfortably in the living room. They hear low voices from the bedroom. Keith joins them, and they sit down in silence. After a few minutes, Rebecca exits the bedroom, shutting the door behind her. She says, "She's exhausted. She admitted she hasn't slept for weeks and hasn't been eating well. And the man who showed up really frightened her. I think you were right to get her out of there."

"Let's hope we can get a temporary restraining order first thing in the morning. In the meantime, I've asked a gentleman to watch your home. His name is Ryan Kavner, and he was involved in our undercover operation and can identify anyone who might be a threat to her." Keith leads Rebecca to the window; he motions to Kavner's car. Kavner gives a small wave, which Rebecca acknowledges. Keith says, "Another man will relieve him a few hours; he'll come to your door and introduce himself so you know who he is." Rebecca suddenly looks alarmed, hearing about Keith's precautions, and Keith rushes to add, "I'm being overly cautious, Rebecca. I don't think there's any risk. We were careful not to be followed on our way here from the sheriff's department, and there's no way anyone would associate you with Ms. Denenberg."

Turning from the window, Rebecca asks curiously, "How are you doing, Veronica? When I saw the news reports that talked about a young female investigator, I put two and two together with your dad's questions about Briar Hill and assumed...."

Veronica nods. She takes a breath, determined to look strong and _fucking normal as hell_._ Good old Veronica, never lets the bastards get her down._ She feels her hands trembling, and she grips them into tight fists before anyone can notice.

Rebecca hesitates before continuing. "I'm sure it was difficult for you there. If you need someone to talk to...."

"I know," Veronica replies. "Thank you." There is just the slightest tremor in her voice; Keith, worried about tomorrow and Ms. Denenberg, misses it, but Logan catches it immediately. He also sees her turn away to avoid Rebecca's sympathetic gaze, and he knows that seeing Dave has upset her more than she has let on. He stares at her, trying to figure out what she's thinking. He catches Veronica's eye momentarily, and she looks away quickly.

"We really appreciate you sending us to Jim Epstein. His research and experience helped a lot," Keith adds. "I think the evidence we got is pretty powerful. Veronica was a real star." Despite his regrets and misgivings of late, he can't help the note of pride in his voice.

"I'm sure she was." Rebecca walks over to Logan and asks quizzically, "How are you doing, Logan?"

"You know me, rolling with the punches as always," he replies distractedly, still worrying about Veronica.

"Still concealing your true feelings with sarcasm and wit, I see," she remarks. "I've been worried about you. You've lost too many people in your life. I'm glad you have Veronica and Mr. Mars."

"Thanks, Becky, that means a lot," Logan says, trying for flippancy but not quite succeeding. At her expression, he sighs and reconsiders. "Thanks for trying to help me in high school...Ms. James."

She looks at him shrewdly. "Your hair is...different. That wasn't you in the videos from Madeira, was it."

He shakes his head 'no' and looks away from her in embarrassment.

She repeats, "I'm really glad you have Veronica and Mr. Mars in your life."

Keith says, "We'll be by in the morning. We need Ms. Denenberg to help with our investigation." He can see that Rebecca is itching to ask about their investigation, but she refrains.

"Okay. I'll try to get her to eat something and see if she can get some rest."

"Thank you, Rebecca," Keith reiterates as they move to the door. "We'll help Stephanie find a more permanent situation in the morning. Thanks for helping in the meantime."

As they leave, Logan tries to catch up to Veronica. She walks to the car, her head resolutely forward and her eyes focused on her destination. He falls in behind her, wishing he could somehow erase everything, somehow make everything okay. He thinks he sees her literally squaring her shoulders, preparing for battle. He reaches forward and manages to touch her hand, and, after a moment, she grabs on, twisting her fingers in his.

Wed. 3/18/09 afternoon: Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

The manager, Tina, escorts Leo to a small conference room where Jeff Ratner is waiting to be questioned. Leo cracks the door and watches for a few minutes. Ratner is fidgeting, drumming his fingers on the table and tapping his foot. He stands up and walks around the room, with his arms folded against his chest, before he sits down again, adjusting the chair several times.

Leo enters the room and puts some paperwork down on the conference table. He decides to try a trick he saw Keith Mars use successfully during his short tenure as sheriff; Leo pretends that his phone is vibrating, and he 'takes' the call. "Sheriff D'Amato here....Yes, sir, I feel confident we're going to be able to wrap up the investigation shortly." Leo glances at Ratner and walks outside the room. Making no attempt to lower his voice, he says clearly, "Yes, there's just a few witnesses holding back information. We might need a material witness warrant. I know....Yes, sir. I'll be in touch." Leo snaps the phone shut and reenters the room. He leans against the table and watches the young man. He waits silently, hoping to exploit Ratner's obvious nervousness. Jeff takes a breath, about to say something, before changing his mind and staying quiet. He glances up and meets Leo's eyes momentarily before looking away.

Leo taps a folder with the typed notes from Sacks' previous interview. "So, Mr. Ratner, anything you want to add to your original statement?"

"No, sir," Ratner replies.

"You usually work room service deliveries on the evening shift?" Leo asks.

"Yes, for the last year or so. I was on graveyard before that...there was...." Ratner begins before faltering.

"Something about a disciplinary note in your file, right?" Leo flips a page to a copy of Ratner's employment history. "You were caught taking hotel supplies."

"It was bull–I mean, somebody set me up," Ratner protests.

"You don't think the rules apply to you," Leo states.

"No, come on."

"Tell me about Ms. Beversdorf. It looks she took all her meals in her suite until she made the acquaintance of Mr. Gillman across the hall."

"I don't know anything about that. We're supposed to respect the guests' privacy at all times."

"Yeah, I'm sure. What was she like? Good tipper? Polite?" Leo presses.

Ratner hesitates so slightly that Leo almost misses it. "She was all right. Not a great tipper. She didn't make conversation with the staff."

"And Mr. Gillman?"

"He's a nice guy. Generous and says 'thank you,'" Ratner responds.

"Did you ever see them together?"

"No, sir. Like I said, it's none of my business what the guests do or don't do. I just drop off the food and take the dishes away."

"I think you did more than that," Leo bluffs. "I heard...." he peruses the sheets in the file for a moment before looking up. "It would be better for you if you told me what you did. If you cooperate, I can try to save your job and maybe even make sure any charges go away."

"Charges?" Ratner asks, upset.

Leo stares at him, waiting.

"I didn't do anything except deliver her food," he repeats. "I'm pretty sure...you're right, Ms. Beversdorf and Mr. Gillman were eating together. A couple days after she checked in, she stopped getting room service at dinnertime, and Gillman's dinner orders were for two after that. He was careful; he never let me bring the cart in the room so I never saw her. I guess he's a gentleman. He was always nice to me, but we never talked more than 'thank you' and 'goodnight'."

"You do know that Daniel Gillman is really Duncan Kane?"

"Wait...that dude is...." Ratner shakes his head. "I remember when he ran. The FBI questioned everyone here about the kidnapping."

Leo assesses whether Ratner is being truthful. "You didn't know who Gillman was? There was a press conference and quite a bit of publicity. Surely you recognized the man you were serving dinner every evening as the man on the front page of the Neptune Register."

"I have a full-time job, and I'm going to school full-time at Hearst. I don't have time to read the papers. I don't have time to blog either," Ratner answers sarcastically.

"And the employees weren't gossiping about the residents?" Leo replies, equally sarcastically. "The sole heir to the Kane billions was having a secret affair with a beautiful and mysterious woman. I can't imagine no one was interested in discussing that."

Ratner, his face red with embarrassment, avoids looking directly at Leo.

Leo presses, "You never overheard any conversations between the two of them?"

Ratner shakes his head 'no'. Leo stares in disbelief, and finally Ratner says, "It wasn't for lack of trying. I guess they were being careful. Gillman, I mean Kane, has a daughter...I guess it's the baby he kidnapped three years ago...he really kept to himself and tried not to attract attention."

Leo sighs. He asks, "Do you know why Gillman and Ms. Beversdorf stopped eating together?"

Ratner shakes his head. "No, just all of a sudden, Mr. Gillman was ordering a single adult meal, with something from the kids' menu for his daughter, and Ms. Beversdorf was getting room service again in her own suite. Trouble in paradise, I guess."

Leo puts a picture of Logan and Veronica in front of Ratner. "Did you see either of these people with Gillman or Ms. Beversdorf?"

"Echolls? And Veronica Mars?" Ratner asks incredulously.

"You know them?" Leo inquires.

"Echolls lived here for two years. He's an asshole; he treated us like dirt. He was a shitty tipper who always made a huge mess in his room."

Leo motions to a picture of Kendall as she looked the year before she disappeared. "Did you ever see this woman with Echolls? It would have been during the first year he lived at the Grand. Three years ago."

Ratner studies the photo. "Maybe. It was a long time ago."

"One of your coworkers was quite positive that she was here with Mr. Echolls quite frequently around that time."

"I don't know anything about that. I tried to ignore Echolls as much as possible."

"And Ms. Mars?"

"She was in my intro to criminology class at Hearst two years ago. She cheated on a paper. I turned her in, but somehow she got away with it. She was brown-nosing the professor, so...you get the picture. And of course, she was sleeping with Echolls for a while...before she wised up and dumped his ass."

Leo explains, "Ms. Mars and Mr. Echolls were here in the Neptune Grand shortly before Mr. Gillman broke it off with Ms. Beversdorf. We have video footage of them from the elevator cameras."

Ratner laughs. "Veronica Mars was involved in this? Oh, this is great. She thinks she's the smartest person around."

"But you didn't see them?"

"No...believe me, I'd tell you if I'd seen either of them." Ratner smiles, sharing a joke with the sheriff.

"So then what is it you're not telling me, Ratner? I know you're not being completely truthful with me."

Ratner's smile disappears, and he stares back at the sheriff without speaking. Finally he says, "There's nothing to tell."

Leo sighs. He closes the file folder and starts to walk out of the room. He pulls out his cell phone and pretends to dial. "Sacks...we're going to need that warrant after all."

"Sheriff...." Ratner says.

"Hold on, Sacks," Leo says into the phone before pressing it into his chest, 'muffling' it. "Yes, Mr. Ratner?"

"I really need this job," Ratner pleads.

"Sacks, I'll call you back," Leo says into the phone before closing it to 'terminate' the call. He looks at Ratner. "Well?"

"It was the evening before she...disappeared. I wheeled the room service cart into the suite, and she shut the door behind me. I asked her if there was a problem, and she said," Ratner gulps nervously. "She said she did have a problem, and she wondered if she could trust me to help her." He stops, his face flaming red.

"I'm guessing she offered to do something in return for helping her," Leo surmises. "I've heard...she was rather generous with her sexual favors. Am I on the right track?"

Ratner nods and looks down to avoid Leo's gaze. "She...dropped on her knees and.... It's not like that happens every day to me. You gotta understand!"

_Every day? I bet it never happens, except in your fantasies,_ Leo muses. "Actually, I think she had a certain fondness for younger men. What exactly did she want you to do for her?"

"I had to ask for the next night off. I pretended that I had had emergency dental surgery and couldn't drive because of the painkillers."

"And?" Leo presses.

"I picked her up at the employee's entrance, around nine o'clock. She was wearing a short dark wig, and she looked, I don't know, fatter. Maybe she had on a few extra layers of clothes. She didn't look as um...sexy...as she usually did. You know, she was beautiful, she had tremendous...." Ratner motions to his chest.

"Right. You gave her a ride somewhere?"

"I dropped her off at the courtyard at 729 Main Street downtown. She waited with me in my car until exactly 9:30. Then she got out and told me to go. I was supposed to come back at exactly 10:00 to pick her up."

_729 Main, that's the courtyard at the Rose office building in the business district. There's plenty of people there in the daytime, but not much activity at that time of night. And there are no restaurants or ATMs with surveillance cameras nearby_, he thinks. "And then what happened?"

"I was watching in my rearview mirror as I drove up the street. A black SUV drove up. She opened the door, looked at the driver, and got in."

"She knew the driver?" Leo asks.

"I guess."

"And at ten o'clock?"

"I drove up and waited by the curb where I had dropped her off. She wasn't there. I waited until 10:30." At Leo's angry look, Ratner flushes. "I didn't know what to do. She had my cell phone number if there was a problem. Finally, I went home."

"So you're the last person who saw her alive, apparently. Except for her murderer of course. You didn't get the license plate, did you?"

"I was too far away."

"Make and model?" Leo asks, not very optimistic.

"Yeah, maybe, if you have pictures," Ratner agrees.

"You better hope you can identify the car," Leo says.

"What about my job? You're not going to tell Tina....I'll have to drop out of school if I lose this job," Ratner begs. "The hotel is very strict about fraternizing with the guests."

"I'll try to keep you out of it, but Ratner, you're lucky I don't charge you with obstruction of justice," Leo observes. "Wait here. I'll tell Tina you need to come down to the sheriff's department to look at some pictures."

In the hallway, Leo dials Sacks for real. "Sacks. I need a court order for the traffic cameras for a ten-block radius around 729 Main St. between 9:00pm and 10:00pm on March 11. I'm bringing a witness in. He's going to need to look at all the Neptune Grand surveillance footage between, let's say, 7:00pm and 9:15pm, and...get Deputy Clark to come into the department. We need to identify a vehicle."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Happiness Is a Warm Gun**  
Keith realizes desperate times call for  
desperate measures; Logan reacts badly.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Backup: Lefty.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED EIGHT: "HAPPINESS IS A WARM GUN"

Wed. 3/18/09 early evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Back at the apartment, Keith orders Chinese food, realizing that no one is up for preparing dinner. Everyone looks exhausted and stressed after the long day–the latest in a seemingly unending string of long days. The food arrives, and they sit down to eat. No one wants to talk about what happened at Ms. Denenberg's house, or what they're planning for the next day. The phone rings, and Keith blots his mouth on a napkin and walks over to answer it.

"Yes?" He glances at Veronica and Logan and turns slightly. In a quiet voice, he says, "How did you get this number?...We'll not be intimidated by you, and I will be reporting this phone call to the judge and our local sheriff's department....Fine, I'll tell my attorney to expect your countersuit."

Veronica looks at Logan, her face betraying palpable fear. Keith hangs up the phone. He starts to dial a number and then hesitates; he hangs up, finds his cell phone, and dials again. "Ryan. It's Keith Mars. Everything okay there?...Can you just check in with them and give me a call back on this number? I'm concerned there's a breach on my home phone." He ends the call and waits.

Veronica asks nervously, "What's going on?"

"It was someone who claimed to be representing a group called Association of Therapeutic Schools Alumni and Parents. But it was obviously somebody connected with Briar Hill." He sighs loudly. "It's all right. We knew they wouldn't just roll over and take a plea. We're going to be okay. They're testing us, to see if we're serious."

Veronica nods. "We have to do this. For Hannah, for all the girls. Even for Maria."

Logan shoots her a glance.

Keith replies, "Yes, we do have to do this. I'll have our phone number changed in the morning."

Logan asks, "Why didn't you just call Ms. James?"

Veronica explains, "He's worried they have a tap on our phones. So he called Kavner instead so no one could figure out where Ms. Denenberg is."

Keith nods to confirm. "If they went to the trouble of finding our unlisted number...." He shrugs. The phone rings. "Yes?...Good. Thanks, Ryan." He ends the call. "What time are Wallace and Weevil coming over?"

"Eight o'clock," she replies.

They lapse into a long and awkward silence. Veronica toys with her food, pushing a piece of broccoli around and around on her plate. Logan watches, knowing that she's upset and wishing he could somehow help. Finally, after they've gathered up the paper plates and food cartons, Keith says, "Logan, can I speak to you in private for a minute?"

Veronica watches curiously as Keith leads him to his bedroom and shuts the door. She starts to question her dad, but Logan subtly shakes his head, and she keeps quiet. She stares at the closed door for a moment before walking over to try to hear what's going on. _What the hell?_ Her anxiety level worsens as she unsuccessfully attempts to eavesdrop.

In the bedroom, Logan fidgets nervously, shifting his weight from one foot to the other as Keith bends down and fiddles with a small safe on the floor next to his bed. Keith turns around with a gun in his hand, and the color drains from Logan's face in shock.

Keith starts talking without noticing Logan's distress. "Okay, this is a Beretta FS 92 compact. It's a very reliable handgun. I've completely stripped it and cleaned it for you–" He looks up at Logan's pale face and stops talking.

Logan mumbles, "You're giving me a gun?"

Keith, slightly confused, replies, "With Veronica's arm in a sling, I'm worried...." His words fade away as he searches Logan's face. Keith ejects the magazine and places the gun and its ammunition on the bedside table. He sits down on the bed and indicates that Logan should join him.

"What did you think...? Logan?" he says hesitantly.

Logan looks away. The silence between them lengthens. At last, Logan says quietly, "I know you're disappointed in me. I'm sorry I didn't do a better job of protecting Veronica at the school."

"What?" Keith asks in confusion.

"I know I let you down. Mr. Mars, I'm so sorry for _everything_."

"Logan, I'm the one who's to blame. Neither you nor Veronica should have been there at all," he replies gently.

Logan looks away again. "Mr. Mars, I don't know how to do this."

"How to do what?"

"I don't know...this. I keep fucking up," he says morosely.

"Logan...." Keith says. "I don't understand." He sighs loudly. "You were trying to convince us to quit from day one. And you know, I can almost justify sending Veronica there...she's had experience and training. But I let her talk me into having you there too. She's always been able to–"

Logan laughs without humor. "That's for sure."

"Logan, you're not to blame for this. I'm the adult. I'm the professional. I should have known better. I might not have known everything about Veronica's...situation...but I certainly knew you had recently been depressed, and I always suspected.... I shouldn't have let you–I knew it was very bad between you and Aaron. I didn't consider the parallels of your situation at the school, how it might trigger...memories of how he abused you."

The toxic statement hangs in the air. Unconsciously, Logan rubs at the cigarette burn scar on his shoulder, until he realizes and pulls his hand away. Almost inaudibly, he says, "I just...I can't really explain to you how much it meant to me that I was...kind of your friend, maybe sort of...not a part of the family, but almost. You actually trusted me to help. I know I fucked up." He looks directly at Keith. "I'm not just talking about Briar Hill. I should have gotten Veronica away from Shelly's party that night."

"Yes, you should have," Keith says simply.

Logan nods repeatedly, his head bobbing uncontrollably as the words wash over him.

Keith says, "But I don't think you've been asking the right person for forgiveness."

Logan rushes in. With a pleading expression, he begs, "I'm so sorry, sir. You don't know how many times I've wanted to–"

"Logan. I didn't mean me. I meant you have to forgive yourself."

The room is silent except for their breathing.

Keith adds, "You did a bad thing. It probably has always been a problem for the two of you. And now it's a problem for me as well. I _am_ going to be able to get past it eventually. I can't lie–a part of me is still furious with you right now, knowing that you helped get the drugs, and then you were there and saw what was going on and.... And I know I have to forgive you because she loves you, but that doesn't actually make it any easier for me." He glances at the gun on the nightstand. "But, Logan, I'm certainly not going to hurt you. That's what you thought when you first saw the gun, isn't it?"

Logan is unable to respond. When Keith looks in his eyes, he recognizes the utter despair of a young boy who can't understand why his father doesn't love him.

Praying that he won't regret this, Keith explains calmly, "Logan, I need you to step up and help me to protect us. You have to try to be strong right now. With Veronica's shoulder...and given the nature of the Fitzpatricks and now with Dave harassing us as well...I would feel safer if you had a weapon and knew how to use it. Have you ever fired a weapon before?"

Logan says with flat affect, "Mr. Casablancas invited me along a couple times when he took Dick and Beaver shooting."

"Good. It's not your first time then."

"He gave me an unloaded weapon to protect myself," Logan adds. "Dick Sr. said, 'given my situation....'" He shrugs.

Keith exhales. _Casablancas was an idiot; I hope I'm not being even stupider. _"I gotta tell you. It's not my first choice to give you a weapon. I really don't want you to use it if there's any possible alternative. I know Veronica can shoot pretty well left-handed from her training, but...."

"You're really worried about the Fitzpatricks," Logan states.

"I've made too many mistakes already," Keith admits. "If something should happen to me, and Veronica needed your help...I've got to know that you know how to fire a gun. But I'm not going to hand over this weapon to you until I'm satisfied you know what you're doing with it."

He shows Logan how to chamber rounds in the magazine and how to load the magazine into the gun. He goes over the safety locks in detail and gives Logan some tips on firing. He unloads the magazine and demonstrates how to field strip the gun so that Logan has an idea of the inner workings. Keith hands the pistol to Logan and makes him perform all the necessary steps five times over before he is satisfied that Logan can handle the weapon safely. Finally, he digs in the closet and finds an old shoulder holster. He adjusts the straps for Logan and makes him practice drawing the weapon numerous times before he approves.

Logan takes off the holster and checks the safety on the handgun one final time. Keith hesitates, then walks to him and hugs him gently. "We'll get through this," he whispers. "Give it time." The young man holds himself stiffly, still tentative and completely unnerved despite Keith's reassuring words.

When they leave the bedroom, Veronica is pretending to flip through the newspaper at the kitchen counter. But Keith recognizes her expression of guilt and unease, and knows she was trying to listen to the upsetting exchange between him and Logan. Logan takes the gun and the holster to Veronica's bedroom; her eyes widen when she sees the weapon. She starts to stand up to go with him, but Keith stops her. "Don't."

Logan stays in Veronica's bedroom by himself; Veronica stews, wanting to go to him, wanting desperately to know what they were talking about. She becomes increasingly nervous as Keith sits at the desk and works on his notes for the plan tomorrow. Twice, she stands up, and Keith warns quietly, "No, Veronica. Leave him alone."

VERONICA

A gun? A _gun_??

No...it's not possible. Dad's not giving Logan a gun. I think I heard him say, _'If something should happen to me'_...no, Daddy, you have to be all right.

What were they were saying...Logan's still not telling me everything...I need him to...I need him...Daddy....

Breathe, Veronica. You having a freakout is not going to help. You've got to hold it together!

Dad's trusting Logan to help...but why did Logan look like that...what did they say....

Breathe, Veronica. Concentrate on something you can control...worry about tomorrow...go over every detail...try to find evidence that Griffith is laundering money...Leo will see that...Leo _has_ to see that...goddammit, why does it always have to be so fucking hard!

I'm trying so hard. I'm telling them everything, I'm being honest, I'm trying, I'm trying. Why is still so hard? Why aren't they telling _me_ everything? They don't trust me.

I _need_ him. Logan has to be all right, why is he so upset? I need him. I mustn't let them see...have to act like I'm okay so they let me help. _Fuck!_...why are they doing this? Why don't they trust me?

I've screwed everything up...there's no way that Dad's going to be able to fix it this time. I can't do this. Maybe I should just turn myself in for helping Duncan...but then, baby Lilly might go back to the Mannings. I can't do this! And...and...Dave's here...god, why is Dave here...no, Dave can't bother us. Klein wouldn't dare....

Don't let them see. Breathe, Veronica. Don't let them see you're afraid.

LOGAN

Logan puts the gun in the top drawer of the nightstand in her room. It seems absurd to put a weapon next to the garish foil condom wrappers, but he doesn't want to leave the pistol out either. He's afraid to discuss it with her, and he doesn't know why. He lies down on the bed and shuts his eyes. The fear that coursed through him when he saw the gun in Keith's hand is still there, and he feels an almost physical ache from the tense conversation. '_You did a bad thing....A part of me is still furious with you right now.'_

He thinks about the very last time that Aaron beat him, when he had manipulated his father into donating money to the food bank. It was the worst beating he'd ever had that didn't actually require a trip to the hospital. Aaron's control that last time was more terrifying than all the times when he had let loose with a torrent of unending and unaimed blows. That time, his dad had seemed determined to inflict the maximum pain without leaving a mark for the world to see. Logan remembers thinking, _This will be the last time. The next time I'll kill him. Somehow, I'll kill him._

He had gotten through the beating by fantasizing about the different ways he could kill his father. Logan had settled on putting his hands around Aaron's throat and slowly, inexorably squeezing the life out of him–he pictured himself languidly, unrepentantly choking the fucker and watching the monster realize that his life was ending because his monster son had risen up against him. And when Aaron had ordered him to stand up at the end of the beating, his dad had actually flinched when he saw the insane conviction in Logan's eyes; Aaron knew it wouldn't happen again either. Later, when he stole his dad's favorite cowboy boots for the school auction, Aaron had started to order him to pick out a belt. Logan had said merely, "I don't fucking think so," and had walked away, daring the bastard to come after him.

Logan doesn't remember the first time Aaron beat him. It was always there. It was always his state of being–his lot in life to wonder when the next time would be. He does remember the day he realized that it wasn't like this for other kids, and he recalls thinking that he must be a very bad boy indeed to make his father behave this way. Even his mother knew that he deserved what was coming to him and listened to the sessions in silence. She drank herself into a stupor and never intervened.

Logan knows this is wrong. _This isn't right._ It's not his fault, it was never his fault. _Well...._ Sometimes it _was_ his fault, when he set out to prove his father right.

He remembers restraining _her_, feeling that power he had over Veronica at the school. A sick, sensuous power: power that wasn't supposed to feel good, but somehow also felt...familiar, _normal_, and god that was the worst. _Connie was going to pay for...what was it she was paying for again?_ This isn't right. _This isn't right._ He takes a shuddering breath. _What the hell is wrong with me? Something's wrong with me. I'm supposed to be worrying about her, worrying about us._

He fingers his worst scar, the cigarette burn on his shoulder, and he thinks that when Aaron had finally pulled the cigarette from his smoldering flesh, he had been–_could he really have been?_–excited by his young son's powerlessness and suffering. He recalls the angry conversation between the doctor and his mother, his mother protesting that Logan had fallen onto a lit cigarette, and the doctor responding that this was the last time: he would report Lynn to the police if she ever brought her son here again. A new doctor wasn't so doubtful of the beautiful and skilled actress and her tales of Logan's compulsive clumsiness. _Growing pains, my ass._

He sits up on the bed, suddenly angry that he's wallowing in this ancient history, a time that he can't fix and shouldn't be obsessing about when there's a very real danger to be concerned about.

_Fuck you, Aaron. Fuck you. Get the fuck out of my head._

_'I don't think you've been asking the right person for forgiveness.'_ This is just too hard to think about, and he pushes it aside for later consideration. _I need to keep my focus. Stay on task, Logan._

He thinks again about Veronica's reactions earlier that day; he realizes that what he saw was a crack in her armor. _She's definitely not okay._ She's acting strong, but every time something else happens, Kendall's murder, Leo's vendetta, Gory trying to shoot them, Dave showing up...each time she carefully replaces the facade of strength, but it takes more effort, and the protective shell is chipped and worn at the edges. And he keeps stumbling, letting her down with his weakness and his mistakes.

He opens the drawer again and looks at the gun. _Keith is depending on me. Veronica is depending on me.  
_  
There's a quiet knock at the door; he quickly shuts the drawer. Veronica calls out, "Hey, Logan, somebody wants to see you." She cracks open the doors and whispers, "Go get 'em." Backup noses the door open and goes to Logan. He puts his paws on Logan's knees and begins licking his face.

Despite himself, he smiles slightly. The dog, at least, has always loved him unconditionally. Backup stares him in the eye and loudly barks once right in his face. Logan mutters, "I know, I gotta get over myself." Logan stands up, and the dog urges him to go out of the bedroom with a quiet whine. He walks unsteadily out to the living room. To Veronica, he comments, "That's a pretty neat trick you've taught him."

"What trick?" she says, with mock innocence. Then she smiles...but he notes that the smile doesn't quite reach her eyes, and he wonders how much she's concealing. _My god, she's trying so hard...Veronica!..._

"Yeah, right," he replies. _I love her,_ he thinks fiercely._ Why the hell does she put up with me? I have to find the courage to take care of her. She needs me._

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Thinking Problem**  
Wallace and Weevil assist with the investigation;  
they work on a plan; Veronica is surprisingly fragile.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Wallace: Percy  
Daggs III. Eli: Francis Capra.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED NINE: "THINKING PROBLEM"  
_  
_Wed. 3/18/09 evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Wallace and Weevil have come over to the apartment. Wallace asks, "How did it go with Ms. Denenberg?"

Keith, nodding, replies, "She's going to help."

Weevil surprises Veronica by grabbing her in a hug. "Watch my shoulder," she breathes, and he pulls away, muttering his apologies.

"I was worried about you," he says quietly. "Wallace said...listen, I'm glad you're okay."

"I'm more than okay, I'm totally bitchin'," she replies lightly.

"Yeah, badass Mars, I know." He leans in and whispers in her ear, "Love you, Vee. You're not allowed to get hurt again, ¿comprendes?"

"I didn't know you cared so much," Veronica answers evasively.

"You're not going to get hurt again, okay? You _gotta_ stop taking chances, Vee." Weevil presses, and her face betrays her discomfort.

Logan comes over and extends a fist for Weevil to bump. He says quietly, "How's it going, Weevil? Veronica _is_ being careful. Ease up a little on her." He solicitously escorts her over to the couch to sit next to him.

Weevil looks at him quizzically. He remembers how worried Logan was in the fall when Veronica was trying to clear her name; something is different about her and about Logan's overtly protective attitude. Suddenly it strikes him: _she's letting him protect her. What the hell?_

Keith begins to speak, drawing Weevil out of his musings about Veronica. "Wallace said you've been staking out the Fitzpatricks and taking surveillance photos."

"Yeah. Since Emilio told us the Fitzpatricks had a dirty cop...." he shrugs. "I thought maybe I'd catch them meeting. So whenever I've been off shift...."

"Let's see what you got."

Weevil hands him two camera flash cards, and Keith inserts the first one into the memory card reader attached to the computer. They all gather around and watch as Keith goes through the photos. "It's mostly Liam and his brothers," Keith comments.

"Right, Ciaran and Padraig especially. Father Patrick seems to keep his distance," Weevil replies.

"Who's that guy?" Veronica asks, pointing at a man talking with Liam Fitzpatrick in one of the photos.

Keith answers, "Kevin Bray."

Veronica frowns. "'Bray', sounds familiar, why do I know that name?"

Keith replies, "I talked to him last fall when we were trying to figure who was writing the threatening letters. We were wondering if he was holding a grudge against me because I caught him cheating on his wife."

Remembering, Veronica says, "Right."

"His wife is Liam's wife's cousin, and Liam broke his kneecap for stepping out on her," Wallace comments, looking at his notes. "Couples counseling, Fitzpatrick-style."

"Logan, there's a pad of drawing paper in my room...in the back of the closet, behind the boxes," Veronica says. He nods and gets it. "Dad, let's print out these photos."

They work for several hours. At the end of that time, one entire wall of the apartment has large sheets of paper taped to it. Wallace has transferred all of his notes to the paper, and pictures have been attached underneath many of the names. Lines crisscross the sheets, indicating familial or business relationships. Copies of files from Keith's time as sheriff litter the apartment; as they discuss a name, Keith tries to recall a case and adds any pertinent information. Veronica is searching all the databases, trying to find pictures to match the names without photographs.

"Tommy Shaw?" she asks, indicating a name on the chart without a picture.

Keith says, "I arrested him for fencing jewelry, when the Fitzpatricks were doing those break-ins to influence the election."

Veronica runs a check on the Neptune Register archives and finds a photo from a news story about the break-ins and hits 'print'. "Have you seen this guy since you've been watching?" she asks Weevil.

"No," he replies, shaking his head.

She clicks on another link in her browser. "Ah. He's serving three years in Lompoc for burglary."

Wallace taps several photos on the desk. "These are the only ones we haven't identified." He spreads the photos out, and they gather around.

Veronica points at a photo of a young man. "This guy looks familiar."

Keith frowns. "Do you remember his name?"

"No. But...he looks about our age. Maybe he went to school with us." She slides off the bar stool and heads toward her bedroom.

"What do you need? Let me get it for you," Logan offers.

"I can do it," she snaps. "I'm not an invalid."

Logan looks at her in surprise. "Of course," he mutters.

Veronica goes to her bedroom; she returns a minute later with her Neptune High School yearbooks tucked under her left arm. They huddle around as she turns pages, looking for a match with Weevil's photo. Veronica sighs. "It's too bad the photo is so dark. But I'm pretty sure I don't see him in here." She appears to be lost in thought.

"Where else could you have met him?" Keith asks.

"Pan High? Gameland. The Hut. Maybe even a Hearst frat party. I don't know, Dad," she replies distantly. Apologetically, she adds, "I'm sorry, I know I should know. I should know."

"Veronica, it's okay. You'll remember." Turning to Weevil, Keith asks, "What was the kid doing?"

"Liam handed him a package, and then the kid took off," Weevil says. "I only saw him once."

Keith ponders. "Hmm. There's no way to know if it's important."

Veronica has wandered over to the wall and is examining the pictures. Suddenly she gasps. "Gerry Black. This is the guy who was meeting with Kendall, when I was following her." She goes in her bedroom and retrieves a disc with her case files from the fall of 2005. She pops the disc in the computer drive and clicks on a password-protected folder labeled 'Casablancas, R.' Veronica glances at Logan and reflects that it's a good thing she took the precaution of erasing all the photos that featured him with Kendall. She clicks through until she finds the photo of Kendall carrying a bag and meeting a man at one of the Casablancas properties. She zooms in on the man's face. "Yeah, that's the guy. This is proof that Kendall was dealing with the Fitzpatricks. We can give this photo to Leo."

Keith runs a check on the name. "Black's been arrested several times in connection with various Fitzpatrick schemes."

Veronica crops the photo and enlarges Black. She opens her email program and composes a message to Richard•CasablancasAThearstcollege•org.

Dick: Did you ever see this man with Kendall? Let us know asap. It's important. V.

Logan watches her. She's intent on her work: she's practically the old Veronica, confident in her private investigator skills. With something to concentrate on, her mood is visibly improved. He's suddenly almost glad that they have something to investigate so that she can think about something besides Dave and Briar Hill.

Weevil says, "So what's the plan here? You're trying to prove what, exactly?"

"Well, it would help if we had solid proof that Kendall was in with the Fitzpatricks, so that Leo would start investigating them instead of trying to pin her murder on us and Duncan. And maybe...." She looks to her dad, who shrugs his permission. "We think whoever the dirty cop or dirty agent is, they might have been involved in Hannah Griffith's murder."

"The girl who was killed by the Saturday Night Slasher?" Weevil asks incredulously. "Wait, Griffith, are you talking about that guy from the bridge? That was his daughter?"

"Right. We think Dr. Griffith is laundering money for the Fitzpatricks through his medical practice," Logan explains. "And Duncan got a picture of Griffith with Kendall, so maybe Griffith was involved with her murder, too."

"No way. Those friggin' Fitzpatricks are messed up in everything. So then you're going to do your usual, Vee, you're going to blackmail Griffith?" Weevil asks Veronica.

"My usual?" she repeats uncertainly.

"You know, your Veronica thing. You get the goods on someone, then you turn the tables on them. I've seen you do it a million times. Hell, half of Neptune is scared of you and everything you know about them," Weevil says, teasing.

Her lip begins to quiver. "I don't do that," she protests.

"Of course you do," he says, laughing. He stops abruptly when he sees that she's crying. Everyone turns and looks at her in the sudden silence.

She runs out of the room.

"Veronica!" Weevil calls after her.

Logan stands up quickly, knocking his chair over in his haste, and follows her to her bedroom. But by the time he gets there, she has shut and locked the door. He taps quietly on the door. "C'mon, let me in. Veronica, please." Keith joins him, saying, "Veronica, honey, open the door."

Weevil turns to Wallace and asks quietly, "What'd I say?"

"I really don't know. I know when I talked to her a couple days ago, she was talking crazy...saying she loved me, and telling me to tell you that she loved you too," Wallace replies, shaking his head. "She's been a little off since they got back."

"Vee bursting into tears is not a _little_ off," Weevil comments.

Veronica has finally opened the door and allows her dad to come in and talk to her. Logan walks back to the living room, frowning intensely.

"What's going on?" Wallace asks anxiously. "Is she all right?"

"It's been a really rough day. One of the guys from the school...he fucking humiliated her, and she just had to take it from him so she wouldn't blow the operation. And then the guy showed up in Neptune today; they're trying to intimidate her into withdrawing her statement. He's a pretty scary dude."

"Fuck," Weevil says.

"It was bad at the school. They really did a number on her. She thinks...I think she thinks she's a bad person now. She's been trying really hard to act like everything's okay, but today she was pretty upset...." Logan shakes his head. "It's fucked up."

Weevil realizes that Logan, too, looks completely stressed and worn out. _What the hell happened at that school?_ He glances at Wallace, who is apparently thinking exactly the same thing.

Keith emerges from her bedroom. "Let's call it a night, guys. It's been a really long day, and Veronica's exhausted."

"Sheriff, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to...damn, I'm really sorry," Weevil says sincerely.

Keith nods. "Logan, she's asking for you." As Logan goes to the bedroom, Keith adds thoughtfully, "Eli, we could use some help tomorrow. Is there any chance you could get the day off?"

"Yes, definitely. Anything you need, sheriff."

"Thanks, I appreciate that, Eli. Come to the office at eight a.m., okay?"

"You got it." Weevil starts to go, but turns back. "Tell her I'm sorry, and I love her, okay?"

"She knows, Eli. She's just really tired right now."

Nervously, he says, "I shouldn't have said that–"

"It's okay. You didn't know. We all need to get some rest tonight. It's going to be a long day tomorrow. And, uh, Eli? Call me Keith, okay? Or Mr. Mars."

"You'll always be the sheriff to me," he replies. "But I'll try...Mr. Mars."

"You need me at eight too?" Wallace asks.

"Yes, Wallace. I'm counting on you."

He watches the boys leave. They are clearly upset by Veronica's breakdown. Keith drops his head into his hands. His daughter was sobbing incoherently when she finally allowed him into her bedroom. He tried to reassure her that everyone loved her, and no one thought she was a blackmailer. Crying, she protested that everyone could see...everyone knew. He stroked her back, trying to soothe her as she sobbed. After a while, she seemed to calm a little and said she was all right. Keith had stared into her eyes, trying to determine if he really believed her. He thinks he has never felt so helpless as he's been feeling since the undercover operation blew up in his face.

_Damn them and their fucking tough love,_ he thinks viciously. _My daughter is convinced she has a black hole for a soul, and Logan is a complete wreck. No, damn me! I was so upset by those arson charges and Vinnie's bullshit that I didn't think this through. I should never have let them go undercover in that snake pit. How could I have been so stupid?_

For the first time in his life, he thinks it would be so satisfying just to break something. He imagines walking to the kitchen cupboard, taking out their wine glasses, all seven of their mismatched goblets, and smashing them one by one on the tile floor. The pointless destruction would feel so damned good right now.

But with everything else on Keith's plate right now, he knows he can't afford the luxury of emotionality. He has to be tough; he has to somehow get them out of this mess.

Wed. 3/18/09 late evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Logan enters Veronica's bedroom. _She looks so tiny lying on the bed._ Her legs are drawn up protectively, and she occasionally takes a deep, shuddering breath. He knows if he brushed the hair off her face, he would see the traces of her tears. _I'm such an asshole; why can't I help her? Why can't I do a better job of protecting her?_ He lies down next to her and gently hugs her to him. "Hey, it's okay," he tries. "I'm here."

"Need you," she replies. She compulsively presses her lips to his in a mockery of desire. "Come on, kiss me," she begs.

"Veronica, stop," he protests. _This is fucked up! Dammit. I don't know how to do this._

"Why don't you love me? Why do you always pull away?" she sobs. "Why can't you let me feel good?"

"Veronica, I do love you," Logan answers. He kisses her all over her face, trying to erase the evidence of her sobs. "Let me take care of you."

"Didn't you...enjoy it this morning? You seemed like you were...." She breaks down, the tears rolling unheeded down her cheeks.

"Of course I enjoyed it. Veronica, I love you, you know I would do anything for you." He's sickened by the realization that she was experiencing these feelings and hiding them so completely from him. _I was thinking about me and my fears, instead of worrying about her. Dammit, why didn't I see that she was scared and hurting?_

"Then stop pulling away. I'm sorry I've been such a terrible person. I'm really trying. And I'm trying so hard to show you I love you! I'm sorry, I'm sorry! _Please_ don't pull away," she begs. Veronica tries to kiss him again, surprising him by pushing her tongue into his mouth.

He allows it, not knowing what the hell else to do. She reaches down and begins to stroke him through his pants. He thinks, _Oh god, Veronica, what is she doing, oh god oh god, she thinks...I don't know how to help her._ He breaks the kiss and says, "Veronica, that feels really good. I love you so much. You're not a terrible person. We know you're trying." He pauses before murmuring into her ear, "You don't have to be afraid. I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere. I love you so much."

Her hand's movements have become desperate; she makes little noises of frustration when his body doesn't cooperate the way she wants. "Why won't you...?" she sobs. She pulls her hand away and covers her eyes, moaning her distress.

"Veronica, I'm always going to be here. You're so beautiful, you're so sexy. I love you so much," he says quietly. "I love to hold you and kiss you. I'm not going anywhere. You're completely safe."

She hiccups, her sobs finally diminishing. He rubs small circles in the center of her back as he continues to tell her that he loves her over and over again. Logan whispers, "I'm right here. I love you, and I'm not going anywhere."

At last she cries herself to sleep. Keith warily pokes his head in, and Logan nods to him. She looks peaceful curled in Logan's arms, and Keith retrieves a blanket from the closet and throws it over the two of them.

Thurs. 3/19/09 early morning: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Keith has gone over all the details of their plan repeatedly. "Any questions?" he asks. They shake their head 'no'. "All right, let's go. No improvising today. We stick with the plan."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Thomas Griffith Affair**  
The team infiltrates Dr. Griffith's office; Veronica  
puts on a brave face and helps with the investigation;  
Leo pursues Ratner's lead; Mac phones home.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Eli: Francis Capra.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Dr. Griffith: Rick Peters.  
Stephanie Denenberg: Stacy Edwards. Karen  
Fillipelli: Rashida Jones. Christina Jones: Kate  
Bosworth. Receptionist #1: Elisabeth Moss.  
Receptionist #2: Anna Gunn.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED TEN: "THE THOMAS GRIFFITH AFFAIR"

Thurs. 3/19/09 morning: Medical Offices of Dr. Thomas Griffith, Neptune, CA

Eli Navarro, wearing an AT&T uniform and carrying a small equipment bag, enters Dr. Griffith's office. "Good morning. I'm from the phone company," he says to the receptionist, pointing at his employee badge. "I need access to your phone interface. We've had a report of interference on this trunk line, and I need to check it out."

"Oh, you'll have to see our office manager, Ms. Fillipelli; it's the first door." The receptionist points.

Weevil says, "Thank you," and heads for the office manager's office. He knocks and enters when bidden to do so. He explains the problem, using all the technical jargon Keith had drilled into him. The office manager's eyes glaze over at the long-winded explanation. Weevil concludes, "So you see, if you can show me your interface, I can take care of this right away and get out of your hair."

"Of course," she says quickly. She opens her desk and finds a key ring. The manager clicks a few keys on her computer, apparently shutting down the programs that are running. She nods to herself, then tells Weevil to follow her.

Wallace, a messenger bag slung over his shoulder, enters Dr. Griffith's office. He's listening to an iPod turned very loud, and he nods his head in time to the music. The receptionist greets him. Wallace says loudly, "I have a delivery for Ms. Karen Fillipelli from the law offices of Simon and Stern." The receptionist frowns at his booming voice and taps her ear. Wallace replies, "Oops," and pulls off the headphones. In a quieter tone, he says, "Are you Ms. Fillipelli? I need a signature."

The receptionist points to an office down the hall. "The office manager, first door," she explains. Wallace nods and heads toward the office. As he gets to the office, he sees a woman walking down the hallway with Weevil.

"Yo, are you Ms. Fillipelli?"

The woman pauses and asks, "Yes, may I help you?"

"I have a delivery for you. I need a signature." Wallace holds up a fat envelope and waves it slightly.

"I'll be right with you," the woman replies.

As she escorts Weevil to the rear of the offices, Wallace quickly enters her office and checks her computer. He finds the cable on her keyboard and traces it to her CPU under the desk. The connection port is hidden, he notes happily. Wallace pulls out a keystroke capture device from his messenger bag and hooks it up between the cable and the CPU. He taps a key on the keyboard, and the computer screen exits sleep mode to display a login screen; the device is working properly and will record all the keystrokes on the office manager's computer. He places an audio bug well under the desk where it is not likely to be detected. By the time the office manager returns to the office, Wallace has turned the iPod back on and is bopping gently to the sound of Kanye West that emanates from the headphones.

"You have something for me?" the manager asks as she enters her office.

Wallace hands her the envelope, which contains a generic request for duplicate patient notes for an old malpractice suit that Keith had found on the Lexis legal database. He extends an electronic signature and tracking device along with a stylus. "Sign on number twelve," he instructs. The surplus FedEx PowerPad that Keith picked up from an electronics refurbisher has come in handy on more than one occasion. The manager hands back the stylus; Wallace points the device at a bar code at the envelope. The machine emits an audible beep, and Wallace makes a few notes on the screen before putting the device away. "Have a nice day, ma'am," he calls as he leaves.

Sitting in Veronica's Saturn a block away from the building, Veronica and Logan monitor the audio bug and listen as the office manager makes a phone call. "Okay, we're live," Veronica says.

Logan watches through binoculars and sees Weevil leaving the building. "Weevil's out. Check the phone tap."

Veronica clicks a few keys. They now hear the office manager's voice echoing from the phone tap as well as from the audio bug, and they hear the other end of the conversation, apparently Karen's sister, who is complaining about her slacker husband.

"So far, so good," Logan comments. He fidgets a little; the unfamiliar shoulder holster is digging into his back, and the weight of the gun is an unpleasant reminder of the need to be careful.

"The hard part is later," Veronica replies.

He looks over at her. This morning she had seemed a little quiet, but okay. The girl who had been completely shattered the night before has retreated again, but Logan thinks that he won't be fooled again. He'll be watching closely to make sure she's doing all right.

"All right, I'm doing it," Veronica announces. She mutes the audio on her laptop. Using her cellphone, she dials Griffith's office and asks to speak to Ms. Fillipelli. Logan had found copies of telephone message slips in the garbage the day before; one had said 'please call Virginia from LCP, question about the total amount on invoice #32678.' Veronica had called LCP and talked to Virginia, pretending to be a representative from an online medical supplies distributor but secretly recording the call to get a template for Virginia's voice. Thankfully, Virginia's characteristic nasal tones and speech patterns were easy to imitate.

As Virginia, Veronica says, "Hi, it's Virginia again, from LCP Medical Supplies....No, I just want you to check that number on 32678 again for me, it doesn't seem right."

On the other end, Ms. Fillipelli replies, "Hey Virginia. Hold on, let me log in to the database."

Veronica looks over at Logan and nods approvingly. "We got it," she mouths. She listens, then says, "Okay. It must be a problem on our end. I'll check it out and call you again if I can't figure it out. Thanks, Karen." She terminates the call, then dials her dad. "Dad, she's logged in now. You're good to go....yeah, we'll be careful. You, too." Veronica hangs up.

"You scare me when you do that. It's a little too easy for you to imitate voices," Logan comments.

"Part of the job," she replies.

Veronica taps a few keys on the laptop left-handed, checking the bug and the phone tap. She feels his eyes upon her and turns to him. "What?"

"You're getting pretty good at typing with one hand," he ad-libs quickly.

She smiles faintly.

_What the hell am I supposed to say to her?_ he thinks. He's completely terrified to ask her how she's feeling for fear of saying the wrong thing.

"I feel a little better today," she says suddenly, reading his thoughts. "Not so scared." She avoids looking at him and pretends to be fussing with the equalization controls on the audio program.

"That's good," he offers.

"It's easier when I keep busy," she adds.

"I know. Veronica...promise you'll talk to me about how you're feeling?"

She nods. Veronica meets his eyes and says, "We're a mess, aren't we?"

He replies, "But it can only get better, right? We're going to help each other."

Veronica visibly jumps when Wallace taps on her window. She hits the button to lower the car window. "Nice job, Fennel. You give good messenger."

"You taught me well, Mars," he answers. "We lucked out; we didn't have to use the backup plan. The manager left me alone in the office while she was with Weevil."

Weevil is sitting in his car next to them and nods a greeting.

Wallace adds, "So we'll take over the monitoring now, right?"

Veronica nods. "Right. We're headed to the hospital, and then we'll meet up with Dad at the office."

Weevil gets out of his car and comes up to Veronica. He's been quiet all morning, barely saying two words other than confirming he understood what Keith needed him to do. "Hey, girlie," he says quietly.

"Good job, Weevil. The phone tap is to die for," she says.

"You know, I'm really sorry about last night. I didn't–"

"It's okay," she interrupts. "I know."

"No, it's not okay. I feel like crap, okay?"

_I know exactly how you feel, Weevil. It's kind of how I feel, when I remember the way I accused you of blowing up the school bus and holding up the Benetian casino...when I jumped to conclusions the way I always do, and then turned around and asked you for a favor. I haven't been much of a friend to you. _She breathes out loudly and looks down in her lap. "It's okay, Weevil. I'm...I'm working something out, you know? Sometimes it seems...." Her voice dies away.

"I love you, Vee," he says.

_Damn it. I'm going to cry again if I'm not careful. _She carefully holds her voice steady. "I know. Love you too, Eli."

"You haven't called me Eli in..."

"About a million years," she agrees.

"You let me know if you need anything, okay?"

"Absolutely," she concurs. "For today, your job is to protect my woobie Wallace."

"Hey!" Wallace protests.

"Don't worry. I'll keep him out of trouble," Weevil promises.

She smiles a little. _It feels good to joke around a little. Maybe...._

Thurs. 3/19/09 morning: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Leo peruses the list of Lincoln Navigators in Balboa County that he has printed out from the DMV database. After spending time with the department's resident car expert, Ratner had identified the make of the SUV he saw and was pretty sure that the vehicle was a 2003 to 2006 model because of the grille shape and high intensity headlights. When Leo eliminates the cars with colors other than black, the list is reduced to a manageable number. There's a flag on the entry for one vehicle; Leo clicks on it and learns that the car was reported stolen a few days ago, March 15, by Lawrence Crawford. While he prints out the police report on the theft, he runs a search on Crawford's name and discovers that Lawrence's son Jennings graduated from Neptune High School the same year that Logan and Veronica did.

Thurs. 3/19/09 late morning: Medical Offices of Dr. Thomas Griffith, Neptune, CA

Christina Robbins, the actress hired by Mars Investigations, enters Dr. Griffith's office and waits patiently at the reception desk while the receptionist handles a call. When the receptionist hangs up, Christina says, "Hi, I have a 10:30 appointment. Christina Robbins." The receptionist hands her a clipboard and a pen, and Christina takes a seat to fill out the paperwork.

A few minutes later, the intercom buzzes. The receptionist pick up the handset and listens, then directs Christina to go ahead into Dr. Griffith's office for her consultation.

Keith, dressed in what Veronica calls his Drew Carey disguise–thick glasses, a toupee, and a fat suit that adds twenty pounds to his frame–enters the office. "I have an appointment with your office manager." He consults his Blackberry. "A Ms. Fillipelli, I believe?"

"Have a seat, she'll be right with you."

A short time passes before Ms. Fillipelli appears in the reception area to escort Keith to her office. "I can't tell you what good timing you have. We've been having a great deal of trouble with the company that services our copier."

"Really," Keith comments noncommittally. Another message slip from the garbage had read, 'Neptune Technology Services called; they won't be able to fix the copier until Friday.' The note had been crumpled viciously, as if someone had been very annoyed. Keith places several brochures on her desk for various brands of copying machines. "Are you interested in replacing your current copier, or would you like to hear about our different service plans? I'm sure we can find something that will suit your needs."

Wallace and Weevil, listening to the bug, exchange a glance. Wallace, on the phone with Ms. Denenberg, says, "Go. Keith's in with the office manager." Keith had used the phrase 'suit your needs', indicating that Christina was already in with Dr. Griffith.

Ms. Denenberg enters the reception area. The receptionist greets her. "Ms. Denenberg, how can I help you?"

"You can get my asshole ex-husband out here, right now," she replies angrily.

"He's in with a patient," the receptionist protests.

"I don't care." Ms. Denenberg slaps a newspaper onto the receptionist's desk. "Did you see this article? He's unbelievable. He's giving interviews and telling lies about the school where my daughter was. It's got to stop."

"Have a seat, I'll tell him you're here."

"No! I want to see him right now!" Ms. Denenberg proceeds to throw a fit. She curses her husband violently and abuses the receptionist. Nervously, the receptionist picks up her phone and dials the office manager's extension.

"What's going on out there?" Ms. Fillipelli asks.

"Dr. Griffith's ex-wife is here, demanding to speak to him," the receptionist explains.

"I'll be right out." The office manager carefully logs out of her programs and excuses herself. "I'm sorry, I'll be right with you. There was a death in the doctor's family recently and emotions are running high."

"No problem, take your time," Keith says graciously.

As soon as Ms. Fillipelli leaves, he retrieves the keystroke logging device and plugs it into his own laptop. The first keystrokes recorded are the office manager's username and password. On her computer, Keith logs into the manager's account and slips a disc into the drive. He runs the install program for Windows Remote Desktop. When the program asks for the administrative password, he enters the text string and hits 'return'. The computer accepts the password and begins installing the program. Keith fidgets nervously, waiting for the computer to finish the install; a dialog box appears asking if the computer should run the program in background mode. Keith clicks 'Yes'. He peeks into the hallway; the argument is still going strong, and Keith runs another install, adding DiskAgent to the manager's applications. When the installation is complete, he ejects the disc, logs out, and sits back down in the chair in front of the desk.

Meanwhile, in the reception area, Ms. Fillipelli is trying to calm down Ms. Denenberg, who has only become more agitated. Dr. Griffith, alarmed by the commotion, comes out into reception. "Stephanie, what are you doing?"

Ms. Denenberg hits him in chest with the newspaper. Tearfully, she begins to berate him at the top of her lungs. "No, what are you doing? Don't you understand what that school did to Hannah? They tortured her; they locked her up in solitary confinement like a murderer and made her life hell. You need to get on board with this lawsuit and stop excusing them for they did. Unless, of course, you feel guilty about sending her there. That's it, isn't it? You're trying to ease your guilt."

They argue in loud voices, each blaming the other for Hannah's death. The receptionist and the office manager try to calm them down.

In Dr. Griffith's office, Christina Robbins looks around for a suitable location for the video recording device Keith had given her. She listens carefully to make sure that the sounds of the argument from the waiting room are continuing as she scrutinizes the office. The device has been disguised as a medical textbook; she finally places the book on a shelf where it will afford a view of most of the office. She switches the device to 'on' and waits nervously for her cellphone to vibrate. A few seconds later, the phone rings, and Wallace says, "It's good." Christina scans the room, making sure she didn't move anything out of place. To her amateur's eye, the bug sticks out like a sore thumb, but there are few options available. She sighs and sits back down, waiting anxiously for the doctor to come back in.

A short while later, Dr. Griffith reenters his office and apologizes profusely for the interruption. "Now, about this work that you want done. I have to tell you that I don't think you'll be pleased with implants. You have a beautiful figure, and you should try to find a way to be happy with your body as it is."

"But I'm an actress. I'm getting a lot of comments from casting agents that my figure needs improvement," Christina protests. "I know most women would be happy with my breasts, but in Hollywood the standards are much higher. I'm losing parts to less qualified actresses because of it."

"I'm sorry. I can't perform breast augmentation on you. I don't believe you would be happy with the results, and the procedure has substantial risks. I hope you'll give up this idea." Dr. Griffith stands up, indicating that the consultation is over. "Good luck with your career, Ms. Robbins. I feel confident that these casting agents will be able to overlook any imagined deficit and find you suitable roles without you disfiguring your body with implants."

Watching on video, Weevil says, "He's right. She doesn't need a boob job. Nice melocotones."

"Yeah, the point is that he turns away every real patient. He's just moving money around for the Fitzpatricks," Wallace replies.

"Pretty slick," Weevil admits grudgingly.

Thurs. 3/19/09 late morning: Balboa County General Hospital, Neptune, CA

Veronica, in her dressed-to-impress skirt and suit jacket, marches into the administrative offices of the hospital. Her hair, still the hated red color, is bound up into a tight chignon–Logan complaining all the while about the indignity of being of her hairdresser–and she sports severe glasses that add a few years to her appearance. She had argued with Logan; once again, he had tried to convince her that he could handle this, but she had put her foot down. This would require finesse and improvisation skills. Reluctantly, he helped her remove the sling on her arm; she insisted it would be too memorable, and she could handle the pain for the few minutes she needed to carry out this ruse. He waits in the car for her, worried that she will slip up and be discovered, and, in the process, somehow aggravate her injury. But he reflects that her stubborn refusal is a lot more like the old Veronica, and he tries to take comfort in that.

In the offices, Veronica asks to speak to the payroll supervisor. She hands over a business card that proclaims her to be an investigator for The Medical Board of California.

The receptionist asks suspiciously, "May I ask what this is in reference to?"

"A complaint has been filed against a physician using license number 39887. It appears that they are fraudulently using the license of a physician who works in your hospital. I just need to verify the employment history of the physician who actually has that license number. If he was working here at your hospital, he couldn't have been practicing elsewhere in the state. It should be easy to clear his name."

"My goodness. That's a new one," the receptionist responds.

"It's very disturbing," Veronica agrees. She mentally crosses her fingers, thinking, _It's also total bullshit._

After a murmured conversation on the phone, the receptionist sends Veronica back to the supervisor, who prints out the physician's schedule for the past year.

Veronica leaves as quickly as possible. Back in the car, she sighs in relief when Logan helps her back into the sling. "Easy as pie," she comments. "The anesthesiologist who supposedly works at Griffith's clinic is surprisingly also working here at the hospital thirty-five hours every week."

"So that means what?" Logan asks.

"The anesthesiologist probably gets a cut for allowing his name to be used on the payroll, and the rest of the money is funneled back to the Fitzpatricks," Veronica explains. "Okay, back to the office."

He starts up the car and pulls out of the hospital parking lot. _She needs this,_ he thinks. She looks over at him, obviously excited to be making progress in the investigation. He reaches his hand over to her across the seat, and she takes it. They are heading back to Mars Investigations when Veronica's phone rings. She pulls her hand free of Logan's and fumbles in her purse.

"Hello?"

On the other end, Mac laughs and says, "Veronica! It's so great to hear your voice."

"Mac?!"

Logan turns to her; she smiles happily at him.

"Mac, what's the haps?"

Mac replies smugly, "Oh, you know, just saving the free world from hacker domination." Veronica hears mumbled voices, then Mac comes back on the line to say, "I didn't really mean that. Apparently, I wasn't _allowed_ to say that. [muffled]..._Shut up, Alan_.... Veronica, you were undercover at that school, right? I saw some news reports. I can't believe you took down the speaker of the assembly! What a sleaze."

"Yes. We've been back for a few days. Who's Alan?"

"Oh, he's my handler here. Who's 'we'?" Mac asks.

"Logan's here too. He was on the operation too...he helped make sure I was safe." Veronica glances at Logan.

"I can't wait to hear the story about how you tracked Logan down. I saw you guys at that ridiculous funeral; I was watching on closed-circuit cameras. Veronica, I was so scared when the shooting started."

"Oh Mac. We were all so upset about your family, and then when we found out they were okay...." Veronica begins to cry a little. "Mac, are they going to let you come home?"

"Yes!! That's why I'm calling. Sunday night they said. There's a few more details to wrap up."

Veronica whispers, 'Sunday night' to Logan. To Mac, she says, "That's the best news I've heard in ages."

"Oh...I gotta go, Veronica. Someone's here. It's another agent who needs to interview me. Veronica, I really don't know why you want to work with these people. Bunch of tight asses, if you ask me. [muffled]..._All right, all right, stop glaring at me, I'm getting off!_... Veronica, I'll call you Sunday."

Veronica ends the call and looks at Logan with a broad smile. "Sounds like she kicked ass at the FBI."

"I'm sure she did," he replies.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Exculpatory Evidence**  
Leo interviews the owner of the SUV and his  
employees; the team examines the financial  
evidence.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Lawrence Crawford: Unknown Nameless Actor.  
Joachim Sevilla: Steven Michael Quezada.  
Sacks: Brandon Hillock.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED ELEVEN: "EXCULPATORY EVIDENCE"

Thurs. 3/19/09 early afternoon: Crawford Residence, Neptune, CA

Sheriff D'Amato is interviewing Lawrence Crawford about the theft of his SUV. "Mr. Crawford, we're of course working diligently on recovering your vehicle. I have just a few follow-up questions. Your report said that you came home from vacation and discovered that the car was gone?"

Larry Crawford replies, "Yes. We were in Bonaire for two weeks and came back last Sunday. We go there every year for spring break."

"So the car could have been taken anytime between..."

"Between March 1 and March 15," Crawford replies.

_I wonder who knows the Crawfords go to Bonaire every year at this time. _Leo looks at the police report. "It says here that nothing else was taken, is that correct? The car was in your garage when you left home."

"Yes."

"Can I take a look at your garage?" Leo asks.

"Sure. I'm glad you're working on this. My insurance company took a look yesterday, and they're claiming that this must be an inside job since there's no evidence of a break-in. I'm worried there will be a problem with the claim."

"Really," Leo comments. He follows Larry out to the garage and looks around. There are expensive tools and sports equipment organized neatly on shelves. "Nothing else is missing?" Leo asks. He wanders the garage, noting the many small valuable items that would be easy to hock. His eyes light on a set of Majesty Prestigio golf clubs in a Louis Vuitton bag; _that's at least $15,000 right there._ _Someone could get at least five grand for those clubs without breaking a sweat._

"No, we don't think anything else was taken," Larry replies.

"You have an automatic garage-door opener?" Leo inquires, noting the mechanism on the ceiling.

"Yes, the Navigator has a universal garage-door opener."

Leo asks, "Can you open the door for me?"

Crawford hits a switch on the wall, and the garage door opens. Leo walks outside and looks around. "Can you get into the garage without an opener?" Crawford joins him outside and uses a small remote to close the garage door. He points out the lock to Leo. Leo looks at closely; there's no sign of tampering.

"Anything unusual about your car?"

"Well, there is quite an expensive sound system with a DVD player. And we also had it retrofitted with a Panther Remote Starter. It's very handy when we're at the Aspen condo in the winter," Crawford states.

_Bonaire, Aspen...it's a whole different world for these people._ Leo says, "So someone could have used that to start the vehicle?"

"I don't see how. I had the keys with me with the remote fob for the starter. And, you know, the house alarm wasn't set off either. The insurance agent was very suspicious about that."

"Who knows the code for your alarm?" Leo asks.

"Just the family and the household staff...the housekeeper, the cook, and the gardener."

"I'll need to speak with them, and I'd like to see if your neighbors saw anything while you were away. And if you have the details of that car stereo, the serial numbers, that might help us to locate your Lincoln." _Actually, I'm quite sure that the SUV has been chopped for parts by now. But maybe that stereo can be traced._

Larry says, "Of course. I'll look up the information on the stereo in my records and drop it off at the Sheriff's Department. I appreciate your help, Sheriff."

"Oh, and one other thing. Your son Jennings went to Neptune High, correct?" Leo adds.

"Yes...why do you ask?"

"Was he friends with Veronica Mars, Logan Echolls, or Duncan Kane?" Leo asks cautiously.

"Veronica Mars!!" Crawford exclaims.

"You know her?" Leo presses.

"She accused my son of manipulating drug test results. It was a complete fabrication. The testing facility made an honest mistake," Crawford sputters.

_That's interesting. Veronica was investigating Crawford's son._ Leo asks, "What about Logan Echolls or Duncan Kane?"

"I think Jennings may have been friends with Duncan in junior high, but they were never close. I don't think he knew Logan Echolls at all, and I wouldn't have encouraged that friendship anyways," Crawford answers. "What does that have to do with my car?"

"Probably nothing. I'd like to speak with your son though."

"He's out of town on an overnight trip to San Francisco. I'll have him stop by the sheriff's department the moment he comes back."

"Are your employees on duty today?" Leo asks.

Crawford nods and leads Leo into the house.

Leo ponders whether Veronica could have planned a complicated theft like this, while she was apparently preparing for the most intense undercover operation of her career. The police and FBI reports from Manchester Center indicate a complicated scenario that would have required exhaustive preparation and rehearsal. He knows, too, that Keith Mars would have been massaging the plan and working every angle to ensure his daughter's safety up until the very last moment when she entered the school. And then, there's also the problem that Duncan, who doesn't seem to have Veronica's skills, would have had to carry out the theft and then the murder by himself. _Duncan's usual M.O. seems to be to run away, not to commit murder._ Leo shakes his head. _I'm missing something._ Unless Veronica somehow recruited Jennings' assistance, he doesn't see how she could have masterminded this car theft.

Thurs. 3/19/09 early afternoon: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Keith picks up the phone. "Mars Investigations....Okay, Wallace, I got it, the office manager has gone to lunch." He quickly hangs up and logs into the office manager's computer remotely using her username and password. He copies the entire hard drive, not wanting to take the time to look at files. In twenty minutes, the contents of the office manager's document folder have been copied. He takes a few minutes to explore her internet bookmarks; he exports the entire list and saves it to his hard drive to look at later. He checks his watch; thirty-five minutes have elapsed since the office manager left for lunch. He logs onto the DiskAgent website and directs the program in the office manager's computer to erase all the Windows Remote Desktop files and therefore conceal the intrusion; the DiskAgent program itself will be unapparent to all but the most savvy user, as it is designed to invisibly protect sensitive data in case of a theft. _Pretty good hacking for an old fuddy-duddy,_ he thinks, allowing himself a smile for the first time in days. He dials Wallace's cell. "All clear. You and Weevil keep watching the office and monitoring the bugs for the rest of the afternoon, okay? Let me know if anything unusual happens, or if any of the Fitzpatricks show up, god forbid."

Keith begins by printing out a list of all the vendors used by Griffith. The forensic accountant, Robin Olivero, has been standing by, waiting for Keith to finish. She takes over at the computer keyboard and begins examining the bookkeeping files for Griffith's medical practice. Keith watches with interest; the accountant seems to be enthralled by the financial shenanigans employed by Griffith and his office manager.

Veronica and Logan come into the office. Veronica seems excited and ready to burst. "We got the anesthesiologist's complete schedule at the hospital. There's no way he was doing anesthesia for Griffith. The whole payroll is probably completely fraudulent."

"That's my girl...she's never happier than when she catches a crook dead-to-rights," Keith replies.

"Yeah, her joy is a little unseemly," Logan remarks. "Imagine if she uncovered a terrorist plot. She might explode in ecstasy."

She frowns at him, but he sees that she's okay with the gentle teasing. "And Dad...Mac called. She's coming home on Sunday, she said."

"That's great news, honey," Keith replies.

"Did you get what you needed from the office manager's computer?"

"I think we did. Robin's working on it right now, trying to reconstruct all the income and expenses, and seeing if there's a pattern."

"How can we help, Dad?" she asks.

"I want you to check the Balboa County Records website for the incorporation documents for all the vendors. We need to prove that they're sham corporations designed to obscure the movement of funds. Robin will help you when she's finished looking at the books."

Veronica nods and takes the list of corporations that her dad hands her.

"How can I help?" Logan asks.

"As Veronica identifies the principals in the corporations, see if you can match them to any of the names on our organizational chart of the Fitzpatrick crime family."

Logan answers, "Okay, I think I can do that."

"Or you could just sit there and look pretty to keep me amused," Veronica says offhandedly, and he laughs out loud in surprise. While Veronica focuses on the computer screen, he exchanges a glance with Keith, silently acknowledging how much they are worrying about her after last night's scene and how much her light-hearted joke means to them.

Thurs. 3/19/09 late afternoon: Crawford Residence, Neptune, CA

Leo approaches the man trimming the bushes around the Crawford's pool. "Joachim Sevilla?"

"Yes?" he replies, turning to Leo and stopping his work. He recognizes the sheriff and adds, "Sheriff. How can I help you?"

"I'm looking into the theft of the Crawford's SUV. Were you on the premises at all while they were on vacation?"

Sevilla answers, "The Crawfords gave me the first week of March off. Last week, I worked on the new plantings behind the house." He motions to an area with new landscaping.

"Did you happen to go into the garage at all last week?"

The gardener considers the question before answering. "I think I got a tool out of the garage on Monday. Most of my equipment is in the shed." He points to a small building toward the back of the property. "But I needed a 5/32 Allen wrench to repair the motor on the string trimmer. And Mr. Crawford has a set of wrenches in the garage."

"And the vehicle was there?"

"Yes, of course. If anything was out of the ordinary, I would have noticed it immediately and contacted Mr. Crawford."

_So the car was there on March 9._ "You didn't notice anybody unusual around the property after that? Maybe somebody pretending to be a salesman or a utility employee?"

Sevilla thinks again. "No, Sheriff. It was very quiet while the Crawfords were away."

"It appears that whoever took the Navigator had the code for the alarm system. Have you ever told anyone the number?"

"Of course not," Sevilla replies indignantly.

"And you've never lent your keys to anyone?"

"The Crawfords trust me to have a key; I would never break that trust," the gardener states.

Leo sighs. "Thank you, Mr. Sevilla." The gardener returns to his work, and Leo gets in his cruiser and drives back to the department.

The radio in the cruiser squawks, "Come in, Sheriff."

"D'Amato here," Leo responds.

Sacks says, "The photos from the traffic cameras came in. They caught a Lincoln Navigator with the license CRW4D3 at Main and Broad Streets at 9:35. It looks like Crawford's SUV was in the area at that time."

Leo thinks for a minute. A route from the Rose Office Building, where Ratner dropped off Kendall, to Waterside Park, where her body was found, could have passed through that intersection. "Any hits on the VIN number from the SUV?"

"Nothing, Sheriff."

"All right, I'm on my way back to the department."

The interviews with the other employees, Bridget Mulvaney, the housekeeper, and Iris Huezo, the cook, had been equally unproductive. Both had sworn that they had never told the alarm code or lent their keys to anyone. The cook had traveled with the family to Bonaire; the housekeeper, like the gardener, had had the first week off and resumed her duties the second week of March. The housekeeper also did not see anyone unusual around the time of the theft.

Mr. Crawford had promised again to have his son, Jennings, contact the sheriff's department as soon as he returned from San Francisco. In the meantime, Leo decides to pursue the premium sound system from the vehicle in the local chop shops. He calls Deputy Clark on the radio and asks him to begin visiting Neptune's junkyards first thing in the morning.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**In Case Something Happens**  
Logan and Veronica discuss the future;  
Logan makes contact with Hannah's friend.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Julie Silver: Reem Mahmood.  
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED TWELVE: "IN CASE SOMETHING HAPPENS"

Thurs. 3/19/09 early evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

After working hard all afternoon and devouring a pizza at Mars Investigations, Logan and Veronica head back to the apartment while Keith goes to talk to Leo at the sheriff's department. During the ride, Veronica falls silent, looking out the window. Logan finally says, "It's going to be okay. We got a lot today. Leo's going to see...."

"I know," she agrees.

"Try not to worry," he says helplessly, knowing it doesn't mean anything at all.

She nods and looks back out the window.

When they arrive back at the apartment, they wave at the security guard who took Kavner's place watching the apartment. They enter and suddenly don't know what to do with themselves. Logan takes off his jacket and the gun he's been wearing all day. Veronica tries not to react, but he sees that it upsets her. Neither wants to talk any more about what they had discovered today; as the whole picture of Griffith's sordid enterprise emerged, all of them had been disgusted. Logan tries, "Do you want to watch some TV?"

She shakes her head.

"Why don't you try to take a nap?" he suggests. He walks over to her and smoothes her hair from her forehead. "You look tired. It's been a long day. I promise I'll wake you up when your dad gets home."

"Lie down with me," she replies, grabbing his hand and pulling him into the bedroom. She sits down heavily on the bed and kicks off her shoes. "I am tired," she admits. "I hate feeling so weak and helpless."

"You're not helpless," he protests. "Look at all you did today."

"I know."

"Come on, lie down." He urges her down to the bed and joins her, facing her. "It's going to be okay, I know it. Your dad's going to convince Leo. He seemed very confident."

They lie together, just breathing and trying to relax after so much stress and anxiety. He hitches closer to her, wishing he didn't have to worry about her shoulder; he puts his hand on her hip and strokes gently, trying to calm her.

Hesitantly, she asks, "If this works out...if we get through this...are you going to move back to LA?"

He's startled by the question. Truthfully, he hasn't considered it. There hasn't been a moment to think about anything beyond what's been happening._ Where would I stay? Would I live here with Veronica's dad while she moves back into the dorms? Classes start on Monday; we haven't even thought about this. Do I follow her around from class to class, watching out for Fitzpatricks flunkies? Wait outside her classes, like a pathetic loser; bring her coffee like a trained puppy._ It makes his head hurt to consider the possibilities. "I haven't even thought about it. Would you want me to stay here?"

She replies, "I wish you were going to stay in Neptune...but I also know you have a life in LA. And you're doing well there...away from me."

"I'm not doing well in LA _because_ I'm away from you."

"I'm not sure about that. Logan, I think you needed to get away from me, away from us."

"Veronica–don't say that. It's not true."

"It might be true," she contradicts. "I'm not saying...I'm not saying I'm not glad we're together again. It's just that it was so bad, we couldn't even see how to move forward to make things better."

He caresses her cheek gently. "I missed you when we were apart. I thought about you every day."

"I missed you too." She closes her eyes. "But I didn't think about you every day. I moved on. I dated other guys and tried not to think about you. I couldn't think about you."

The words hurt. He knows she dated other men. Hell, he dated more women than he could count. But he doesn't want to hear that she didn't want to think about him; he really did think of her all the time, and the difference between their experiences while they were apart ties his stomach in a knot. "Veronica, it's okay, we don't have to talk about this." _Please don't tell me this–let's just move forward._

Veronica continues; relentlessly, it seems to him. "But then...there were days when I wanted to talk to you so badly. I would be living my life like always, and then all of a sudden, it would seem unbelievable that you weren't a part of my life. There would be something I wanted to tell you or needed to ask you. And there were so many times I wanted to pick up the phone and call you."

He lets out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. "I wish you had."

She snuggles closer to him. "I was a fool. I need you in my life," she breathes into his ear.

"Need you, too, Veronica." He burrows his lips into her hair, kissing her scalp and breathing in her scent like an intoxicant.

"Tell me everything's going to be okay, tell me I'm safe, tell me you'll always be here for me." She suddenly betrays her anxiety: her words spill out unheeded and thoughtless. She's completely unconcerned with how weak she sounds at that moment, and it scares him again.

He hates to think of his warrior Veronica uncertain and frightened; his sorrow over what's happened to her and his role in it still threaten to overwhelm him. But Logan vows to summon the courage to be whatever she needs him to be. "Veronica, everything is going to be okay. You're completely safe. I'm going to protect you, no matter what. Your dad and Wallace and Mac and Weevil are here for you, too; we all love you, we're going to help you. I'll always be here for you. Veronica, I really don't want to spend a single night away from you ever again. I want to find a way to be together with you always...and still live my life. We'll figure it out, I promise." He thinks for a minute as kisses her brow and caresses her cheek. "You are strong, Veronica, you'll get through this. I know how strong you are." Logan finds her mouth and kisses her gently, lingering on her lips, tasting the silkiness and supple moistness of her flesh.

She melts under his kisses, softening and accepting his caresses. Veronica relaxes against his body, and he thinks in all their times together he's never felt her like this, so yielding and welcoming to him. He remembers how she loved his hands massaging her scalp in the shower, and he tries to replicate it for her, kneading and smoothing.

"Oh...that feels nice," she murmurs, closing her eyes in pleasure.

He bends to kiss her again and whispers, "Just nice?"

"Lovely," she amends, sighing again.

He runs a single finger down her spine, and she arches and presses herself against him. She grasps a bit of his shirt in her hand, as if trying to hold onto him even more thoroughly. "Touch me," she whispers. "That way you do."

Keeping his one hand on the small of her back, he brushes the back of his other hand subtly on her breast, so slowly that she loses her breath. "Do you know how much I adore you?" he says quietly. "I love to touch you, love you to feel you pressing against me." He throws a leg over hers and draws her into him, letting her feel his straining excitement. He reverses his hand to palm her breast more firmly, allowing the center of his palm to dawdle on her hard appetent nipples.

She moans appreciatively at the delicate, insistent friction that suffuses her with well-being and confidence. "I can forget...I can hope...when you touch me like that," Veronica tells him, the sensations wringing from her an unwilling admission of just how he is able to touch her. "How can you calm me and excite me all at once?" she asks, panting slightly and gasping as he suddenly rubs his cock against her pelvis. She exhales and shudders as he presses himself forcefully into her. "Too many clothes," she mutters incoherently. "Help me." She struggles to sit up, and he eases her into a sitting position. He hesitates on the sling; he's still worried he'll aggravate the injury somehow when he's thrusting uncontrollably into her. "Off," she urges, reading his mind. "I'll be careful."

Supporting her weight with one arm, he complies, unstrapping the sling cautiously, so gently that she doesn't feel a single twinge. He helps her to lie down again and begins to unbutton the severe blouse she had worn today to appear older and businesslike. He can't help staring at the sight of her flimsy bra peeking from beneath the material of her top; it's always been a particular fetish of his–something about the chance view of the forbidden. Logan runs a finger along the edge of the bra, allowing the silken texture of her blouse to tease his hand and wrist. He looks up and sees her watching his face, wondering at his restraint. "I love this, your bra almost hidden by your shirt, just catching a glimpse of it." He takes her hand and puts it on his crotch so she can feel how hard he is at the sight of her.

"Still too many clothes," she complains sweetly. "Am I going to have to get angry with you?" She grasps him through his pants, and he inhales sharply. "Please."

He pulls away and quickly pulls his shirt over his head. She rolls over to lie flat on the bed, watching him. Logan straddles her and reaches down to unzip the side zipper of her very professional skirt. He pulls her skirt down over her hips. "Hmm, the dreaded panty hose," he comments wryly, remembering the struggle to help her put them on that morning.

She had been too quiet after her breakdown the night before; he tried a couple jokes that fell flat as he shaved her legs for her and helped her get dressed. He managed to tear one pair of nylons before achieving success with a second. Logan had caught her brushing a tear from her eye, obviously upset to be so dependent on him for such basic needs.

"Sorry, no garter belt today," she responds. She catches his eye. She's trying, again: refusing to give up, refusing to give in to her dark thoughts.

"I'm not complaining," he says as he carefully pulls her nylons down. "But who invented these stupid things anyways?"

"The same moron that invented neckties, probably," she answers as he throws the panty hose and skirt across the room, trying but failing to hit the chair.

She reaches toward him, intending to undo his jeans, but he sits up and looks at her adoringly, with her unbuttoned blouse barely concealing her bra and panties.

"What?" she asks nervously.

"Just let me look at you for a moment," he says intensely. He strokes her calf as he gazes at her beauty. "Mmm, who shaved your legs? They're so smooth." He keeps his eyes trained on her, just loving to look at her in her state of undress.

"Come on," she says, suddenly shy at his staring. She pulls her shirt together. "You still have almost all your clothes on."

"Not for long." He quickly pulls off his socks, hopping on one foot at a time comically. He shucks off his jeans and boxers, and lays with her. "See? Now I'm more naked than you." Logan nestles his head next to her and whispers, "Tell me what you want."

"I don't know," she says hesitantly. She rolls over, lying on her side to face him.

"You're the boss," he murmurs. He kisses her gently under her jaw, tracing kisses down her neck. "Does that feel good?"

"Mm-hmm," she agrees.

He steals a look; her eyes are closed, and she seems more relaxed again. As he kisses her, he runs a finger down her chest and follows the curve of her bra on her skin. He unhooks the center clasp and brushes the lacy material aside. "Beautiful," he breathes as he scoots down on the bed to kiss her breasts.

"Why do you put up with me?" she asks quietly.

He is completely startled and raises his head to stare at her. "Veronica...I love you. I don't put up with you." He hitches back up to bring his face opposite hers; he looks her directly in the eye. "You've got to believe me. I'm not going anywhere, and everything's going to be fine."

A tear runs down her cheek, and she says, "Damn it." She tries to wipe it away, but he catches her hand and kisses it away instead before pressing his lips to her palm. "Logan, I'm...I'm sorry I'm such a mess," she mutters.

"You're the strongest woman I know," he tells her. "Let's just hold each other, okay?"

"No," she protests.

"Yes," he says. "Veronica, just let me hold you." He draws her in closer and rubs her back. She lets out a single sob, and his heart breaks. "It's okay, it's okay. We have all the time in the world, Veronica."

She pulls back. "What if we don't?"

"What?"

"What if it doesn't work, and Leo arrests us?"

"So we'll put up bail and figure out something else."

"I want...I want to....." she tries. She takes his hand and brings it to her crotch. "Touch me," she begs. "I want to...in case...in case something happens. I want to remember being with you."

"Veronica," he protests. "It's going to be okay." He strokes her gently through her panties, taking his time and allowing her to change her mind. He whispers in her ear, "Does that feel good?"

"Yesss," she breathes. "Don't stop, please don't stop."

He caresses her, feeling her anatomy through the silken material. "There's no rush," he promises. "We're only going to do what feels good. I love to feel you like this; I'll never get tired of this." True to his words, he lavishes his finger's attentions on her; he knows her, he knows what gets her going–what she loves more than anything. He remembers doing this for hours in his X-Terra, the two of them slowly exploring and getting to know each other's bodies. He exhales sharply as he feels her increasing wetness. "Oh, I love that," he murmurs in her ear.

He takes a chance and pulls the crotch of her panties aside to press her finger onto her, and she arches desperately. "God," she pants.

"You like it?" he prompts her.

"You know I do," she says breathlessly. "Take...ah!...come on, take my...." She completely loses her words, but he gets her meaning. He draws her panties down to her knees; she kicks them off.

"Impatient, aren't we," he notes, as he brings his hand back to her center.

"Jackass," she replies with a smile, kissing him.

He suddenly thrusts his finger deep within her, and she gasps and closes her eyes. "Look at me," he directs. "I'm right here, Veronica." Her eyes flutter open. "Love you," he says as he works his finger in and out. "You're so wet. I want to fuck you, Veronica. Do you want to? Are you okay?" he whispers, staring into her eyes. She nods wordlessly.

He thinks a moment. "Check this out," he says mischievously. Without losing a beat, he changes hands, continuing the stroking motion, rolling over onto his back, and fumbling behind him for the bedside drawer. She laughs softly at his antics. "No laughing!" he warns, punishing her by flicking his thumb hard against her clit, and she gasps loudly. He rummages in the drawer and finds a condom. He brings the package to his face and tears it open with his teeth.

When he places the condom on the tip of his cock, she reaches down and helps him smooth it into place. "Teamwork," she says smugly, as she strokes him firmly, guiding him to her.

He smiles; the smallest joke from her means the world to him now. "Call me jackass again, baby," he retorts gently as he nudges against her opening. "You know how it turns me on."

She murmurs, "Jackass, jackass, jack–" He pushes in suddenly and startles her. Logan pulls out slowly, almost withdrawing completely, and she holds her breath, waiting. When she thinks she can't stand it any more and is about to beg, he senses her need and seats himself fully within her again. "How do you do that? How do you know...?" she asks breathlessly as he presses his pelvis against her. He pulls her leg up over his hip and tries for another millimeter of depth. He thinks he could never get tired of this–the eternal game of finding a new way to please her.

He kisses her as he begins to fuck her. His cock slides deep within her; she cries out softly, loving it, loving him. "You're okay?" he asks breathlessly, breaking his kiss.

"God...please...more!" she says, ending with a laugh that brings a smile to his face.

"Harder, faster?" he asks, demonstrating happily.

"Yes, please," she pants. "Love you, Logan."

"God, Veronica, I love you. You feel so amazing," he replies. He reaches down and touches her clit; he keeps it slow, not wanting to rush this at all. The condom that he theoretically hates is helping him last longer than usual, he reflects, and he really doesn't mind it at all tonight. She is starting to lose herself in his strokes; he listens to her breathing, waiting for the cues that mean she is close.

She begins to moan softly, a purring sound that almost makes him lose it. He tries to focus on thumbing her, caressing her firmly, as he tries to hold on. "Ohhh," she says suddenly. "Oh. Oh...Logan...oh my god." She vibrates under him, clenching him desperately, and he thrusts harder than ever, _god, love her so much_; he kisses her again, trying to be connected as fully as possible as she throbs against him.

He curses her damned shoulder; more than anything, he wants to throw her on her back and heave himself into her, and then roll them over and see her writhing above him, her face contorting as he pumps up into her, her hair cascading in waterfalls over her face the way he loves. _Something to look forward to,_ he thinks. He stops and pulls out suddenly. "Stay put," he whispers intensely before she can complain. He climbs over her and lies down again, his front to her back. He puts his arms around her waist, carefully bracing her. "Help me, Veronica," he says as he pushes his cock between her legs. She reaches down and, fumbling a little, manages to get him back inside her.

They moan together as he drives home. He thrusts carefully at first, making sure that he's not hurting her in the new position, but as she cries her enjoyment, he pounds harder, hitting her at the angle he knows she loves. He reaches around and fingers her furiously. He mutters incoherently, "I'm coming, Veronica...love you, love you, god, I'm coming." He kisses her neck as he thrusts a final time, pulsating deep within her.

When he catches his breath, he asks, "Veronica? You're okay?"

She laughs under her breath. "Better than okay." She sighs and arches back against him. "You startled me when you...." she says shyly.

"You liked it, though?" he presses. "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

"No! No, of course not," she answers. She looks back over her shoulder at him. "You're okay? You're not...you know...your nightmare."

He realizes suddenly that he didn't think about it at all while he was preoccupied with worrying about her. "No, of course I'm okay. I love you so much, Veronica." He kisses her back and neck and reflects, _maybe, just maybe, we can do this. Maybe she will be able to forgive me for Shelly's party; maybe someday we won't even be able to remember why it was ever a problem for us._ He holds onto her tightly. Her breathing gradually slows, and he realizes that she's half-asleep. He extricates himself from her carefully; she mumbles something unintelligible. "Veronica, you have to get up and go to the bathroom," he reminds her gently. He helps her go to the bathroom and clean up, and trundles her back to bed. He carefully pulls the comforter over her, and she yawns and sighs quietly before falling fast asleep.

He gets dressed and goes out to the living room. He gets a glass of water and sits pensively at the kitchen counter. He's still surprised to realize that he was able to put his own misery out of his mind like that. It feels like hope, or maybe it's just progress, at long last. He thinks about the dream again: how helpless he had felt when Klein was torturing her–and him–and the insanity of Kavner's refusal to end the mission. Just imagining the scene again makes him hyperventilate slightly. He reminds himself what she had said yesterday when he asked what they were going to do. _'We're going to try to get through it together. I know I can't do it alone, and neither can you....As long as I can do something, I'm okay.'_ He thinks, _Maybe I'm not a complete fuckup after all. She keeps telling me she needs me...I remember when I would have killed to have her say that–when it seemed like she didn't need me at all. Now that she's finally admitted it...I've got to step up and be whatever she needs._ The irony is that, now, he would give anything for Veronica to be strong and independent again. This damaged Veronica scares him more than he wants to admit. He stares into space for a while thinking. _'As long as I can do something, I'm okay.'_

Logan spies Veronica's yearbooks stacked on the kitchen counter. _We were going to try to talk to Hannah's friends–see if they would tell us anything that might help._ He's embarrassed to realize that he never knew any of Hannah's friends' names: the relationship had been a complete sham until, suddenly, he had realized he actually cared for her. He takes the yearbook from their senior year and finds the photos for the freshman class. He remembers that her best friends were on the track team with her, and he turns to the page with the team photos for freshman sports. He flips back and forth to the class photos and decides that he's pretty sure the girl named Julie Silver is the one who spoke at Hannah's funeral.

He tries to recall her exact words. _'Hannah was the sweetest girl we ever knew, the best friend you could have; she was always ready to believe the best of everybody. It was hard for her when her parents got divorced; she loved them so much. But we lost Hannah twice: when her parents took her away from us and now permanently to a horrible killer. She never did anything wrong, and she was punished as if she was a criminal. We loved you, Hannah. We miss you.' _He thinks guiltily, '_Ready to believe the best of everybody....' She was probably talking about me._

Veronica's laptop is still on the counter from last night when they had worked on the Fitzpatrick chart. He taps a key to bring it out of sleep and googles, "'Hannah Griffith' 'Julie Silver'". There are eighteen results. The first two are results from track meets three years ago. The third entry is an article on Hannah's murder; the reporter interviewed Julie and named her as Hannah's friend. Logan surfs to whitepages•com and looks up residential phone numbers for the name 'Silver' in Neptune, California. The person on the other end of the third number he tries tells him to hold on when he asks to speak to Julie.

A girl's voice says, "Hello?"

"Hi, Julie. This is Logan Echolls." He grips the phone tightly, waiting for her to lash out at him, to blame him for what happened.

"Logan." There is silence on the phone line.

"Julie, I was wondering if you would talk to me about Hannah. I don't know if you've seen the news reports about Briar Hill. My friend Veronica Mars and her dad were investigating the boarding school where Hannah was."

"I read the stories," Julie replies. "That was Veronica? I remember her from school. Everyone talked about how she solved the bus crash mystery."

"Is there any chance you would talk to us about Hannah? We found some information about where Hannah was after she left the school, and–"

"I'll talk to you," Julie interrupts, and Logan wonders at the urgency in her voice.

"We could come over tonight." Logan looks at the clock; he wants Veronica to sleep for a while. "Maybe in a couple hours? Would that be too late?"

"Can I come to you?" Julie asks. She lowers her voice. "I'd rather speak to you privately."

"Of course." Logan tells her the address, and they agree on a time two hours later.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Confidentiality Agreement**  
Keith brings the evidence to Leo; Hannah's  
friend talks to Logan and Veronica.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack. Julie Silver: Reem  
Mahmood. ADA: Corey Reynolds.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED THIRTEEN: "CONFIDENTIALITY AGREEMENT"

Thurs. 3/19/09 early evening: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Leo shuts the door to his office and takes a seat behind his desk as Keith sits down. "Keith, I really don't want to talk to you. The last time a Mars showed up here voluntarily, I ended up with my ass in a sling."

"I know that. I'm here to make your career, Leo. I know you really took a hit when you had to drop the charges against me. And I know you're taking it out on my daughter and her boyfriend."

Leo replies strongly, "I'm following the evidence in my case. Veronica's involved, through her boyfriend and her ex-boyfriend. I know she was also involved in helping Duncan flee the country with his daughter. Covering that up is a pretty powerful motive, wouldn't you say?" He neglects to mention his doubts that Veronica somehow masterminded a complicated car theft from across the country, and that Bray's supposed eyewitness testimony wasn't completely fabricated.

From his bag, Keith removes a liquor bottle and two glasses and puts them on Leo's desk.

Leo demands, "What the hell is this?"

"A man I liked very much died without being able to enjoy this bottle of scotch." Keith turns the bottle so Leo can read the label. "Forty-year-old Glen Cracken. He was saving it; he said one of the joys of his existence was the anticipation of drinking it one day. He was murdered before he could drink it–murdered by a petty man who wanted revenge on his employer." Keith pours two drinks. "I'm thinking...I'd like to enjoy this scotch tonight, in case I can't get you to see reason. I'm also sharing this scotch with you, because once upon a time we were colleagues. You saved my life, Leo, and I'll never forget that. I'd like to believe we're still on the same side of the law. I'm not proud of everything I've done, and I'm betting you're not either."

Leo takes a glass and sips.

Taking his own glass in hand, Keith stares back at Leo. "I'm prepared to make a deal with you. If you agree to follow the evidence that I'm going to give you and investigate fully, I will give you all you need not only to find Kendall Casablancas' killer, but also to shut down the Fitzpatricks once and for all." He sips the scotch, closing his eyes at the fine taste.

"The Fitzpatricks?"

"Yes. I've come upon some very interesting information that should be very useful in a prosecution." Keith's voice changes. He is suddenly vindictive and harsh. "And I'm also promising you, that if you don't take my deal, I'm going to expose the true facts of your involvement in the Lilly Kane sex tapes, and I'm going to admit publicly that I blackmailed you into dropping the arson charges."

"What–"

"I'll take you down, and I'll go to jail willingly. I'll accept whatever punishment the court sees fit. You'll be destroyed...a prosecution against my daughter would be thrown out due to police misconduct. Everyone will see that you were pursuing a vendetta without cause."

Leo finds his voice and protests, "She'll still be under suspicion, and so will Duncan and Logan."

"I'll release my evidence anyways. I guarantee you no one will believe my daughter had anything to do with Kendall's murder when they see the photograph I have."

"So all I have to do is promise not to arrest your daughter or her friends, and you'll give me all this evidence?" Leo says sarcastically.

"Not quite. I need something else from you."

"Such as?"

"I need an immunity agreement for a witness who saw Kendall with someone she shouldn't have been with, the man we think might have been her killer. Our witness took the photograph and can testify as to what he saw."

"An immunity agreement for what?"

"He broke into a house as a juvenile. He's never been prosecuted, and the statute of limitations hasn't run out. There were no weapons involved, and nothing was stolen. He was trying to be a good samaritan, and the record should reflect that."

_Duncan Kane,_ Leo realizes. He stares at Keith, trying to decide if Keith is truly willing to sacrifice his own freedom to save his daughter. The older man's eyes are intense and focused.

Keith adds, "There's one other thing."

Leo raises his eyebrows questioningly.

"I want to know why you hate us so much. It's not just the tapes," Keith says. "You hate my daughter and me."

_It's not just the Mars family_, Leo thinks._ It's that prick Echolls, too._ The first image that comes to Leo's mind is always Logan Echolls, sans pants, ruining the dance where he had hoped to win Veronica over. He drains the glass and holds it out for Keith to refill. Leo hits the intercom. "Deputy, hold all my calls. I don't want to be disturbed until further notice. And...get the ADA on the phone. Tell him I may need to speak to him tonight on an urgent matter."

Keith maintains his poker face, but inside he sighs with relief. _This just might work._ He fills up his own glass and savors the scotch while Leo thinks.

Leo suddenly says, "You'd really do this."

"Yes, I would. I would gladly sacrifice my freedom for my daughter's future. Although, I have to say, what I'd really like to do is take back everything I've done the last two months."

Leo stares at him quizzically, but Keith does not explain.

Keith adds, "You realize of course that I haven't been Mirandized. Anything I say to you is inadmissible."

"How do I know _you're_ not wearing a wire?"

"Search me," Keith suggests. He stands up and begins to unbutton his shirt. Leo comes around the desk and thoroughly frisks him. Keith offers, "I'll strip if you want. I'm not wearing a wire."

"Your bag?" Leo motions. "It could be concealing a bug."

"Put in the hallway," Keith suggests. "There's nothing in it. The evidence isn't here, and it's not at my office or my home. I didn't want to take the chance you'd arrest me and confiscate it before you agreed to my deal. My witness is driving around with the files, waiting for my call."

"You're referring to Duncan Kane, of course."

"Yes, Duncan Kane. You're familiar with the breaking and entering incident then?"

"Former Sheriff Lamb retained some evidence of that situation in his blackmail files. I destroyed all of his files, except the tapes he had on the Mannings, which you may recall I gave to the Kanes to help Duncan's case, at Veronica's suggestion."

Keith nods. "Of course." _Leo was trying to do the right thing, until we backed him into a corner and made him confront his worst mistake._ Keith continues, "I don't know if you've realized...but if Duncan can testify about what he saw that night at the Manning house, he can also testify against Stewart Manning in his incest trial. If anyone deserves to be punished, it's that man." Keith observes Leo's expression of distaste and presses on. "Leo, do you think you could make this deal with me? Give up this vendetta against my daughter and her friends and try to pursue justice instead?"

Unwillingly, Leo admits, "There's been some new evidence in the case. It doesn't point to Veronica, Logan, or Duncan. But it doesn't make sense either."

"Maybe it will, with the information I have," Keith suggests.

Leo purses his lips, obviously unhappy about the situation. He finally bends down and picks up Keith's bag, depositing it in the hallway, and returns to sit behind his desk. "I'll tell you about the tapes, and why I...why I hate you...if you'll tell me why you set that fire."

"Just to confirm, you're not recording this," Keith states.

"That's correct. This is completely off the record, two men trading information, not in any official capacity."

Keith says, "Still...I'd feel more comfortable if you shared something first."

Leo plays with his glass, spinning it on its bottom edge on his desktop. "I told you about my sister."

"Tina, right?"

"Right. She had Down's Syndrome."

"Had?"

Leo ignores Keith. "Somehow Aaron Echolls found out about my family's money problems. We'd mortgaged the house twice to pay for operations that my sister needed. She was born with a defect in her heart, and there was surgery after surgery when she was little. I was living at home, trying to contribute as much as possible to keep her at this school we'd found. We had a therapist working with her after school, too. She was finally doing all right after struggling for so many years. Then my dad had a stroke and had to stop working. My mom had to take a leave of absence to take care of him."

"It sounds rough, Leo," Keith comments.

"Aaron somehow found out; probably he had investigators checking out everyone in the department, looking for the weakest link." Leo's voice is bitter and spiteful. "His attorney approached me and offered a million dollars if I could secure the tapes. Both copies," he adds.

"Of course, as your daughter figured out," Leo continues, "I wasn't worried about that idiot Lamb investigating. We all knew he couldn't solve the mystery of how to open a brown paper bag. But once you started looking into it, I knew you'd probably be able to discover exactly who had had access when the tapes disappeared. I tried to sneak the tapes back into the safes, but you already had the department locked down. I had already decided to destroy the tapes to protect myself when I got Logan's email. Logan made it clear he was going to destroy them anyways, so I took his money. By then, I was worried that I might have trouble forcing Aaron to hold up his end of the bargain, and there was a collection agency hounding us about my father's medical bills. I had a feeling Logan would watch the tapes and would be able to testify in the trial. He certainly didn't seem to have any love for his father from what I saw."

"So what'd you do with the million dollars?"

"Oh, that's the best part. Aaron didn't pay. He said he wanted the actual tapes. He didn't want them destroyed. He wanted to have them to watch, and he wouldn't pay me a dime. 'No tapes, no money,' he said, and then he laughed in my face. 'Sue me,' he said."

Both men are silent. Leo drinks again; he realizes he needs to slow down, and he replaces the glass on the desk.

Leo explains, "The fifty thousand dollars I got from Logan paid my dad's medical bills. After I was fired, I scrambled to find a job. People weren't interested in hiring a guy who got dismissed from the sheriff's department in a big scandal. I finally found a job selling insurance during the week, and I worked as a security guard on the weekends, but it wasn't enough. We had to put my sister in an institution. See, the thing is...she died a year later. We think the staff neglected to give Tina her medication, but we were never able to prove it." Leo tries unsuccessfully to keep his voice matter-of-fact.

Sympathetically, Keith says, "Leo, I wish you had come to me, I would have–"

"No, you wouldn't have. You were right to fire me, but I didn't know what else to do. Aaron's money would have been enough to take care of Tina for the rest of her life."

Keith comments, "I'm sorry, Leo. I still can't see how you could justify setting a murderer free. I know you were desperate to help your sister, but–"

Leo interrupts, "There was a lot of other evidence against Aaron. I knew you and Veronica would be strong witnesses. I never dreamed the extent Aaron was willing to go to beat that charge. You realize that in order for Aaron's Oscar statuette to have had Lilly's DNA on it that Aaron must have plotted a way to exonerate himself almost from the moment of the murder. He obviously used some of the DNA that had gotten on his clothing to make sure that he had a means of throwing suspicion on someone else if he was ever accused. ...Keith, I never would have done what I did if I thought he would go free. I know, you think I did an unforgiveable thing."

Leo fiddles with his glass again and continues speaking. "You know, Keith, just a year later, you erased a DVR to protect your daughter. Pretty much the same thing I did...well maybe not, but both of us were just trying to help our loved ones. And you just got a slap on the wrist, a reprimand from the district attorney's office."

"It meant the end of my career in law enforcement, Leo. It wasn't just a slap on the wrist."

Defensively, Leo interjects, "You know, I even tried to help Veronica with–" He breaks off suddenly and avoids looking at Keith. Even after all this time and the way she's treated him, Leo realizes he can't break his promise to Veronica to keep quiet about the sex tape that was making the rounds at Hearst.(18) "Let's just say...I knew she was in trouble, and she told me to leave it alone. I still cared about her, even though it had already been a long time since we were...friends."

Keith nods. From Leo's hesitancy, he surmises that Leo had somehow found out about the sex tape two years ago. "I think I know what you're referring to. The sex tape featuring Veronica and her boyfriend? The one that led to Gory plotting to assassinate my daughter and Logan?" Leo acknowledges that Keith is correct. "I just found out about that myself. I appreciate that you offered to help her and kept her confidence, although it probably would have been better if you had told me about it." He sighs loudly. "I wish Veronica had come to me when she found out about the tape. We would have dealt with it together, but she was too afraid to tell me about it and did a foolish thing. Maybe I could have neutralized the situation with Sorokin, but instead I was forced to destroy evidence to try to protect her, and ended my career in law enforcement in the process. I don't regret that choice; at the time, with the knowledge that I had, it was the only possible solution."

Leo stares at Keith. "So I assume you were protecting Veronica again when you set that fire."

"Not directly. Veronica hired Vinnie Van Lowe to help when Duncan fled the country. When Vinnie was arrested, he forced me to help him by threatening to testify about Veronica's involvement in the kidnapping."

Leo thinks, _I knew that Veronica's role in the kidnapping was a part of this somehow._

Keith continues, "The Fitzpatricks had some evidence that implicated Vinnie in a crime from twenty-five years ago. I agreed to find and destroy it so Vinnie could make a deal and testify against the Fitzpatricks. Without the evidence that I destroyed, the Fitzpatricks had nothing to hold over Vinnie's head, and he could turn state's evidence." _It's a small lie, _Keith thinks; _that evidence against Vinnie is in a safe place in case he's ever stupid enough to come back and cause trouble for Veronica again._

"How unusual, Vinnie working both sides against the middle," Leo comments dryly.

"Yeah, the Vinnie Special," Keith agrees. "When the charges were dropped against all the co-conspirators in the racketeering scandal, I helped Vinnie get out of town. So far, it seems like he's taken my advice and kept far away from Neptune and the Fitzpatricks."

"We're a fine couple of lawmen," Leo observes. "Breaking laws all over the place."

"Leo, do you really believe my daughter had anything to do with Kendall's murder? Or was this just revenge?"

Leo hesitates. "There were a lot of coincidences...and too many connections. Kendall's relationship with Logan and with Duncan, for instance."

"You're right, there are too many connections. But you're not looking at the right one, and I'll prove it to you. Leo, are you going to recommend the immunity deal for Duncan Kane? I truly believe he's a victim here. He was lied to and manipulated by the mother of the girl he thought was his daughter. He gave up his life to try to save her."

"This evidence you have against the Fitzpatricks, it's solid? It's not speculation or guesswork?"

"It's solid financial data. I'm handing you all the evidence on a silver platter. And the deal has to be tonight...a one time offer that expires at midnight tonight."

"All right. I'll call the ADA. Get Duncan Kane in here."

"Only when I see the signed paperwork."

"Why do you care so much about Duncan?" Leo asks curiously.

_Because I don't want my daughter to have to testify tomorrow, and I know she'll force herself to do it if this deal doesn't go through._ "I'm trying to do the right thing here, and it's going to help you as well," he says instead.

Leo phones the ADA and pressures him to come into the department as soon as possible.

Thurs. 3/19/09 evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Logan opens the door of the apartment to Hannah's friend, Julie Silver. The security guard who has been posted outside asks if they are expecting her. When Logan confirms that they are, the man nods and returns to his car to resume watching.

"Come on in," Logan says to Julie. "Do you want something to eat or drink? This is Veronica."

"Hello, Veronica." Julie pauses. "Logan said you were the one undercover at Briar Hill that the news has been talking about."

"Yes," Veronica confirms. "Hannah's mother hired my dad to investigate Briar Hill for a lawsuit."

Julie asks nervously, "Logan said...you found out where Hannah was after she left the school?"

Veronica summarizes what Michelle Weisz had told them about Hannah's escape and the postcard that Michelle had received postmarked Rio Linda, California. Julie looks upset. Veronica, surprised at this reaction, asks, "Did Hannah contact you, Julie?"

"My parents will kill me," she replies.

"Please tell us," Logan says. "We won't tell your parents anything."

Julie says hesitantly, "I got a call from Hannah. She was calling on a payphone. She called my house, not my cell; she explained that the school was probably going to try to find her using all her old friends. Hannah said that during her first week at the school, they had made her write down all her friends' name and phone numbers. My parents had gotten a call from the school; the school said that based on Hannah's information, they suspected that I was using drugs as well. I guess they were trying to sell my parents on sending me there too. But my parents laughed at them and hung up. I told them that Hannah's father was crazy; he had sent Hannah to a drug rehab school to get her away from her boyfriend. My mom called Hannah's mom and said she thought the school sounded insane, but Hannah's mom said that it was the best place for Hannah to be while she worked on her problems."

"What did Hannah want from you?" Veronica asks.

"I'm only telling you this because Hannah really liked you, Logan. She said everyone had misjudged you, and you were really a good person who had the misfortune to have awful parents."

Logan flushes. "Hannah was too trusting. I wasn't a good guy."

"She told me what you did and why you did it. But she said she could tell you were just a guy in a lot of trouble who didn't know what to do. She told me about the cocaine she found in her dad's house and all the phone calls from the Fitzpatricks on his caller ID. Hannah said that all her parents' arguments made sense now. Logan, she admired you for not taking the deal the prosecutors offered you and insisting on fighting for your innocence."

Logan looks away and mutters, "She shouldn't have admired me."

"What did Hannah say when she called?" Veronica repeats.

"She asked me about my crazy Aunt Katey." Julie sighs. "Hannah knows I'm not supposed to be in touch with my aunt. She dropped out of school and did a lot of drugs when she was young. She lived in a commune for a while in the early seventies, some kind of weird yoga thing in the Bay Area. I guess it was like a cult. Eventually Aunt Katey got out of there, but she still lived like a hippie. My grandparents tried to help her and get her into a rehab, but she always just laughed in their faces. Aunt Katey got in touch with me about four years ago. Now she lives near Sacramento in Rio Linda. My parents haven't talked to her in twenty years since she refused to go into rehab the last time."

Veronica exchanges a glance with Logan. "So your Aunt Katey might be sympathetic to a girl on the run, especially a girl who escaped from a rehab facility."

"I guess," Julie agrees. "Hannah remembered the story I told her about Aunt Katey and asked me for her phone number. And she asked me to try to send her some money. I wanted to tell my parents, but she said no: the school would be calling them trying to track her down. I sold my iPod and my DS to a PCHer, and I borrowed money from all my friends. It was almost five hundred dollars, but I felt bad because I couldn't get more. I wired it to a Western Union office in St. Louis." She looks at them. "You can't tell my parents any of this. They'll be furious. My family still fights about Aunt Katey every year during the holidays; everyone blames everyone else for ruining her life."

"Is your aunt still on drugs?" Veronica asks curiously.

"I don't think so. She seemed pretty normal, just a little quirky, the times I talked to her. But she hates my mom and dad for siding with her parents when she was younger."

Veronica says to Logan, "It was pretty smart. Hannah thought of a person who would be likely to be sympathetic but would be hard for the school to find. Even Julie's parents don't know where this woman is."

Logan nods.

Veronica asks, "Have you talked to your aunt since then?"

"A couple times. When I tried to ask her about Hannah, she shushed me and said not to worry. And then, after Hannah was murdered, I tried to call, and the phone had been disconnected," Julie says with a worried expression. "I didn't know what to do. I promised Hannah not to tell anyone, even the police. And it couldn't help anything, and my parents would have killed me."

"Do you have the number?" Veronica inquires.

Julie pushes a slip of paper at her. "It's still disconnected. I wrote down the name she was using."

Veronica reads: _Katey Shaffer 916-555-8296._

Julie begs, "Please don't tell anyone."

Veronica replies, "If it's at all possible, I won't say a word. But Julie, we think it's likely that Hannah wasn't killed by that serial killer, and we're trying to find out who murdered her."

Julie looks stricken. "You mean...? Does that mean...do you think my aunt is okay?"

"Try not to worry, Julie, I'm sure she's fine," Veronica answers evasively. "Thanks for telling us this. We'll let you know whatever we find out."

Thurs. 3/19/09 evening: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Keith tries to be patient; it takes a half-hour for the ADA to show up to the Sheriff's Department. The ADA and Leo shut themselves in Leo's office and argue for another half an hour before the ADA opens the door and tells Keith it's a done deal. One of Duncan's attorneys arrives, summoned by Keith, and the lawyers hammer out the details, which are quickly typed up by a paralegal. The ADA signs the agreement, and Duncan's attorney nods to Keith. Keith calls Duncan, who nervously walks into the station a few minutes later with several large accordion files. Duncan is escorted into Leo's office; his attorney explains the document to him, and Duncan signs on the dotted line. Duncan remarks, "I think tonight's going to be the first time in three years that I'll sleep the night through."

Leo replies, "What about this photograph?"

Keith withdraws the photograph from the first slot in the accordion file and puts it on Leo's desk.

"Who is this with Kendall?" Leo asks, puzzled.

"It's Dr. Thomas Griffith," the ADA replies.

"Griffith? The father of the girl who was...." Leo says in surprise. He turns to Duncan. "When was this picture taken?"

Duncan replies, "March 7. I was in the park, having supervised visitation with my daughter. The court appointed social worker, Mrs. Dominguez, was with me, but she wasn't paying attention to Kendall. I snapped a picture with my phone and emailed it to Veronica Mars. It's still on her computer, with a date stamp."

The ADA takes some notes, then resumes staring curiously at Duncan and Keith, obviously intrigued by their wild tale.

Keith pulls out Veronica's picture of Kendall passing off the Casablancas money to the Fitzpatrick crony, Gerry Black. "Kendall is connected to the Fitzpatricks. She took a rap for Cormac Fitzpatrick, back when she was known as Priscilla Banks. Kendall was siphoning off money from her husband's real estate deals and passing it to her buddies in the Fitzpatricks to launder. My daughter took this surveillance photo two and a half years ago, just before Richard Casablancas Sr. absconded. The picture shows Kendall passing a bag to a known Fitzpatrick confederate. Later that year, when Kendall lucked into a deal with Cassidy Casablancas that netted her eight million dollars, she decided not to share her proceeds with her Fitzpatrick partners. She laid low and waited for her old lover, Cormac Fitzpatrick, to get out of prison; but he double-crossed her and tried to kill her. She managed to get away and went underground. But she lost the eight million in the process."

Keith continues, "Dr. Griffith has been using his medical practice to launder money for the Fitzpatricks for years, probably ever since he got in debt to them for a bad cocaine habit. I'm going to show you the proof of that in one minute. Kendall went to Dr. Griffith when she needed a new face to get away from the Fitzpatricks."

"Wasn't that dangerous, if Kendall knew that Griffith was working for the Fitzpataricks too?" the ADA asks incredulously.

"We think Kendall eavesdropped on Dr. Griffith while he was making a deal with Logan Echolls. Griffith agreed to withdraw his false testimony about what had happened in the murder of Felix Toombs in return for Logan leaving his daughter alone."

Leo, the ADA, and Duncan's attorney are shocked into silence. Finally, Leo says, "Logan did what?"

"Logan threatened to deflower his daughter if Griffith didn't recant his testimony," Keith winces as he says 'deflower'.

The ADA mutters, "Now I've heard everything."

Keith says, "Kendall apparently overheard the conversation between Logan and Dr. Griffith and threatened to tell the Fitzpatricks what Griffith had done if he didn't agree to give her a new face. The Fitzpatricks had set up Logan for that murder because the PCHers were running drugs for them."

"But why Logan?" Leo asks.

"Because he was on the Coronado Bridge that night, and he was a convenient patsy. And he was a boy who had a history of run-ins with the law."

The ADA says, "I want to see this proof of Griffith's money laundering activities."

Keith goes through the files, showing Leo and the ADA the dummy corporations that act as medical suppliers and the fake patients who don't actually have surgery. He proves that the vendors all have Fitzpatricks as the principals once the shell corporations have been uncovered. The path of the money from patient to Griffith to medical supply company is clearly shown by the numbers the accountant has worked up from the bookkeeping records that afternoon. Keith pulls out the anesthesiologist's employment history at the hospital and compares it to the weekly salary he is receiving for 'working' at Griffith's medical offices.

Leo asks, "So why was Kendall back in Neptune?"

"Apparently she was trying to get some of the money she thought she was owed," Keith answers.

"And your affair with her?" Leo says, turning to Duncan.

Duncan flushes. "I think it was a coincidence."

"Or she might have been setting up her next mark," Keith rushes to explain. "Once Duncan accepted the amnesty agreement and revealed his identity, she probably realized his net worth was substantial."

Leo directs a question to Duncan. "You had nothing to do with her murder?"

"Nothing, I swear. I regret that I ever said 'hello' to her in the hotel hallway, and that's the truth," he says vehemently.

Keith asks, "Do you agree that the photo of Kendall with Griffith changes the focus of your investigation?"

"Yes, especially with all this money laundering information." Leo turns to the ADA. "Can you get a judge to authorize arrest warrants for Griffith and Liam Fitzpatrick?"

"Ciaran and Padraig, too," Keith suggests. "They're in it up to their eyeballs. ...I assume Duncan is free to go?"

"Yes, of course," Leo replies, already distracted by the mountains of work the new information will require.

Keith pulls Leo aside. "There's one other thing." He lowers his voice. "Several witnesses have implied that the Fitzpatricks have a source in law enforcement, probably an FBI agent." Keith prays that his instincts are right, and it's not Leo.

"A source?" Leo asks sharply.

"Someone who intervenes or perhaps warns them. You need to try to keep this quiet until you've arrested them."

"You know as well as me as soon as the warrants are filed, they go out to all the agencies."

Keith sighs. "I know." He takes a breath, about to add his suspicions about Hannah's murder and the possible connection to someone in law enforcement, but something makes him hold back, and he remains silent.

Leo continues, "And we're going to need help serving these warrants; I'm going to have to ask Balboa County to provide some additional officers."

Keith nods. _I tried._ He motions to Duncan; they leave the department, with Duncan's attorney close behind.

"I can't thank you enough, Mr. Mars," Duncan says.

"Just promise me that you'll ask my advice the next time you think about fleeing the country. I am proud of you, Duncan, for coming back and facing the charges, and trying to take responsibility for your actions," Keith replies. "I have to get home and tell Veronica and Logan the good news."

Duncan's attorney clears his throat. "I think we can safely say that the Mannings won't want to pursue the case when they hear about Duncan's immunity agreement. We'll make a motion for summary judgment at the hearing tomorrow."

"Let us know for sure when you hear, Duncan," Keith says. "We all want you to get custody of your daughter."

* * *

melocotones—boobs, literally peaches  
(18) Deleted scene from 3.20, from the extras on the Season 3 DVD: Leo tells Veronica he knows about the sex tape, and Veronica insists that he not tell her dad, because it would kill him. Rob's favorite scene in that episode!! Thankfully deleted to make room for that momentary look between Logan and Veronica that was supposed to represent closure for the fans. Transcription below, if you couldn't stomach Rob's smug and self-serving commentary on disc 6. [Fucking brutal, if you ask me.]

* * *

See this scene at youtube•com[SLASH]watch?v[EQUALS]044MOLu5-CE  
(Go to 3:15)

**TRANSCRIPTION:  
**  
**ROB THOMAS:** "I hated losing this scene, and I mean _hated_ losing this scene. I think it's a really important scene, and, at the end of the day, we came down to cutting one of two scenes from this final episode to get down to time. We were either going to cut this scene or the scene where Veronica and Piz get heckled by a boy in the food court, and, in a way, this scene with Leo was more essential to plot, and yet, the scene with Veronica and Piz was more essential in terms of character and understanding, the difference between the way Piz handles that sort of situation and the way Logan handles that sort of situation of confrontation. I really missed this scene, and it's probably strange for viewers who watch the episode and wonder, "Was Deputy Leo just brought in to run and fetch the piece of evidence from the evidence room?" No, he was brought in for this scene. The performances are terrific, and the moment is important. We just couldn't fit it in the episode."

**_DELETED SCENE from 3.20, "The Bitch Is Back": "WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING, BLONDIE"  
_**  
_Veronica, looking annoyed as is her wont in Season 3 ('Man, freshman year REALLY sucked balls'), walks into the sheriff's department, and runs straight into Deputy Leo D'Amato, who apparently has nothing better to do._

**LEO:** Watch where you're going, Blondie.  
**VERONICA:** _[Ruefully]_ Damn women drivers!

_She makes a face; there is a pause, and she sees something is up with Leo. [Veronica is perhaps thinking, "What did I ever see in this guy? Piz=upgrade." Or perhaps not. Subtext!!]  
_  
**LEO:**_ [Hesitant] _Glad you're here, uh, I want to talk to you.

_He motions to Veronica to follow him, and he leads her to a more private area of the department. He leans against the wall and tries to look hot, yet sensitive; however, the uniform is clearly not a tearaway._

**LEO:** _[Sighs loudly] _This is a little, uh....You know I care about you, Veronica.  
**VERONICA:** _[Realization dawning on Veronica's face]_ Oh god.  
**LEO:** I've got friends at Hearst.  
**VERONICA:** _[Anxiously] _You cannot tell my dad. Under any circumstances. I'm serious, it'll kill him, and if it doesn't, he'll track down the person responsible and kill them.  
**LEO:** _[Shaking his head in understanding] _ I won't say anything. I promise.

_Veronica nods, perhaps more in shock than anything else. She turns away, and we see her embarrassment and worry. She sighs loudly and keeps walking, determination taking hold as always. Leo watches and tries to conceal his woody by keeping his hands in his pockets. Oh yeah, it's also kind of a bad hair day for Kristen. But her face is flawless as always._

**TRANSCRIBER'S COMMENTARY:** How much you want to bet Dawn Ostroff or Joel Silver or someone else higher up than Rob called him up and said, "Lose the scene with Leo. For chrissakes, let Logan and Veronica have a _look_ at least. Point out that Piz is a sappy douche, and Logan's fucking awesome. Are you trying to piss off the fans? We've got DVDs to sell!" And, reluctantly, Rob made the change.

Sorry, I'm usually a huge fan of RT and his writing. But his commentary on this disc **REALLY PISSED ME OFF.**

**TRANSCRIBER'S ANALYSIS:** I'm not sure I really understand how this scene is 'essential to the plot'. It would help to know exactly where it was supposed to be in the episode. I'm guessing it was supposed to be right before this scene in Keith's office at the sheriff's department:

_Veronica walks into Keith's office carrying a uniform.  
_  
**VERONICA:** You look okay to me. Was this wardrobe change more of an olfactory issue?

_Keith stands up to reveal that [ew!] he has no pants on._

**KEITH:** You tell me. _[Keith takes the uniform and begins to dress.] _I dropped my salad. You can't really get vinaigrette out with a wet paper towel. They're doing an article on me for the Neptune Register.

_Veronica belatedly closes the door, after the entire sheriff's department has already seen Keith's state of undress._

**KEITH:** The interview's in a couple of days, but they've got a photographer due here any minute.  
**VERONICA:** _[sarcastically] _And you thought a photo of you in your boxers would hurt your lead in the polls?  
**KEITH:** With clean pants, it's a smooth cruise into victory.  
**VERONICA:** Hah! And what a beautiful day that will be for Mars, the family; Neptune, the town; Milky Way, the galaxy. _[in a tone of mock rapture]_ Sun will be shining. Birds will be singing. There'll be dancing in the streets. So smile pretty.

_Veronica exits the office with a smile, but she is perhaps crying on the inside [although it might just be gas from that day's lasagna at craft services]._

**TRANSCRIBER'S ANALYSIS (cont'd): **So now we see that Veronica's motivations in sending Wallace on his mission to out the Castle were also to conceal the tape's existence from her dad, and possibly to prevent its being used to damage Keith's campaign. (I guess.) Veronica decides to solve this all on her own; she is unerringly led to commit the crime of breaking into the Kane mansion and stealing the hard drive, which ironically ensures her father's defeat in the election. Whew, more noir. I can barely stand it!

And Keith "dropped the salad". Is that a sex term VanessaGalore hasn't heard yet? Please enlighten me. Although I have to say, I'm a little scared what it might mean. You know what, I think I want to remain blissfully ignorant on this one.

As always, thanks to Inigo for her transcripts at vm-transcripts•com, although I _may_ have punched them up a wee bit.**  
**


	34. Chapters 114 to 116

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy and Poniesforall. Thanks to zaftig-darling for legal advice on this update, but I stress that any legal errors are my responsibility, as are any other mistakes.

Many apologies for the delay in updating. Thank you for reading my story.

* * *

**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from chapters 107-113:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/93576•html )

_**THIS SUMMARY REFERS TO THE CHAPTER POSTED 12/19/08; GO BACK AND READ CHAPTER 33 IF YOU MISSED IT.**_

_**

* * *

**While interviewing Ms. Denenberg about her husband's medical practice, Dave, the guard from Briar Hill, shows up and threatens retribution. Keith takes steps to protect Ms. Denenberg: he files for an order of protection and arranges for her to stay with Rebecca James. Veronica is jolted by Dave's appearance; she notes Dave's use of the phrase 'Connie McConArtist' and begins to obsess about the operation, what it will be like to testify, and her own personal failings that have exacerbated the current tenuous situation. Despite the apparent success of the undercover operation, she regards it as just another in a long string of failures and focuses on her character flaws. Logan misinterprets her preoccupation. He thinks that Dave has reminded her of his complicity in her abuse at the school; he worries about Veronica and feels ashamed of what he perceives at his incompetent actions during the operation. They also receive a threatening phone call from someone purportedly representing the Association of Therapeutic Schools Alumni and Parents._

_Leo, continuing to investigate Kendall's murder, interviews Jeff Ratner. Ratner reluctantly admits that, on the night of her murder, Kendall persuaded him to give her a ride to a commercial area in Neptune, where she got into a Lincoln Navigator SUV, apparently with someone she knew and expected. Kendall failed to return at the appointed time. Ratner also confirms that Duncan and Kendall, by all appearance, had a brief relationship while staying at the Neptune Grand. Leo tracks down the car, which was stolen from Lawrence Crawford while the family was on vacation. The theft appears to be an inside job: Leo interviews two employees, Bridget Mulvaney and Joachim Sevilla, and plans to speak with Crawford's son, Jennings. One distinguishing and possibly traceable feature of the stolen SUV is its premium sound system._

_Between the threats from Briar Hill and possible payback from the Fitzpatricks over their investigation into Dr. Griffith, Keith becomes concerned about their safety. He knows that Veronica might be unable to draw a weapon with her shoulder injury and gives Logan a handgun, after carefully instructing him in its use. The gun upsets Logan and Veronica extensively._

_Weevil and Wallace come over, and they research the Fitzpatricks, incorporating some photographs that Weevil has taken while surveilling in recent days. They identify Kendall's contact when she was siphoning money from Richard Casablancas, Sr., as Gerry Black, and ask Dick if he recalls the man. At the end, several surveillance photos remain unidentified, although Veronica thinks one young man is familiar, without specifically remembering the context that she knows him. Weevil teases Veronica a little too hard about her old habits of blackmail and favors, and she breaks down as she is reminded of Klein's vicious confrontation at the school. Logan comforts her, and she grotesquely tries to force him to make love to her despite her obvious anxiety and depression. She ends up crying herself to sleep in his arms._

_They mount a complicated operation to infiltrate Dr. Griffith's medical office; Keith manages to clone the computer of Griffith's office manager, Karen Fillipelli, and they begin tracing the flow of money in the practice. Veronica masquerades as a State Medical Board investigator and obtains evidence that Griffith's anesthesiologist was being paid for services while working elsewhere. Mac contacts Veronica and tells her she is being released from Witness Protection and will return to Neptune in a few days. After a long day of investigating, Veronica lies down for a nap; she and Logan make love after a tortured discussion of what the future might bring for them._

_Logan reaches out to one of Hannah's friends from high school. The girl, Julie Silver, reluctantly admits she helped Hannah after escape by providing money and a place to stay with her eccentric, ex-hippie aunt in Rio Linda. The aunt, who was using the name Katey Shaffer, went through a deprogramming experience in her youth and was estranged from Julie's family. Julie tried to contact her aunt after the news of Hannah's murder with no success; she provides Logan and Veronica with the last known contact information._

_Keith meets with Leo; he offers to trade evidence on the Fitzpatricks and Duncan's photo of Dr. Griffith meeting with Kendall in exchange for immunity for Duncan on the felony breaking and entering charges. The hope is that Veronica won't have to testify, to prevent her from possibly being charged as an accessory in the kidnapping. Leo reluctantly accepts the deal. Keith admits he committed arson to neutralize Vinnie's threat to expose Veronica's involvement in the kidnapping. Leo explains that he is bitter toward the Mars family because of the death of his developmentally disabled sister, who had to be institutionalized when Aaron refused to pay off Leo for the stolen sex tapes. When Keith's evidence is added to his previous suspicions about Kendall's murder, Leo is convinced of Logan's and Veronica's innocence in the matter of Kendall's murder, and he sets out to arrest the Fitzpatricks and Dr. Griffith. Keith tries to warn Leo that there might be an FBI agent or other law enforcement person who is working for the Fitzpatricks, but Leo dismisses the idea.**  
**_

_**

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**_

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Due Process**  
Veronica, Logan, and Keith regroup and focus  
their investigation; Dick visits; Leo pursues  
Dr. Griffith.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Dick: Ryan Hansen.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Mrs. Griffith: Jennifer  
Westfeldt. Deputy Clark: Zadran Wali.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FOURTEEN: "DUE PROCESS"

Thurs. 3/19/09 evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Veronica, peering intently at the screen of her laptop, turns around at the sound of a key in the door. Keith walks in and tosses his keys on the counter beside her. "Well?" she says impatiently. Logan stands up anxiously and joins them.

Keith nods and puts his arm around her shoulders. "It worked; Leo agreed to give Duncan immunity. Leo's rounding up Griffith and the Fitzpatricks, and the district attorney will sort out the charges later. The picture was pretty compelling. At the very least, I'm sure Griffith will provide information about Kendall in exchange for a reduction in the money laundering charges."

Veronica exhales loudly in relief. "Duncan?"

"I don't think you have to worry about the custody case any more, Veronica. I'm sure the hearing will be dismissed tomorrow when Duncan's attorneys reveal that their client has immunity on the breaking and entering charges." He sits down next to his daughter, and she leans against him. His weariness overtakes him; he closes his eyes momentarily and tries not to worry that he's forgotten something.

"Good," Veronica comments. "I hope that bastard Stewart Manning goes to jail for the rest of his life."

Keith silently agrees. "What are you working on, honey?" He peers over her shoulder at the computer and sits down on a stool next to her.

Logan explains, "I got in touch with one of Hannah's friends. She admitted she helped Hannah after she ran away from the school."

Veronica quickly summarizes Julie Silver's story about her aunt in Rio Linda. "Hannah thought of somebody who would be sympathetic and ran to her."

"She must have realized pretty quickly that she needed help," Keith muses. "What have you learned about the aunt? You said her name was...."

"Katey Shaffer," Veronica finishes. "It's an alias. Née Katherine Silver. She's been under the radar since the early seventies. Kate Shaffer shows up in 1978, applying for a driver's license in Yreka; then in 1988, she changed her address to Sacramento. She let the license lapse after that. I think the social security number she was using is false, and she probably knew she'd be caught with the increased security precautions on drivers' licenses." Veronica swivels the screen to show her dad the driver's license photo from 1988. "So this picture is twenty years old. She doesn't own any real estate or have any credit cards, and she's never even registered a vehicle with the DMV. Julie said she was pretty much a hippy, still living like it was 1968."

"Born in 1955; she'd be fifty-three or fifty-four," Keith thinks aloud.

"I ran the Photoshop aging program on the photo and came up with a few possibilities. She's got to be working some kind of job off the books, a waitress maybe. The phone number that Julie had has been disconnected since," Veronica checks the screen, "Since mid-November of last year. No residential address listed on the account, just a billing address."

"November was two months before Hannah was killed," Keith muses, calculating backward. "Maybe they moved, and something happened at the new address."

"The phone number was listed under the name of K.C. Sanford. He owns several houses, apparently rentals. We can start with him and find out where Katey and Hannah were in November and maybe trace them from there."

Logan chimes in, "Maybe something happened in November, something that made them pull up stakes and move."

"Something or someone," Veronica agrees. "I ran Dr. Griffith's credit cards, Dad, to see if he's ever been in Sacramento or Rio Linda. No charges anywhere near there for the past year."

"That doesn't prove anything," Logan observes.

"Do you really think he killed his own daughter?" Veronica asks curiously.

Logan shakes his head. "No. I think it was Liam."

Keith says, "Liam was in prison in January, awaiting trial on the racketeering charges, with Vinnie and half of the Fitzpatrick family."

"Okay, one of Liam's flunkies," Logan amends. "To punish Dr. Griffith for making a deal with me."

Veronica asks, "But how did they find out about the deal?"

"Kendall told them, I guess," Logan says thoughtfully.

"I don't think so. She was scared of Liam; you remember how frightened she was when we threatened to call him," Keith interjects. "We're missing something. Something set this in motion, and I don't think we're seeing it."

"We might not ever find out," Veronica adds. "Unless Liam talks."

Keith pushes himself up off the stool. "You know, I think a celebration is in order." He goes to the refrigerator and pulls out a carton of ice cream from the freezer.

"Ice cream? No champagne?" Logan observes drily.

"We Mars have simple tastes," Veronica retorts gently.

Keith puts the carton on the counter along with three spoons. They share the ice cream in silence for a few minutes. Keith tells them Leo's story about his sister. He makes sure to omit Aaron's desire to retain the videotapes and simply states that Aaron reneged on his deal.

"Leo really loved his sister," Veronica comments quietly. "He talked about her all the time."

"Everything about that case was a tragedy," Keith agrees.

"Yeah, my dad was an expert at hurting people," Logan mutters bitterly. Veronica puts her hand on his arm to comfort him, but he continues angrily, "It was typical for him to use someone else's weakness like that. You could count on him to—"

The doorbell interrupts his comment.

Keith looks at them with raised eyebrows; Veronica shrugs that she doesn't know who it could be. He goes to the door. Dick is standing there, escorted by the security guard who has been observing the apartment from the parking lot. The guard asks, "You know this guy?"

Aggrievedly, Dick says, "Ronnie, tell this guy I'm cool."

"I don't know about 'cool', but yeah, we know Dick. It's okay," Veronica replies. The guard nods and walks away.

"I got your email." Dick walks over to Veronica and waves a printout in her face featuring the photo of Gerry Black that she had emailed to him. "I've been thinking about it; I do remember this guy. He was hanging around right after the wedding. Kendall said he was an old friend. My dad got tweaked about it, and they had a huge fight."

"You're sure it was this guy?" Veronica presses. "It's important."

"Yeah, I'm sure. Kendall was being a real bitch about it, as usual. Slamming doors and screaming matches until the middle of the night. Dad put his foot down and said he couldn't come over anymore; then he bought Kendall some diamond earrings, and they made up. Repeatedly, if you know what I mean," he concludes salaciously, pumping his pelvis in Veronica's direction.

"We get the picture; there's no need to illustrate," Veronica retorts. "His name is Gerry Black, and he's one of Liam Fitzpatrick's flunkies. I have photos of Kendall delivering a gym bag to him, probably containing cash Kendall siphoned from your dad's real estate deals."

"Kendall really was stealing from my dad?" Dick asks. "She always acted like she didn't understand anything about business."

"She was a con artist, Dick," Logan explains. "She was using your dad and me, and working with Liam."

"I always thought Kendall was attracted by your superior sack quotient, you know, bodily hotness divided by endurance," Dick muses.

"Too bad I didn't engage my brain when she flirted with me," Logan observes.

Dick snorts. "Like you had a chance. You were all emo over Ronnie, and Kendall was strutting around in a bikini...erectile discombobulation on a daily basis. Half the time when you were over, you were holding a pillow over your crotch."

Keith shakes his head, laughing quietly despite himself.

"Wow, thanks for sharing that delightful image," Veronica says sarcastically.

"Hey, we wouldn't have objected if you came over and showed off your swimsuit, Ronnie," Dick shoots back. "We don't discriminate against the smaller cup sizes."

"You know what they say, it's how you use it. In your case, I'm betting that's somewhat incompetently."

"There's nothing wrong with your ass, either. Mmm, mmm, good." Dick leans a little, scoping out Veronica's backside perched on the kitchen stool.

"Hey," Keith says, starting to get annoyed. "Watch it."

"Whoops. Sorry! Your daughter is so delightful, Mr. Mars," Dick says. "I'm sorry I objectified her. I learned in my Women's Studies class that the feminist imperative is to judge a woman by her accomplishments. And Veronica's accomplishments are legendary, to say the least."

Veronica begins, "It's okay, Dad. Dick can't help being a giant jackass, it's genet—" She stops short. _It's like you're this giant jackass piñata begging for someone to beat the candy out of you,_ she remembers saying angrily, letting her irritation over the sex video fly toward the nearest target. _I always had to slap him down, harder than necessary. He's Logan's best friend after all._

Dick and Logan stare at her, surprised by her restraint, and Veronica looks back uncomfortably. Dick says, "You feelin' okay, Ronnie?" He reaches out the back of his hand to feel her forehead for a fever.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she says briefly, brushing his hand aside. "Dick, thanks for coming by with this information. Do you think you could stop by the sheriff's department and tell Sheriff D'Amato about this? It would help a lot."

"Of course. Is he still harassing you guys?" Dick asks.

Veronica shakes her head. "I think we're going to be okay. But every little bit helps. And Dick...I heard from Mac today. She's going to be coming back to town on Sunday."

"Yes!!" Dick begins to jump around the room, almost knocking over a lamp. "Fan-friggin-tastic!!"

Logan quickly reaches out a hand and steadies the lamp. "Dick, try to have an appropriate reaction for once in your life," he advises in amusement.

"Impossible. Inappropriate is my middle name," Dick replies, grinning happily. "You talked to her, Ronnie? What'd she say?"

Veronica replies, "She said the FBI agents were a bunch of tight asses. It sounded like they were still questioning her."

"D'you think she really outed the whole Russian mob like people have been saying?" Dick asks.

"I don't think they'd let her out of Witness Protection if she did, Dick," Logan says logically.

"Yeah, you're right," Dick says thoughtfully. "I think this calls for a party. Maybe...'The Revenge of the Nerds Rager'. Jello shots, full-contact beer pong...."

"Oh, that totally sounds like Mac," Veronica snarks without thinking. "I frequently heard her exalting the sublime aesthetic of alcohol-based entertainment at fraternity events."

"What? Oh, you're mocking me again. That's sweet, Ronnie."

Veronica flinches imperceptibly. _Even when I'm trying not to be a bitch...I can't even help it anymore._ Aloud, she comments lamely, "I'm sure she'll love it."

Dick shoots a glance at Logan. "Uh...okay. I'll let you know what's going on."

"Sounds good," Logan replies. He escorts Dick to the door.

Keith says quietly, "Everything okay, honey? I swear to you, Leo was convinced by the evidence we brought him. I don't think he'll be bothering you or Logan any more."

"I know," she answers. Avoiding his concerned gaze, she adds, "I'm just tired, Dad." _I'm just a soulless piece of crap is all, Dad._

Keith stares at her, not believing her one bit. "Talk to me, Veronica."

She looks down uncomfortably. Logan sits back down beside her and puts his arm on her shoulder. "Don't," she says.

"Are you hurting more? I'm sorry," he replies.

"No, just...I don't know how to do this, okay?" she blurts out finally.

"Do what?" Keith asks in confusion.

"God, I can't even have a normal conversation with Logan's best friend," Veronica says bitterly. "All I do is mock the people who are supposed to be my friends. Dick came over to help."

Logan says incredulously, "You're kidding, right? That was Dick, who made your life completely miserable in high school. You should see what he wrote about you in the bathroom stalls." He immediately regrets his words when he sees her face.

Out of nowhere, she remembers,_ 'Make sure you suit up. You don't know where she's been.'_ Veronica shivers as she recalls Dick throwing a condom at her..._Am I really remembering this, or is it what Sean told me?_ She passes her hand over her forehead as her head begins to throb and ache. Suddenly, she flashes on Beaver finding her in the journalism room at school. She closes her eyes as her headache increases in intensity. _Something about...why can't I remember? If I could just...._

"What is it, honey? Is your shoulder worse?" Keith asks with concern.

"I'm not sure," she mutters quietly, her eyes still closed.

"I was going to suggest that we head up to Rio Linda and ask around about Katey Shaffer this weekend, but I think we need to stay home and just rest, Veronica," Keith worries.

"Dad, no!" Veronica protests, her eyes flying open. "If Liam was involved...we need to work on this." She closes her eyes again, as her head throbs again. Veronica tries to push the pain away and opens her eyes to look at her dad. "I want to do this. I...I'm doing better when we're working. You see that, right?"

Her dad nods. "Yeah, actually I did notice that. But—"

Veronica sighs loudly and interrupts, "Dad. I...I'd like to stop in L.A. first. It's on the way; we can stay over at Logan's house and head up to Sacramento first thing on Saturday."

Keith looks at her in puzzlement. "L.A.?"

"I want to ask Mike what he's learned."

Logan frowns, thinking about their last meeting at the FBI before they left for Vermont. It had been all too apparent that Mike Fields still had feelings for his ex-girlfriend, and Veronica had seemed oblivious. And Mike's friend, Lynley, had been an ass when Logan was sure Veronica needed to end the operation at Briar Hill. He has a flash of anger, recalling his words to Lynley:_ 'I don't take orders from you, dickhead.'_

Veronica continues, "We've been so busy investigating Griffith and dealing with Leo, we haven't even asked Mike what he found out from that list that Mac got of everyone who had accessed the Slasher files. He was supposed to get a message to you while we were undercover."

"I never heard from him," Keith replies.

"You don't think—" Veronica looks at him, panicked. She quickly slides off the stool and gets her cell phone. She accesses Mike's number in her contact list and hits 'send'. She paces impatiently, muttering, "Pick up, pick up, pick up." Finally, she sighs in relief. "Mike. It's Veronica....yeah, I'm okay. It was hard....I know. You talked to your friend Lynley?...He's exaggerating...No, it wasn't...Really, I'm okay...I'm _okay_, Mike...." Her voice starts to break as Mike presses her for details about the operation.

Keith motions to the phone, and Veronica says in relief, "My dad wants to talk to you."

Keith takes the phone and walks into his bedroom. The conversation continues in a muted tone.

Logan embraces Veronica; she sags against him wearily. "I was scared someone got to him," she whispers. "Another mistake...."

"Veronica, shh," he replies quietly. "I'm sure he's okay."

Keith walks back into the room and puts Veronica's phone on the counter. "He said he doesn't have anything solid on Hannah's murder. He's eliminated a few people, but that's it." He hesitates before continuing, "After the bombing, Mac felt she had to tell her handler about contacting Mike, and Mike was suspended from the bureau. Mike said his supervisor told him that Mac insisted that it was all her fault and she wouldn't cooperate anymore unless the FBI reinstated him. So Mike expects the suspension will be rescinded."

"That sounds like Mac," Logan comments.

"I told him we'd like to meet sometime tomorrow afternoon. We have to go to Duncan's hearing in the morning, and assuming the Mannings' lawyers are smart enough to drop the custody suit, we can head up to L.A. after that. You're sure you're up to this, Veronica?"

She nods. Tentatively, she asks, "Dad?"

"What is it?"

"Do you think...would it be okay if we found time for me to...." She sighs and takes a deep breath before blurting, "I'd really like to talk with Logan's shrink again."

Keith is shocked into silence, realizing this must be her primary reason for wanting to go to L.A. He remembers how reluctant she was when he insisted she visit a counselor after Lilly's death, and Veronica's request scares him.

"It's no big deal," Veronica hastily amends at his expression. "I just...I have something I want to talk to her about."

"Of course. Logan? Can you set it up?" Keith requests.

Logan kisses the top of her head and takes the cell phone. He paces as he talks, casting worried glances at Veronica, which she does her best to avoid.

"It doesn't help when you guys do that," she mutters.

"What, honey?" Keith says.

Veronica says, her voice breaking, "When you pity me like that. When you look all worried because I'm so messed up."

"Veronica—"

She takes a deep breath and shudders. "I can't help it, okay? I just keep thinking if only I hadn't gone after Gory, if only I hadn't helped Duncan kidnap the baby, if only I had listened to you when you told me the undercover operation would be too dangerous." She closes her eyes. _Get a hold of yourself, Veronica. Don't let them see...hold it together._ She opens her eyes and says firmly, "I'm okay. Just...I'd like to talk to someone who's not...involved. And she understands about the school, what it was like there."

Logan terminates the call and sits back down opposite her. "She'll make time for us late in the day." He takes Veronica's hand. "It's going to be okay. We got through today. Leo's going to leave us alone."

Veronica nods. _Then why do I feel so scared?_

Thurs. 3/19/09 evening: Griffith Residence, Neptune, CA

"Open up! Sheriff's Department!" Leo calls out grimly, pounding on the door to Tom Griffith's house. After a short delay, Mrs. Griffith opens the door, visibly upset. Leo hears a baby crying somewhere upstairs. "Ma'am...is your husband here?"

She shakes her head. "He got a phone call about ten minutes ago. He wouldn't talk to me about it. Tom grabbed his wallet and a small bag, and ran out the back."

Leo looks out the window; there are two cars parked in the driveway. "Do you have another vehicle?"

Mrs. Griffith shakes her head again, the tears streaming down her face. "No. I think someone picked him up. What's going on?"

"You didn't see the car that picked him up? What about his cell phone?" Leo asks, ignoring her question. "Did your husband take his cell?" he presses, hoping against hope that the doctor's phone could be tracked.

"No. It's on the counter," she answers, pointing. "I want to know what's going on."

Leo thumbs his radio. "Suspect is not on the premises. I want an alert at the border and all the local airports. Suspect is presumed to have left in an unidentified vehicle at approximately 2200 hours. Sacks, I want a tracer on all of Griffith's credit and ATM cards." He turns to Mrs. Griffith. "Is there someone who can watch your baby? A neighbor? You're going to have to come down to the station. I'll explain further down there."

She nods nervously. "Annie, next door."

Leo directs one of the deputies to go next door. "I'll need to look at your husband's desk. His computer, his papers, his files." Mrs. Griffith leads him to a desk with neat piles of papers. Leo shuffles through, quickly determining that the papers are merely household bills. "Deputy Clark, we're going to take this computer with us."

Leo triggers the radio again. "Sheriff D'Amato here. What's the status on the arrests?"

The radio crackles, "Ciaran and Padraig Fitzpatrick are in custody. We're proceeding with a search of the premises."

Leo barks, "Davis, report."

"Davis here. Liam's gone. The house is empty, Sheriff," a different voice responds over the radio.

"Shit," Leo mutters under his breath. Aloud, he directs, "Issue an APB on Liam and Dr. Griffith. This is a priority. I want all eyes on this. Contact all the adjoining counties and stress the importance of cooperation, Sacks."

"Got it, Sheriff," Sacks replies faintly over the radio.

Leo turns to Mrs. Griffith. "You said your husband got a phone call. Cell phone, or the telephone?"

"Cell phone," she replies, pointing at the device.

Leo takes the cell and accesses the call list. He dials the last incoming number, listed as unavailable; a message informs him that the call cannot be completed as dialed. "Clark, take the phone into evidence as well," he notes, handing the phone to the deputy. "See if you can find out anything about the originating number of the last incoming call."

Clark nods. "You want us to search the premises?"

"I want you to canvass the neighborhood first. See if anyone saw Griffith or a car. Then I want you to tear the house apart. I want every inch of this property examined," Leo replies. "If there's a clue where the doctor ran to, I want it found." He turns back to Griffith's wife. "Where do you think your husband is?"

"I don't know! What's going on? What's happening?" she answers tearfully. "Tom's done nothing wrong. We've been through hell lately with his daughter's murder. Why are you doing this?"

"Apparently there are some serious irregularities with your husband's business. His unavailability for questioning doesn't look good."

"Irregularities?" she replies, puzzled. "What are you talking about?"

"Money laundering. Suspected racketeering."

Mrs. Griffith is stunned into silence. After a moment, she sputters, "That's ridiculous."

"Dr. Griffith is also wanted in questioning regarding the murder of Kendall Casablancas," Leo adds. "Do you happen to know where your husband was the evening of March 11?"

Mrs. Griffith stares at Leo. She blurts out, "I want a lawyer."

"You're not under arrest, Mrs. Griffith."

"I want a lawyer," she says forcefully. "This is a huge misunderstanding, and I want an attorney."

"Suit yourself," Leo says noncommittally, motioning toward the phone. "Have him meet us at the department," he comments, as the deputy escorts the next-door neighbor into the front door. The woman quickly embraces Mrs. Griffith before heading upstairs to take charge of the baby.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Eye of the Storm**  
Anxiety about Duncan's hearing; Leo asks  
for help.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
Shephard: Granville Van Dusen. Ford:  
Jim Holmes.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FIFTEEN: "THE EYE OF THE STORM"

Thurs. 3/19/09 evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Keith turns on the television, anxious to hear the local news. With a few minutes to spare before the ten o'clock broadcast on the CW and Fox networks, he surfs around the channels, hesitating momentarily on each channel before moving on. On CNN, a couple talking heads are discussing something intently, and Keith blows past with barely a pause.

Veronica hears the name 'Kane' and exclaims, "Wait! Go back."

Keith returns to the previous channel, and they read the graphic behind the two men: 'CNN: Prima Facie Evidence...with Legal Analysts Jack Shephard and James Ford.' The lettering dissolves to a flashy logo, 'The Billionaire Heir and the Baby: Kane v. Manning'.

Veronica says sarcastically, "At least they've stopped calling her the coma-baby."

One of the men is pontificating somberly, "It all comes down to the best interests of the child. There's little case law to guide the judge."

His companion speaks, ticking off his points on this fingers as he proceeds. "Let's review the facts of the case. In December 2005, Meg Manning, who had miraculously survived a bus crash several months earlier, seven months pregnant and just a few weeks out of a lengthy coma, suddenly succombed to a blood clot that lodged in her heart. Her baby, a daughter, survived. Meg had identified the father as Duncan Kane, son of billionaire computer innovator, Jake Kane. In January 2006, after Meg's parents, Stewart and Rose Manning, announced their intention to file for sole custody of their granddaughter, the father, Duncan Kane fled from Neptune, California, having kidnapped the baby whom he presumed to be his daughter. Despite the best efforts of the FBI, Duncan Kane eluded capture and remained on the run for three years."

The first man asks, "Many legal experts have questioned why Duncan Kane felt he had to kidnap his own daughter rather than fight the grandparents for custody in court."

"There has been a lot of speculation about that, Jack. In the Aaron Echolls murder trial several months later, there was testimony that Duncan Kane suffered from seizures that caused him to have uncontrollable, violent fits. In addition, there have recently been rumors from sources close to the case that the Mannings have evidence of a felony committed by Kane while Meg Manning was in a coma."

"Are you suggesting blackmail, James?" Jack echoes.

The other man shrugs. "Immediately after Meg's death, the grandparents claimed that the mother had wanted the baby raised in their religion and based their suit on that. But who knows what evidence they might have produced for a judge if Kane had fought their request for physical custody in court."

"At the time, it looked bad for Duncan Kane that he ran. It was thought that there must have been something to those rumors of violent and uncontrolled seizures. His behavior seemed to proved that he was unstable," the legal expert comments.

James states dramatically, "And then one month ago...Kane returned to Neptune and dropped a bombshell." The graphic changes to a picture of Duncan, grasping Veronica's hand tightly, on the steps of the Balboa County Courthouse.

Logan physically flinches at the image, remembering what he had thought when he first saw it while hiding in South Padre Island: that Veronica had reunited with Duncan. He can't help thinking how close he came to ending it all that night.

Veronica notices his discomfort and turns to look at him; he shakes his head slightly and whispers, "I want to hear what they're saying." She focuses on the screen again and resolves to talk to him later.

On the television, Jack Shephard is continuing his recitation of the legal saga. "Kane negotiated a plea agreement with the Balboa County District Attorney that cleared him of the kidnapping charges, but a paternity test showed that the baby girl he'd been raising was actually the product of an incestuous relationship between the mother and her own father, Stewart Manning..."

"Who's now been indicted for child endangerment and unlawful sexual activity with a minor child." James looks thoughtful. "So now Duncan Kane's actions three years ago have been cast in a new light; although Kane himself has refused all interview requests, the speculation is that he took the girl to prevent the grandfather from abusing her."

Jack nods solemnly. "However, Rose Manning, Stewart's wife, has not been charged with any crime. And she's still pursuing custody of her granddaughter."

"Who is also, technically, her stepdaughter," James adds.

Veronica makes a face. _The complicated relationships are impossible to summarize in a single term,_ she thinks. _Poor Lilly._

"But Kane was not deterred, and he himself has filed for permanent custody of the girl he considers his daughter. At this point, the guardian ad litem for the child has petitioned the court to begin the process of terminating Stewart Manning's parental rights, pending the outcome of the incest trial. In the meantime, the grandmother and the 'kidnapper' are fighting for physical custody and visitation rights. And, if Stewart Manning is actually convicted of incest and his parental rights are terminated, Duncan Kane and Rose Manning will presumably be battling for the right to adopt the girl."

"Whew! What a mess. Who has the better case, the blood relative who possibly condoned sexual abuse, or the kidnapper with no biological relationship to the child?"

Veronica blurts out, "Any idiot can see—"

Keith agrees, "Yes, Veronica. Shh."

The legal commentator replies, "I think it's all going to come down to the best interests of the child. I'm curious to see if this felony that's been hinted at comes out at the hearing. And the judge is going to want to hear Duncan's story and will listen carefully to the reports from the guardian ad litem and case workers."

"We'll have an update tomorrow on a decision, if any, from the judge in the Billionaire Baby case."

As the theme music for 'CNN: Prima Facie Evidence' plays, Keith uses the remote to flip through the channels again, landing on the local Fox affiliate as the ten o'clock news begins.

Veronica says quietly, "Do you think he'll win the case?"

"I don't know," Keith replies honestly. "I think it depends on the judge. You heard what they said: it's going to come down to the best interest of the child. Some people think biology trumps everything else."

"Look at Mac," Veronica observes. "They didn't switch her back when they found out about the mistake. And she's okay. Don't you think—"

"It doesn't matter what I think. If the judge perceives the kidnapping as foolish and criminal and sees Mrs. Manning as another of Stewart's victims, he might...." Keith shrugs.

They lapse into silence as the local news begins. Keith is overtly nervous, fidgeting and restless, but doesn't speak. He keeps switching back and forth between the local broadcasts on the CW and Fox, expecting to hear a breaking news bulletin about the arrests.

All three are lost in thought as they watch the news stories, hoping for an announcement from the Neptune Sheriff's Department. Each of them is also secretly worried about the next day's hearing—terrified that the judge might question Duncan closely about the actual kidnapping plan. If Veronica's involvement in the kidnapping somehow comes up, they know that Duncan might be forced to testify against her. For the millionth time, Logan wishes that Duncan had just stayed away; Keith and Veronica are more pragmatic, but they too long for an easier solution than tomorrow's nerve-racking hearing. The tension in the room seems to increase with every minute that goes by without news of an arrest; too much is going on, and the uncertainty is overwhelming.

At eleven o'clock, Keith flips the channel to the ABC affiliate and begins tapping the remote nervously against his leg.

Veronica, snuggling on the couch against Logan's shoulder, suggests quietly and without conviction, "Maybe there's a news blackout."

Keith sighs and surfs to the NBC and CBS local affiliates. "Something's wrong," he mutters. "I wish I'd kept that police scanner." There's a knock on the door, and Keith jumps to his feet. He glances out the window and sees a police cruiser in the parking lot. He opens the door to Leo D'Amato.

"Keith," Leo says.

"What's going on?" Keith asks without greeting him.

"Can I come in?" Leo responds. Keith opens the door and allows him to enter. "We got Ciaran and Padraig Fitzpatrick, but Griffith, his office manager, and Liam got away. Someone warned them." Leo meets Keith's eyes, tacitly admitting that he should have listened more closely to Keith's information.

Keith sighs. "I was afraid of that. And the office manager had to have known everything that was going on with the money laundering. I bet it was a priority to prevent her from talking to you." He glances at Veronica and Logan before continuing. "I doubt she'll be found alive."

Leo massages his shoulder, trying to release some of his obvious tension. "Maybe we should have just gone after her first and tried to get her to turn on the others."

"There's no point second-guessing yourself now," Keith offers. "I'm sure you'll get them sooner or later. You probably set up road-blocks and alerted the border authorities, right?"

Leo nods morosely. He spies several large sheets of paper piled on the kitchen counter; he recognizes the name 'Kevin Bray' written in large letters and frowns. He walks over to look more closely. "Bray," he muses as he thinks about the recent occupant of his drunk tank. "What's this?"

"While we were preparing our case, we were trying to organize what we knew about the Fitzpatricks," Keith explains.

"Mind if I take a look?" Leo asks.

Veronica thinks, _What a difference a day makes._ They watch as Leo sorts through the papers, apparently absorbed by his thoughts.

Abruptly, Leo says, "I want to know exactly what you were talking about when you said you suspected the Fitzpatricks had a contact in law enforcement."

Keith replies, "Vinnie told me that Liam has a contact in the FBI. I don't know if that's true, but there certainly seems to be some evidence of tampering by someone in law enforcement in the dismissal of the charges against the Fitzpatricks last month. You and I know that was a solid case, and somehow someone made sure it went away."

"That's a pretty serious accusation, Keith."

"Tell him," Veronica urges.

"What?" Leo asks sharply.

Hesitantly, Keith explains, "There are some irregularities in Hannah Griffith's murder that don't match up with the other victims of the Saturday Night Slasher."

"We think she was killed by a copycat killer, someone who knew all the details of the investigation into the Slasher," Veronica adds.

"What's your evidence of this?" Leo responds harshly.

Veronica flinches at his tone.

Keith objects angrily, "Watch it! We helped you a lot tonight."

"In order to get your friend Duncan out of a jam," Leo comments, glaring back. "Who knows how many laws you broke getting that evidence anyways?"

"What _is_ your problem?" Logan interjects. "I know we embarrassed you about the tapes, but—"

"I really don't believe you're all that reformed, Echolls. You may have fooled these guys, but I know you'll be drinking and causing trouble soon enough."

Logan pushes off the couch; Veronica grabs onto his hand tightly and says, "Stop it. Stop it!! I can't take this." She draws the back of her hand over her eye, wiping away a tear. She tugs at Logan's hand and gets him to sit down. "Leo, please."

Leo stares angrily at the three of them.

Veronica continues, "You knew we didn't have anything to do with Kendall's death. You _knew_ it. It doesn't matter what evidence we gave you; you knew we were innocent long before Dad came to you tonight."

Leo's face is stony and stubborn for a long beat; finally, he nods and agrees with her. "There were some discrepancies in the case," he allows.

"I'm sorry we did what we did," Veronica says impulsively. "If there had been any other way....Leo, Dad told us about your sister. I'm so sorry about Tina. I know how much you loved her."

"Yeah," he mumbles, avoiding her gaze.

Veronica pushes herself off the couch. "Let me show you why I think Hannah wasn't killed by the Slasher." On her laptop, she pulls up the list of the dates and the dates of the full moons; she shows him how all the deaths until Hannah's coordinate with full moons on Saturday night. "I just stumbled on it," she explains. "I wasn't really investigating the serial killer. I noticed that Hannah's death didn't fit the pattern. But...you know about the mutilation, the heart cut into the victims' chests?"

Leo nods.

"The killer knew about that, and he knew that Hannah matched the profile of all the other victims. Except of course, she wasn't really a prostitute."

"What?" Leo asks.

"There's no evidence that she was a prostitute," Veronica argues. "She was found in an area frequented by hookers, and she'd been given heroin, but she wasn't a routine user of the drug, and she had never been arrested for solicitation. You know that that's extremely unlikely."

"Maybe she just started," Leo suggests.

Veronica shakes her head. "Somebody who knew the details that had been held back from the press was involved in her murder. And now that we have evidence that Griffith was connected to the Fitzpatricks...." She shrugs suggestively.

"Why would the Fitzpatricks kill Griffith's daughter?" Leo asks.

"To keep him in line maybe," Keith interrupts grimly. "Maybe he wanted out of the money laundering business, and they showed him what would happen to his family. You and I know the Fitzpatricks wouldn't hesitate to kill someone standing in their way."

"You realize that you're not safe with them on the loose?" Leo says.

"Even if you catch Liam, we're not safe as long as their pet FBI agent is free," Veronica retorts.

Leo sighs. "You've just made my job a hundred times harder. How am I supposed to pursue this without the FBI knowing what I'm doing?"

"We've got a few leads. Here, let me show you." Keith spreads out the papers and motions to the diagrams. "There's only a few Fitzpatrick associates that we haven't identified. We're trying to find a connection to somebody in the FBI." He shows Leo the three unidentified photos. "Do you know any of these guys?"

"This one," Leo says, tapping one of the pictures. "It's Tommy Shaw's big brother, Andy. He's got a straight job working for a plumbing supply company. But I think sometimes he can be persuaded to be the muscle for the Fitzpatricks when he needs some extra money. I don't know these other two guys."

Veronica sends the picture files to print. "Maybe you could work on identifying them as well," she suggests, handing him the printouts.

Leo nods, sighing. "In between hunting for Liam and Griffith," he says. He taps the chart. "This guy, Kevin Bray? He got himself arrested on Tuesday night for drunk and disorderly. He came up with a story that he witnessed Echolls meeting with Kendall Casablancas in Waterside Park the night she got killed."

"That's ridiculous. I was in Vermont that week," Logan contradicts.

"I know. But the Fitzpatricks didn't know that. He was the second witness that made a point of connecting you with Kendall."

"The second witness?" Veronica asks.

"The first one was a maintenance worker at the Neptune Grand, Oswaldo Cortez." Leo nods at Logan. "He told me about your affair with Kendall three years ago."

"Cortez? As in Hector Cortez?" Veronica asks incredulously.

"Yes, Oswaldo is his cousin. You know Hector?" Leo asks suspiciously.

"All I know is Hector took over leadership of the PCHers," Veronica says obliquely, omitting any reference to the PCHers' connection to the Fitzpatricks. Logan subtly shoots her a glance, and she nudges him to be cool. "Logan, do you remember any nice maintenance men from the Neptune Grand spying on you and Mrs. Casablancas?"

"You know how I like to mingle with the little people, snookums," he replies. "But no, I don't remember anyone named Oswaldo."

Leo snorts quietly. "You're holding out on me again, Veronica. It's a dangerous game you're playing. What do you suppose Oswaldo's beef is with you, Echolls?"

"The usual, I think. I'm rich, white, and free. At the time I was seeing 'Mrs. Casablancas'," he nods at Veronica, "I was pretty much universally hated by everyone with brown skin because they thought I killed Felix Toombs."

"So, what, he's still getting back at you for that? Even after you were exonerated?"

"Exonerated...that word has such a nice ring to it," Logan comments sardonically. He sees Leo's exasperation and amends, more cooperatively, "I don't think the PCHers will ever be my biggest fans. I never did anything to endear myself to the Latino population, and most of them probably still think I did something that night on the Coronado."

Leo exhales loudly and turns to Keith. "Do you mind taking me through these charts? Maybe I'll see a connection that you haven't."

"All right," Keith agrees. He spreads the papers out on the counter and begins to go through each of the names, summarizing their research and all the connections they've found. Leo asks questions from time to time, clarifying Keith's conclusions.

Veronica rests her head against Logan's shoulder, and they listen as the two men talk through all the complicated relationships. Keith tells a few stories from arrests during his time as sheriff to illustrate his points. After a while, Logan realizes that Veronica has dozed off.

Keith finishes a long explanation about a successful prosecution of one of Liam's henchman. He turns the page, pointing to the name 'Daniel Mulvaney', and begins to tell what he knows about the man.

"Mulvaney?" Leo interrupts sharply. "Dammit! I knew that name sounded familiar."

"What?" Keith asks, confused.

"We've identified the car that took Kendall to Waterside Park. It was reported stolen by Lawrence Crawford, whose housekeeper happens to be Bridget Mulvaney."

"And Daniel Mulvaney was the eyewitness who claimed to see Veronica when she supposedly murdered Clarence Wiedman last fall," Keith says, nodding. "He was Danny Boyd's cellmate at Salinas State Prison. We've been assuming that he's been working for the Fitzpatricks since his release. We had him followed, and Mulvaney was hanging out with Liam in the River Stix."

"So Daniel Mulvaney had access to the vehicle through Bridget, who is probably his sister, or maybe his mother," Leo muses.

Keith moves over to the laptop and enters Bridget's name in the PryingEyez database. "His aunt. And it looks like she shares an address with her nephew." He turns the screen so Leo can see it. Leo tells Keith about the efforts to recover the Lincoln Navigator; Keith suggests he should concentrate on a few chop shops, known to fence items for the Fitzpatricks, that are located on the outskirts of San Diego.

They continue talking about Mulvaney and various other Fitzpatrick cronies. As they converse, they gradually begin to be more at ease with each other.

Finally, Leo stands up and says he'll be in touch. He notices that Veronica is sound asleep, and he looks abashed. She appears fragile and weak, huddled against Logan. "Is she okay? I can't believe she just fell asleep. We've been talking about murderers and drug-runners."

"She's exhausted," Logan replies. "The undercover operation was very stressful. And it's been rough since we got back." He meets Leo's eyes briefly before looking away.

"Her shoulder's going to be okay?"

"They think so. She needs to have surgery when she's a little stronger," Keith explains.

Leo stares at her. She's drowsing and completely unaware, her mouth gaping a little in sleep and her body relaxed against Logan's. "Take care of her. I'm...I'm sorry. I let my feelings—"

"Let's try to move on," Keith suggests. "We'll be in touch, okay?"

Leo nods and leaves wordlessly, his face betraying his discomfort.

Logan says, "I'll put her to bed. She really is exhausted." He eases her into his arms and lifts her easily, carrying her into the bedroom as Keith watches.

A few minutes later, Logan returns to the living room, nervously brushing his hair back from his forehead. He asks Keith, "Do you really think this trip to Rio Linda is a good idea? With Liam on the loose, and probably out for blood? If there really is a mole in the FBI, they'll know who provided the evidence for these arrests."

"I'm hoping we'll find out something in Rio Linda about whoever's helping the Fitzpatricks. I think finding Hannah's killer is the only way to do that. We'll always be in danger if we don't. We'll take Kavner and the other guard with us. They can follow us and make sure we're all right while we're asking around."

Logan nods, comprehending but not happy about it.

Keith adds, "And I think it's good she's asking for help...asking to see your therapist."

Logan scoffs. "I'm not so sure. It's something she feels that she can't talk about with you and me." He looks up and meets Keith's worried eyes.

Keith suddenly yawns. "It's been a long day. We've got the hearing first thing. Let's see how she's doing in the morning and decide at that time."

"Okay," Logan agrees.

"She's going to be all right. The two of you are going to be all right. Try not to worry," Keith says reassuringly.

"Yeah." Logan walks back into Veronica's bedroom.

Keith watches him, noting the slump of his shoulders. _I don't know how to help them. Maybe this therapist will help._ He tries to pinpoint the moment when Logan's well-being became so important to him; he realizes that when Logan begged him for forgiveness, his anger over Logan's missteps had...well, not disappeared, but lessened in an essential way. He reluctantly acknowledges that he's grateful for another strong man to help him watch over his daughter. _Veronica seems like anything but a 'badass, action-figure daughter' lately,_ he thinks ruefully.

Keith picks up the phone and dials Wallace's number. "Wallace, it's Keith. I'm sorry to call so late....Yes, everything went fine. I think it will be all right. Duncan got his immunity agreement....Don't be so hard on Duncan. He was in a bad position....Yes, I agree, that would have been better. Listen, Wallace, I think if everything goes well at the hearing tomorrow, we're going to head up to Rio Linda. I'd like you to work on a couple things for me. I don't want you taking any chances, and you're going to check in with me every step of the way."

In the bedroom, Logan shuts the door soundlessly and tiptoes into the room. Veronica is sleeping soundly under the covers, lit only by the dim light on the nightstand. He sits in the chair at her desk and watches her sleep. He thinks about finding her that night five years ago by the pool, lying sleepily, uncomprehendingly, on the lounge chair. She had looked beautiful that night, in a lacy white dress with a tight black choker around her neck; she had been wearing a little more makeup than he liked, but every boy had checked her out surreptitiously when she entered the party with her head held high. He had reluctantly admired her for her courage that night: she wasn't going to let them ostracize her without a fight, despite Logan's best efforts to trash her reputation.

He remembers the usual ache in his guts when he saw her walk in the door. She was as always the reminder that everything had changed when Lilly died, and her stubborn and unyielding refusal to go against her dad was so typical of her, and so frustrating and painful for him. He can still recall the pathological hatred he had had for her; it was as irrational and stubborn as she was.

Logan had stood above her as she lay helpless on the lounge chair. He tries to recall what he could have been thinking that night. He could have picked her up in his arms and taken her to a bedroom and locked her in for the duration. He could have called her father to come and get her. He could have even just left her there by the pool to sleep and sober up. He can't really remember making a decision to call everyone over to mock her; it just seemed to happen, almost as if the tragedy that was set in motion was attached inexorably to his own miserable existence. His father had taught him about cruelty, and he had embraced it that night when what she had needed was his help.

Then Duncan—solid, unswervingly upstanding Duncan—had walked over and insisted that they stop what they were doing immediately. Duncan had tried to be her hero that night, and Logan recalls feeling ashamed, humiliated even, when Duncan had looked at him accusingly. Duncan had put aside his anger at her and her father and tried to do the right thing. So he had punished Duncan for his good instincts by drugging him; two years later when Logan was listening to them making love in the next room at the Neptune Grand, he knew it was his penance for his shabby treatment of her that night.

_How do you make that up to someone? I've been trying for five years now. It'll never be enough. I've tried to be her hero for so long now...and tomorrow she'll see him again: Duncan Kane, willing to give up his life for his child. How can she fail to see the difference between us? She never says it; she never says 'how could you have left me there?' But then again, we never talk about it._

He drops his head into his hands and just lets the regret wash over him.

She stirs restlessly and opens her eyes. "Logan?"

"I'm here," he replies quietly. "It's okay." _Now...I'm here for you._

"Come to bed," she says in a hushed voice.

He gets undressed and slips into bed, pressing himself into her back, molding himself to her small and fragile body. She seems to settle into him, relaxing and letting go as he draws her closer.

His lips brush against her hair as he forms the words without sound: _Love you, Veronica._

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**In Loco Parentis**  
Duncan's custody hearing.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Duncan 2.0: Chris  
Carmack. Attorney Allen: Jeff Austin. Judge  
Ferris: Don Worley. Celeste Kane: Lisa  
Thornhill. Jake Kane: Kyle Secor. Lizzie  
Manning: Anastasia Baranova. Duncan's  
Attorney: James Patrick Stuart. Bailiff:  
Thomas Nelson Webb. Intrepid Reporter:  
Vincent Spano. Man: Trev Tommasi.  
Kavner: Eric Bana.  
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

ONE HUNDRED SIXTEEN: "IN LOCO PARENTIS"

Fri. 3/20/09 morning: Balboa County Courthouse, Neptune, CA

Veronica, Logan, and Keith sit directly behind Duncan, who leans over to whisper something in the ear of this attorney. Duncan glances over his shoulder at them and acknowledges Veronica's smile of encouragement. Jake and Celeste Kane are seated two rows back. They steadfastly avoid looking at Veronica and the others.

The judge asks, "Mr. Allen. Have you heard from your client? It's 9:10; we have a very full docket today and need to get started."

On the other side of the room, the Mannings' attorney stands up and says, "No, your honor. I've tried to contact Mrs. Manning by cell phone with no response. I'm sorry for the inconvenience. I'm sure she'll be here momentarily."

Lizzie Manning walks in the back of the courtroom; the room begins to buzz with speculation. She makes her way to the front and sits down next to Veronica.

Duncan turns and asks her in a low voice, "Where's your mom?"

"I don't think she's coming. She called me early this morning, upset about the news that you had worked out a deal with the prosecution," Lizzie explains in a whisper. "She wanted me to lie about Grace."

"I'm glad you're not living with her, Lizzie," Veronica comments.

Lizzie sighs. "I've decided to ask the courts for custody of Grace. Duncan said he would help with my expenses and pay for my attorney."

Veronica takes her hand and squeezes it gently. "It's hard to go against your parents like that."

Lizzie nods, her eyes brimming with tears. "You can't imagine." She looks around. The whole courtroom is staring at her; she says morosely, "Everyone thinks he was doing it to me, too."

"I don't," Veronica replies.

"I want to move far away from here, somewhere where nobody knows about the Mannings and the coma-baby," she says bitterly.

"Thanks for doing this for Duncan," Veronica says softly. "And for your sisters."

The judge clears his throat before Lizzie can reply. "Mr. Allen, it appears that your client is not going to show."

A woman stands up. "May I approach, your honor?" Judge Ferris nods, and she walks to the front of the room. "As the guardian ad litem for Faith Manning, I would like to ask the court to proceed with the assignment of physical custody for the child. It's my understanding that Mr. Kane and Ms. Elizabeth Manning are able to provide evidence of the abuse that was occurring in the Manning household. That combined with the DNA evidence of the child's parentage is sufficient evidence to deny Rose Manning's request for custody. I've received reports from the foster home and the psychologists who have evaluated all the parties to this dispute. Mrs. Mannings' persistent denial of abusive behavior when confronted with the facts of her granddaughter's parentage and her refusal to accept counseling and other support from Child and Family Services indicate a severe problem. Her husband is under indictment for three counts of child endangerment and one count of unlawful sexual activity with a minor child, and yet Mrs. Manning refuses to admit that family counseling is warranted. She has said more than once that she believes the DNA testing to be fraudulent and counter to her religion."

"Yes, I've read the reports from the psychologists," the judge concurs. "Mr. Kane. We have a little latitude here in Family Court. I would like to question you." He motions that Duncan should take the witness stand.

Duncan's attorney nods encouragingly at Duncan, who stands up hesitantly and walks to the witness box. The bailiff swears him in, and Duncan takes a seat.

"Mr. Kane," Judge Ferris begins, "Tell me your impression of the situation in the Manning family. I'd like to know why you took such a drastic step as to flee the country with the child you believed to be your daughter."

Mrs. Mannings' attorney stands up. "I protest this vigorously. This is clearly inappropriate with Mrs. Manning not available to defend herself."

"If she wanted to defend herself, she could have attended the hearing today," the judge responds drily. "I can read between the lines, counselor. It's obvious to me that your client was threatening the witness with prosecution for breaking and entering, and, now that he's reached an agreement with the Balboa County District Attorney, that threat is no longer viable." He turns to Duncan and repeats, "What was your impression of the situation in the Manning family?"

"When Meg and I were dating, Mr. Manning seemed to be very controlling," Duncan begins hesitantly. "She had a strict curfew, and we had to provide a lot of details about where we were going and who we were with."

"Was that there any hint of inappropriate behavior on Mr. Mannings' part?" the judge presses. Mrs. Mannings' attorney rises and opens his mouth to object, and the judge says sternly, "Sit down, Mr. Allen."

"No," Duncan says thoughtfully. "He was very angry toward me and lectured me about God several times, but I'm sorry to say that I didn't realize what was going on."

Logan shifts uncomfortably in his seat; he remembers trying to talk to a teacher once when his father had lashed him viciously with the belt. The teacher had advised him that sometimes grownups get mad and it didn't mean that they didn't love their children. Logan had stared back, realizing that he wouldn't get any help from this quarter; Aaron had been appearing on talk shows to promote his latest movie and always held up photos of his beloved children for the cameras to shoot a close-up. The teacher was blind to Aaron's faults, and Logan had nodded and walked away, resolving not to bother asking for assistance again. He glances over at Lizzie, wondering how bad it was for her and if she had ever tried to ask for help. She catches his eye, and he looks away quickly and concentrates on Duncan, fidgeting uncomfortably in the witness chair.

Judge Ferris shuffles through some papers in front of him. "This agreement with the district attorney seems to indicate that you broke into the Mannings' house. What was the purpose of this break-in?"

Duncan's eyes light on Veronica momentarily before he focuses on the judge again. "After the bus crash, while Meg was still in a coma, her sister Lizzie approached me about Meg's laptop computer. Lizzie was concerned about the personal documents Meg had on the computer; she knew her parents would be upset and was trying to protect her sister. Lizzie and I managed to figure out Meg's password, and I was able to read her emails. She had been contacting the Department of Child and Family Services about an abused child that she was worried about. The emails implied it was a young boy, between 7 and 10, who was being abused. At first, I thought it was one of the children Meg was baby-sitting. Baby-sitting was one of the few extracurricular activities that Meg's parents approved of."

The judge makes a few notes. "So the break-in was..."

"Meg wrote that the abused child had been forced to write books of admonishments...things like 'I was bad, I deserve to be punished', over and over again. And it sounded like she had managed to get one of the journals as proof and was going to turn it over to DCFS. The emails said the child was being locked in a closet for punishment: I was worried about him, and I wanted to get that journal."

"Why not just ask her parents for the book? Or ask them to contact DCFS on your behalf?" Judge Ferris asks logically.

Veronica reflects, _Why didn't we just ask Lizzie to look for the journal? We went right to covert ops mode: Duncan in his black turtleneck, breaking in when her parents were at church group...what was I thinking? Clearly, my preference is always to commit a felony._ She looks back up at Duncan, who is considering the judge's question carefully. She knows he is struggling to keep her name out of his testimony if possible.

"I was the sinner who had knocked up their daughter," Duncan replies bitterly. "They weren't even allowing me to visit her and were barely civil to me."

"So you broke into their house."

"I knew where their key was hidden, so it wasn't actually....My intention was to get the journal and leave, but we—" Duncan stops short, realizing his mistake.

"We?" the judge echoes, surprised.

Veronica smiles wanly at Duncan and nods that he should go ahead. Logan grabs her hand and squeezes it, and they trade a glance. He feels the intense anxiety and nervousness emanating from her. _Damn it, Duncan. Why couldn't you be more careful?_ Logan sighs unobtrusively, and Veronica grasps his hand a little tighter.

"My friend Veronica Mars was with me," Duncan explains reluctantly.

The courtroom buzzes with the revelation, and heads swivel to stare at Veronica. Judge Ferris bangs his gavel. "I'll clear this courtroom if necessary. I've allowed these proceedings to be open because the excessive public interest has led to false rumors and innuendoes in the press about judicial prejudice, but I can still reverse that decision." The murmur dies down.

"Mr. Kane, tell me what happened at the Manning house," the judge continues.

"We looked around for the book that Meg had mentioned. We found it in the air vent in Meg's room. Veronica looked at the writing and thought it didn't look like a little boy's writing." Duncan's eyes meet Veronica's again before he plunges ahead. "We went into Meg's sister's room. Grace. We found a stack of journals, all filled with the same sentence over and over again: 'the path to God is paved with righteousness,' and we realized that Meg was really looking for help for her sister. We heard something in the closet; Veronica found a secret door, and we found Meg's sister locked in a small space. We tried to get Grace to come with us, but she refused and said that her parents could tell if the door had been opened and would punish her. Grace said, 'I don't want to be tested. Daddy said I'm not ready.'"

The Mannings' attorney jumps to his feet and says strongly, "Objection! This is hearsay, your honor."

"Sit down, Mr. Allen. This is Family Court, not Matlock. I'll allow the testimony. I can interview Grace if there's a question about the accuracy of Mr. Kane's statements. Continue, Mr. Kane. What happened then?"

Duncan says, "The Mannings came home before we could get Grace out of there. Mr. Manning threatened us with a baseball bat and called the police. Sheriff Lamb came and arrested us."

"There's no arrest report in your file," Judge Ferris says, leafing through the paperwork.

"He put us in the squad car, drove around the corner, and let us go. I don't know why."

"Did you pursue the abuse report on Meg's sister?" the judge asks.

Duncan flushes. "No. Lamb acted like he didn't believe us. Who could we have told? When Meg died, I consulted an attorney who told us that Lamb's failure to charge us would serve to bolster Mr. Manning's custody case. And if we told what had happened, both Veronica and I would be charged with a felony, breaking and entering. The attorney advised me that the felony would count against me if I tried to get sole custody."

"It's ridiculous. You were assumed to be the natural father. You would have been granted at least shared custody," the judge explains.

"Unless I was in jail," Duncan retorts. "And I believed that any time spent with the Mannings would be harmful to my daughter. Meg had begged me not to allow them near our daughter." His voice hitches a little on the expression, 'our daughter'.

Veronica recalls those emotional consultations three years ago with the family law attorney in Los Angeles. The attorney had said there were two possibilities: the Mannings could say that Veronica and Duncan had made up the abuse story and paint Duncan as an unstable person subject to epileptic fits, or the Mannings could insist on pressing charges against the two of them for burglary. The felony charge could mean jail time, and the Mannings would be guaranteed sole custody at least until Duncan served his sentence, and, with Celeste refusing to support his petition, Duncan had convinced Veronica that it was hopeless. He was going to run, with or without her help.

Veronica had begged Duncan repeatedly to tell her dad, but they both knew her father would have insisted they let the courts decide. For Duncan, the possibility that Veronica might be convicted of a felony along with him was the final straw that convinced him to kidnap the baby and run. She had lain awake night after night trying to think of an alternate solution while Duncan pretended to accede to his parents' wishes. At last, she gave up and made sure that Duncan got away cleanly. She had always felt that the day when she said goodbye to Duncan forever was the day she became an adult and relinquished her last childish fantasy of a happily-ever-after. Somehow, even after everything that had happened—Shelly's party and all the misery of Lilly's murder and the subsequent investigation—Duncan had still represented that for her. Or at least she had thought he did.

Veronica shakes her head to clear these dark thoughts and focuses on Duncan, who looks uncomfortable and stressed on the witness stand. His attorneys had obviously told him to play down his wealth and status; Duncan looks handsome, but Veronica knows that this is probably his least expensive suit. His tie is conservative, and his hair is cut, not styled.

"So you decided to run with Faith?" Judge Ferris asks, scribbling a notation in the file.

Duncan says solemnly, "It was a bad decision, made under stress. I regret not pursuing all my legal options at the time." Duncan's attorney nods subtly; they had gone over the wording of this statement numerous times.

Attorney Allen stands up. "I'd like to question the witness, your honor."

The judge nods. "I'll allow it."

As the attorney approaches the witness stand, the room mutters approvingly. Logan hears a woman whisper, _"What choice did he have? He was protecting his daughter from those creeps."_ Logan glances at Veronica surreptitiously; he knows she regrets what she and Duncan did, but she'll defend their intentions to the grave. Duncan's heroic grand gesture is a textbook example of Veronica's firm belief that the ends justify the means. He flashes again on Duncan trying to come to her rescue at Shelly's party—trying to rescue her from him and his depravity—and he exhales in frustration and guilt. Veronica turns to look at him, and he pretends to smile at her. He remembers how she had been completely willing to forgive him: _'I'm going to choose to think of the salt lick as one of those not real things.'_ But, of course, that was when she couldn't really remember the salt lick. _Who knows what memories were stirred up when Klein was doing his sick therapy? _Logan swallows the bile that rises in his throat and tries to pay attention to the hearing.

The Mannings' attorney paces for a while before he begins to speak. His face is disapproving and incredulous, in stark contrast to the general mood of the courtroom. "So Sheriff Lamb declined to arrest you?" Allen asks scornfully.

"Yes, that's correct."

The attorney turns to the courtroom and looks overtly skeptical. "Why would he do that?"

"I believe he intended to blackmail the Mannings," Duncan replies matter-of-factly.

The courtroom surges loudly, and the judge bangs his gravel. "Order!"

"Your story is more ridiculous all the time," the attorney observes sarcastically, and Duncan's attorney stands up to object. Allen says quickly, "Withdrawn. Mr. Kane, do you have in your possession one of the journals that you say the Mannings forced Grace to write?"

"No, of course not, we were physically escorted from the premises in handcuffs," Duncan says. "But I do have video and audio tapes that document the abuse that was going on in that household."

As the courtroom goes wild, the Mannings' attorney says in a loud voice, "Your honor, the authenticity of those recordings has been disputed. Our experts have shown that the recordings have been edited and are a complete fabrication. And the witness is not allowed to introduce physical evidence in this manner."

The judge sighs. "Mr. Allen. How many times do I have to remind you that this is Family Court? I have great latitude in accepting evidence into cases. When you are dealing with the abuse of a child, we are unlikely to have physical evidence that meets a high evidentiary standard. I believe your specialty is personal injury? I wonder about the wisdom of the Mannings in engaging you for this matter."

The attorney flushes at the judge's aspersions.

Judge Ferris continues, directing his remarks to Duncan, "Mr. Kane, how did you come into possession of this evidence?"

"It was sent to my parents anonymously," Duncan lies smoothly. Leo D'Amato had made it clear that he could not afford to substantiate the evidence when he gave it to Duncan's parents, and Duncan's attorney had been kept in the dark about the recordings' origins. "I assumed that someone was using the recordings to blackmail the Mannings, and the most likely candidate would be Sheriff Lamb."

"But you have no proof of that?" the judge asks.

Duncan shakes his head. "No. However, my attorneys have discovered a pattern of withdrawals from the Mannings' accounts that could be explained by a series of payoffs." Allen stands up angrily, and Duncan quickly says, "Of course I can't prove Lamb was blackmailing the Mannings."

"I'm going to ignore that supposition," the judge remarks. "Bailiff. Is this recorded evidence available?" The man nods. Judge Ferris rifles through the paperwork in the folder in front of him. "I assume there are expert depositions regarding the authenticity of the recordings from both parties?"

Simultaneously, the two opposing attorneys rise and says, "Yes, your honor."

"All right then. I'd like to review this evidence and the supporting paperwork in chambers. Twenty minute recess."

"Your honor...I haven't finished questioning the witness," Allen protests vigorously.

"I'll decide whether to allow this evidence. Perhaps we won't need to draw this out any further," the judge says wearily as he rises from his seat.

The bailiff says quickly, "Twenty minute recess."

The room is buzzing with rumors. Several reporters make a beeline for the pay phones in the lobby. One reporter moves to approach Veronica, and Keith preemptively puts an arm around her and says, "Not a chance, buddy." They stand to stretch their legs and walk to the side of the room to converse quietly away from eavesdroppers.

Veronica whispers to Lizzie, "Are you okay?"

Lizzie is white as a sheet. "I really don't want to testify."

Duncan's attorney overhears her and replies, "I think the judge is going to accept the recordings as evidence. It looks bad when the parent suing for custodial rights fails to appear; Mrs. Manning already has a huge strike against her. We'll move for summary judgment, and we won't need your testimony."

"I'm still going to have to testify against my dad in the...incest trial," Lizzie says shakily. "I didn't know what was going on...I couldn't stop it!" she whispers intensely.

Keith replies, "Of course you couldn't. Lizzie, your sisters need you to be strong. We'll help you, I promise."

"I still can't think of Faith as my sister. She's my niece." Lizzie adds weakly, "I just want to get away from here."

Duncan comes up to her and hugs her gently. "It's going to be okay, Lizzie. We're going to get through this. Thank you for helping me and Lilly."

Lizzie leans into him and cries softly. Veronica notices a man maneuvering in the crowd; she watches as he clicks a pen in their general direction. She turns to her dad. "Dad, that man has a camera." She nods toward the man who now appears to be looking elsewhere.

"Are you sure, Veronica?" he asks.

"It's that same pen camera we have," she explains.

Keith finds the bailiff and whispers in his ear. The bailiff nods and takes the man by the arm; he leads him back to one of the security guards, who carefully frisks the man and examines his identification. They watch as the bailiff confiscates the camera, with the man protesting loudly.

"Thank you, Veronica," Lizzie says gratefully.

"'Kane Heir Embraces Abuse Survivor,'" Logan says under his breath. "What a bunch of jackals. I remember half of these guys from my dad's trial."

"Trust Neptune to bring out the crazies," Veronica remarks.

"That's because we _are_ the crazies," Lizzie replies bitterly. "I hate my dad. Every day there's a new article speculating about why my dad raped my sister and not me."

"Oh god, Lizzie," Veronica says sympathetically.

"Abusers don't operate according to logic," Logan says quietly. "My dad never touched my sister either."

"Are you okay, Logan?" Veronica asks with concern. "Maybe you should go home. This has to be...." She sighs loudly and concludes lamely, "I'm sure this is awful for you."

"No, I want to be here for you, Veronica," he protests. "I'll be all right. It actually feels good to see someone fighting so hard to help a child."

Veronica hears the unspoken protest that no one had fought for him. "Logan...."

Logan shakes his head, unwilling to discuss it further. "I'm staying."

Duncan excuses himself to go speak with his parents. They watch as the Kanes converse inaudibly. Celeste does not look pleased by the proceedings.

Logan nods toward Duncan's parents. "Duncan's parents aren't much better. Celeste looks like she's taken a dose of castor oil."

"They love him in their way, I guess," Veronica comments. "They just wanted a different life for Duncan, especially after Lilly died."

"Celeste is horrified of scandal," Keith adds. "I doubt she'll ever really get over this. I hope Duncan can find the strength to get through this on his own."

"I think if he gets custody he'll be okay," Veronica replies.

"We'll help him," Logan says.

Veronica looks at him in surprise; up until now, he has never declared his support for Duncan very strongly.

Logan adds more emphatically, "I'm not going to let our old jealousies define our relationship any longer." The words are difficult and scary, and irrevocably tinged with his looming insecurities, but he means it. "He's a part of our lives, Veronica. Forever. I want us to help him."

"I know. I do too," she agrees.

The bailiff announces that the judge is returning and everyone needs to take their seat. There is rampant speculation in the room as the judge walks in.

"I've reviewed the evidence. I'm convinced that there is reason to believe that the recordings are authentic." Judge Ferris looks sternly at Mr. Allen, encouraging him not to object further. He looks at Duncan's attorney. "Do you have a motion?"

The attorney stands up quickly and says, "Yes, your honor. Move for summary judgment in the case of Kane v. Manning."

"Granted. I hereby order that the custodial petition of Duncan Kane be granted."

"Objection, your honor," the Mannings' attorney protests over the murmurs of the observers in the courtroom.

"Mr. Allen. Based on the evidence I just reviewed, I'm going to encourage the district attorney to file additional abuse charges against Mrs. Manning. I'm also signing an emergency order to remove Grace Manning from her mother's custody. Elizabeth Manning?" the judge asks, looking around the court.

Lizzie stands up hesitantly. "I'm here, your honor."

"I see here that you've expressed a willingness to take temporary custody of your sister Grace. Is that true?"

"Yes, your honor."

"I'll have the Department of Child and Family Services schedule an evaluation as soon as possible so you can take on that duty. Are you prepared to be your sister's guardian, Ms. Manning?"

"I'm scared, your honor," Lizzie admits in a low voice. "I...I didn't expect this."

"You'll have the full support of this court. Have your attorney file the necessary paperwork as soon as possible. I'm counting on you, young lady."

"Thank you, your honor," Lizzie says tearfully. She sits down, and Veronica hugs her gently.

"Mr. Kane." Duncan stands up and focuses on the judge's stern face. "I'm placing a few temporary restrictions on your custody. I'm requiring you to post a $500,000 bond as a guarantee that you will not take Faith Manning out of this court's jurisdiction, and you will not leave the country for any reason without prior permission of the court. You will allow weekly supervised visitation from Mrs. Manning, assuming she is not incarcerated for her part in this tragedy. I expect that you will encourage your daughter to have a strong relationship with her half-sisters, and I will hear a report from you in six months on how you are facilitating that. You will be subject to surprise visits from the Department of Child and Family Services, and you will report to them on a regular basis until this court is satisfied that the situation is stable. And this custody order will be completely rescinded if you are convicted of any misdemeanor or felony other than a moving violation. You will complete a series of parenting classes, and I expect both you and your daughter to receive counseling on a regular basis. Is that clear?"

"Of course, your honor. Thank you, your honor," Duncan says, relieved and dazed by the judge's words.

"Good luck to you, Mr. Kane," Judge Ferris says. "I expect all parties to fulfill their responsibilities in this matter. These children have been through enough. This matter is adjourned for six months, at which time I'll hear progress reports from all the parties and the Department of Child and Family Services, and we'll consider a permanent order of custody at that time. Do not disappoint me." He bangs the gavel loudly and stomps off to his chambers.

The courtroom explodes. Mrs. Dominguez, Lilly's court-ordered social worker, pushes through the crowd and comes up to Duncan. "Congratulations, Mr. Kane. I'm so happy for you."

"Thank you, Mrs. Dominguez. I saw the report you wrote. My attorneys said they've never seen a more supportive assessment," Duncan says gratefully.

"I think you and Lilly have a wonderful relationship. Biology isn't everything, you know. Believe me," she responds strongly. "I'm going to ask to be assigned to your supervision. I'll drop off Lilly later this afternoon, Mr. Kane. I assume there won't be a problem posting the bond that the judge asked for?"

"I'll have my attorneys take care of the bond immediately. Thank you again." Duncan moves toward Keith. "Mr. Mars, I'm not sure this would have been possible without you and Veronica. Thank you for what you did. I can never repay you."

"Just love your daughter, Duncan. Follow the judge's instructions to the letter. And you and Lilly are welcome for dinner anytime," Keith replies.

Duncan laughs quietly. "You know, Mr. Mars, I need to look for a job. Do you know anyone who's hiring? I don't have much experience, and I never graduated from high school. I have a notorious past, and, as a single parent, of course I'll need flexible hours too. I'm sure that employers will be knocking themselves out to hire me," he concludes sardonically.

"Don't forget you were Student Council President," Veronica reminds him. "Go, Pirates!" She pumps her fist in a rah-rah motion. She adds sweetly, "I'm sure Mrs. Donaldson will give you a reference."

Keith smiles. "Let me think about that, Duncan."

Several security officers approach and offer to escort Duncan through the private elevator to his waiting limousine in the parking garage. Jake and Celeste Kane join him, steadfastly refusing to look at the Mars family.

Keith, Logan, and Veronica leave the courtroom and walk out of the building. When they exit the front door, they are confronted by a mass of reporters. "Mr. Echolls, can you give us a comment about your recent arrest for assault and battery?" "Ms. Mars, Peter Klein has accused you of entrapment in the Briar Hill case. Would you care to give us a comment?" "Logan!! Over here!"

Veronica grimaces at Logan, who draws her close to him. Lightbulbs flash in their faces. "Ms. Mars, is it true you were Sorokin's intended target at the Mackenzie funeral?" "Logan, have you been to visit Carrie Murray in the hospital?" "Any reaction to Duncan's stunning victory in his custody case?"

Keith mutters, "You knew they would get onto the story eventually."

"Yeah," Logan replies sarcastically. "It's been too quiet lately...almost three whole days without paparazzi."

"If the disguises aren't working any more, I want to get my regular hair back," Veronica says petulantly. She shakes her curly locks in disgust.

"Of course they knew you would be at the hearing; you were on the witness list, Veronica," her dad reminds her.

A particularly intrepid reporter shoves several others aside and pushes a newspaper in Veronica's face, despite Keith's best efforts to shield her. "Is it true that you feel responsible for Lilly Kane's murder?" he asks smarmily.

Keith says, "Veronica, no!" but she grabs the paper and helplessly examines the headline: 'Veronica Mars: "I Was Responsible For My Best Friend's Death."' The subheading reads, 'Briar Hill counselor refutes private investigator's story; releases 'guilt letter' written by Mars while attending the specialty school.'

Veronica feels nauseous as she sees a picture of Alyssa, the group therapy leader from Briar Hill. Sickened, she recognizes the words she wrote during her 'therapy'.

_'Dear Mrs. [Kane],_

_Your daughter was the most beautiful person I ever knew. I loved her with all my heart....I'm writing this letter to beg you for forgiveness. I did a terrible thing, and I hurt everyone around me with my actions. I'm trying to become a better person by admitting my guilt....I'll never forgive myself.'_

Next to the text, Alyssa is depicted in front of a blackboard, on which is written, 'Drugs: Why We Use.' She appears to be concerned and troubled in the photograph. The caption reads, 'Alyssa Catano, LPC, CADC, has spent her career focusing on drug abuse and personal responsibility.'

Logan approaches the reporter, intending to push him out of the way by force.

The reporter smiles falsely and says, "I don't think you want to do that, Mr. Echolls; don't you have an assault charge pending already?"

Fuming, Logan withdraws. "Excuse me, _sir, _can you let us past?" he says through clenched teeth.

"Of course. Here's my card if you want to tell your side of the story, Ms. Mars," he replies, pushing a business card toward Veronica.

Veronica is unable to move and sags against her father. "Dad," she says weakly.

"Do you have a comment, Mr. Mars? What's your reaction to the statements from Peter Klein and Alyssa Catano that your daughter suffered a nervous breakdown while you were trying to falsify evidence about the school for your client, Stephanie Denenberg? A 'witch hunt perpetrated by bottom-feeders' was the phrase that Klein used."

Keith gapes at the preposterous insinuation. He recovers and says, "No comment."

"Ms. Mars, how does it feel to have your personal revelations in therapy splashed across the front page? Peter Klein said this morning that he felt you might be a danger to yourself."

Veronica's eyes well up with tears, and she whispers, "No comment." Frightened, she glances at Logan's infuriated face.

He meets her eyes intensely, and, for a split second, she swears she can hear his impassioned thoughts: _'Go get 'em, bobcat. You can do it.'_

Veronica breathes in and draws herself up to her maximum height; in a firm, loud voice, she stares directly in the reporter's eyes and states, "No comment at this time." Cameras click all around her, and she forces herself not to flinch. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Logan's mouth twitching in a slight smile at her courage. "Excuse us, please," she says haughtily.

Keith practically scoops her off her feet and forces his way through the reporters, with Logan close behind. Kavner shows up and helps them push their way through the crowd to Veronica's Saturn. Keith unlocks the doors and helps Veronica and Logan get into the backseat and walks around to the driver's side. A young man is leaning against the driver's door.

"Excuse me, do you mind?" Keith asks impatiently.

"Keith Mars?" the man asks. When Keith nods without thinking, the man pushes a thick envelope in Keith's hand and says, "You've been served." He walks away nonchalantly without a second glance. Keith sighs. He withdraws a bundle of papers; it's a countersuit from Peter Klein. He gets in the car and locks the door.

In the back seat, Logan is cuddling Veronica, who has given up trying not to cry. He asks, "Who was that?"

"Nothing," Keith lies smoothly. "Let's get out of here." They head for the freeway to Los Angeles, with Kavner and his partner trailing behind in another vehicle. A few audacious paparazzi try to tail them, but Kavner maneuvers his vehicle in front of them, and Keith hits the accelerator and leaves the journalists far behind.


	35. Chapters 117 to 121

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy, Poniesforall, and Dragynflies. Any remaining errors are my responsibility. I was recently reminded how thankless a job it is to beta. And so, I would like to reiterate how grateful I am to have people giving their time and talent to me so generously

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**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from chapters 114-116:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/97825•html )

_**THIS SUMMARY REFERS TO THE CHAPTER POSTED 1/25/09; GO BACK AND READ CHAPTER 34 IF YOU MISSED IT.**_

_**

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**Keith tells Logan and Veronica he was successful in negotiating an immunity for Duncan and Leo is now investigating Dr. Griffith. They share with him the information about Julie Silver's aunt, with whom Hannah Griffith had been living in Rio Linda, California. They decide to continue investigating Hannah's murder in Rio Linda if all goes well at Duncan's custody hearing. Random conversation still seems to trigger feelings of worthlessness in Veronica: she even refrains from mocking Dick. Veronica asks if she can talk to Logan's therapist on the way to Rio Linda, and Logan makes the arrangements._

_Dr. Griffith, Liam, and Griffith's office manager elude capture. Leo asks Keith for more information about the Fitzpatricks' contact in law enforcement; they tell him their theory about Hannah's murder being the work of a copycat killer. With their help, Leo makes the connection that Daniel Mulvaney is the nephew of Bridget Mulvaney, the Crawfords' housekeeper. It's the first solid lead that the Fitzpatricks might be involved in the theft of the SUV in which Kendall was last seen. Leo tells them the two witnesses against Logan in Kendall's case were Kevin Bray, whose story was very suspect, and Oswaldo Cortez, cousin of Hector Cortez of the PCHers. Leo is surprised that Veronica falls asleep from exhaustion as they are discussing the Fitzpatricks and the various connections._

_At Duncan's custody hearing, Mrs. Manning fails to show, presumably because Duncan can no longer be threatened with prosecution for breaking and entering. Duncan explains why he and Veronica broke into the Mannings house and tells what they found in Grace's room. The judge allows in evidence the video and audiotapes that Sheriff Lamb had been using to blackmail the Mannings. The judge grants custody of Faith Manning to Duncan, with several restrictions; he also requests that the District Attorney file additional charges against Mrs. Manning and asks Lizzie Manning to take custody of her sister Grace._

_Outside the courtroom. Veronica and Logan are bombarded by paparazzi. Briar Hill has leaked Veronica's guilt letter from her time undercover to the press. The headline reads: 'I Was Responsible For My Best Friend's Death'. Veronica almost falters under the pressure of the media onslaught, but manages to get through the situation. Keith is served with a countersuit from Peter Klein. Keith, Veronica, and Logan head for L.A.; the paparazzi pursue but are held off by defensive driving from Kavner, who is following the vehicle to protect them._

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•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Change Walks Up And Punches You In the Face**  
Wallace does some sleuthing; Logan, Veronica, and  
Keith head to LA; Mac's back in the mix.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Wilson: Adam Gorelick.  
Mrs. Brunswick: Debra Mooney. Guard: Emiliano  
Diéz. Principal Lindsay: Barry Wiggins.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEEN: "CHANGE WALKS UP AND PUNCHES YOU IN THE FACE"

Fri. 3/20/09 late morning: Pan High School, Pan, CA

In the parking lot of Pan High, Wallace hoists the book bag on his shoulder. He checks his watch: 11:25am. He waits patiently, assuming that an early lunch period is probably about to begin. Wallace adjusts the baseball cap worn backward on his head; he looks down at the blue and white Pan High sweatshirt he scored at a thrift shop in town and hopes he's blending, and not obviously trying too hard. A bell rings, and a few students make their way into the parking lot. Wallace goes against the flow and walks into the school. Most of the students head toward the cafeteria, but Wallace walks into the library.

The librarian's desk displays a sign, 'Mrs. Brunswick'. Wallace walks up nonchalantly and asks, "Mrs. Brunswick? I'm doing a project for English, and I was wondering if you have old Pan High yearbooks."

"Of course...uh...." she replies, searching for a name.

"Michael," Wallace says helpfully, with a smile.

"Michael, that's right," Mrs. Brunswick agrees happily. She leads Wallace to a section in the library and points. "Organized by year. Let me know if you need any more help."

"Thanks." He takes the yearbooks for 2005 and 2006 from the shelf and sits down at a nearby table. He compares the yearbook entries to the photo of the Fitzpatrick crony observed by Weevil. After a few minutes, Wallace becomes aware that a student is staring at him. _Be cool, sodapop,_ he thinks. _What would Veronica do?_ He pretends to continue turning pages for a while, then stands up and takes the yearbooks to another part of the library.

The boy follows him, now overtly staring. The student suddenly turns around and walks up to the librarian; they have a whispered discussion, both turning to look at Wallace. The student walks out of the library after a final look over his shoulder at Wallace.

Wallace decides to cut his losses; he closes the yearbooks and returns them to the shelf, studiously avoiding looking at the librarian. As he walks out of the library, he is stopped by a security guard. "Will you come with me, sir?"

"What's the problem, yo?" Wallace says nonchalantly.

"Don't make any trouble," the guard replies. He takes Wallace's arm and escorts him to the principal's office, where the student is speaking to a man wearing a tie and a serious expression.

"I'm Principal Lindsay. I don't believe we've met," the man says drily. "Do you have some ID?"

Wallace sheepishly removes his wallet and hands his Hearst College ID and his driver's license to the principal. "I'm doing a project for my sociology course at Hearst," he explains lamely. "Delinquency trends of high school boys. It was important not to identify myself as a researcher to avoid bias in the study."

"Really," the principal says dubiously.

"He's Wallace Fennel, isn't he?" the student says excitedly. "I knew it. Don't you remember when Neptune stole our goat? Fennel was the star of the Neptune basketball team."

"Okay, Wilson, we've got it from here. Go back to the library please." To Wallace, he says, "Aren't you a little old for high school pranks?"

Wallace stares back, completely at a loss for an answer. He finally mumbles, "Like I said, it's a sociology project. I'm too well-known at Neptune High; I couldn't—"

The security guard interrupts. "I don't believe it."

"Mr. Fennel, there are signs clearly posted that explain that visitors must register in the office." The principal points at a sign visible through the door of the office.

Wallace sighs. He pulls out his wallet again and gives a Mars Investigations business card to the principal. "I'm working for Mars Investigations. We're trying to identify a suspect who is involved with a recent murder in Neptune. Would you be willing to look at a photo for me?"

"A private detective?" the principal says sharply. He leans out the doorway and says, "Call the police. This young man is trespassing, and I want him arrested."

"Listen, I'll leave; there's no need to call the police," Wallace protests.

The principal ignores him. To the security guard, he says, "Take him to Mrs. Barth's office and keep him there until the police arrive. Don't let him talk to anyone."

The guard looks at Wallace sternly. Wallace stands up, abashed, and goes with the guard to an empty office. They pass by Wilson, who is pointing at Wallace and obviously making the most of his fifteen seconds of fame.

Wallace thinks morosely, _So much for not taking any chances. Keith's going kill me._

Fri. 3/20/09 late morning: Neptune, CA to Los Angeles, CA

Keith pilots the Saturn toward Los Angeles as Veronica weeps against Logan's shoulder in the backseat. When her tears subside, Logan pries the newspaper out of her hands and reads the article.

'VERONICA MARS: "I WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR MY BEST FRIEND'S DEATH."

'Briar Hill counselor refutes private investigator's story; releases 'guilt letter' written by Mars while attending the specialty school.

'Nathaniel Goldman, an attorney representing Briar Hill Academy of Manchester Center, Vermont, gave a statement today to reporters concerning the legal troubles of the specialized boarding school.

'Of course, at Briar Hill, we sincerely regret the death of Hannah Griffith and understand that her grieving mother is seeking someone to blame for her child's death. But the recent undercover investigation was flawed at best, using illegal wiretaps and falsified records to paint an inaccurate picture of the difficult job of rehabilitating chronic substance abusers. In fact, the school identified one of the undercover investigators as having severe psychological issues, as evidenced by some of the records of her treatment. We believe that the investigator's words speak for themselves, and her witness testimony will certainly be challenged if the litigation continues.

'The counselor at the school, Ms. Alyssa Catano, confirmed that the following letter was written by Ms. Veronica Mars while in residence at the boarding school. Ms. Catano explained that appropriate therapeutic steps were taken based on the information revealed in this letter.'

_'Dear Mrs. [Kane],_

_Your daughter was the most beautiful person I ever knew. I loved her with all my heart._

_I'm writing this letter to beg you for forgiveness. I did a terrible thing, and I hurt everyone around me with my actions. I'm trying to become a better person by admitting my guilt._

_'I saw [Lilly]'s boyfriend kissing another girl. I told [Lilly] about it, and she broke up with him._

_'If I hadn't broken them up, they would have been together that day, and [Lilly] wouldn't have been killed. I'll never forgive myself for that._

_'I was wrong to let [Lilly] do the things she did without telling her that she should stop. I wanted to drink and drug with her and sleep around the way she did, so I never did the right thing. I never tried to get [Lilly] to stop all the terrible things she did.'_

'Ms. Catano explained that Ms. Mars appeared to be consumed by guilt and exhibited erratic behavior during her stay at the school, including violence toward school personnel. "We believe this letter was a cry for help," Catano said somberly. "Of course, we were unaware of the tragic incident in Ms. Mars' past, since she concealed her true history from us."

'Ms. Mars was unavailable for comment.'

Puzzled, Logan rereads the words, _'If I hadn't broken them up, they would have been together that day, and Lilly wouldn't have been killed. I'll never forgive myself for that.'_ He feels Veronica's eyes on him and tosses the newspaper into the back of the SUV. "It's just another desperate move by Klein. I don't think it's anything to worry about," he says dismissively, ignoring the knot in his stomach as he contemplates what the headline would be in The National Inquisitor._ 'Mars Says Echolls Cheated, Drove His Girlfriend Into the Murdering Arms of His Father'._ He quickly changes the topic. "I can't believe Duncan's parents wouldn't even say 'hello' to us after everything we did for him."

They make a few dispirited comments about Duncan's success at the hearing, but they soon lapse into silence. Veronica seems to be lost in thought.

Logan keeps thinking about the article; the quotations are muddled in his brain, confused with his memories of junior year and all the anger and spite that seemed to rule his world at the time. But above all, he feels sick at the evidence that she had been desperately using real life feelings to put off her inquisitors at the school. _Why couldn't Keith see that she was having trouble? Dammit, if only they had listened to me and pulled her out. And then...while all this was going on, I lost my shit. I was glaring at her—upset with her when she was fiercely trying to hold them off._

She had been so confident that she would be able to masquerade as a rebellious teenager before the mission. Now, he can't even think about how foolish they had been. He strokes her shoulder absently as he wishes he could have somehow been more supportive during the mission. The thought that keeps returning is _I wish I could have talked to her while it was going on._ During their brief moments of contact, they had both been unable to really talk about what had been happening. _It's not like the old Veronica Mars would ever tell you when she was scared. And...I still don't even understand how I was feeling. I remember...I remember being mad at her. What the hell? How could I have been such an idiot? I should have realized...it was a call for help._

She reads his mind again. "Logan...I'm sorry I used Lilly at the school."

"Hey, it's okay, Veronica, shh," he says quietly. He notices Keith's eyes on him in the rear view mirror.

"I'm so sorry. I have to tell you," she protests. "I didn't mean to."

"Veronica," Keith says, frowning at Logan in the mirror.

"You know, we have to talk about this," she says, struggling to sit up. "We have to discuss it."

"We don't have to discuss it today; we've had enough upsetting things happen today," Keith says firmly.

"Dad. I need to tell Logan something." She scoffs. "You're not going to be happy either. You guys have been so upset with me for all the chances I took...." she begins.

Keith exchanges another glance with Logan but says nothing.

"Junior year. When Ms. James got the grant to study the long-term effects of grief in adolescents...." She averts her eyes from Logan. "I bugged her office."

Logan tenses. _Veronica was listening?_

"Say something!" she begs him. "Tell me I'm an ass. Say what you always say, that I always take ridiculous chances."

Keith clears his throat. "You did this because...?"

"I wanted to hear what people were thinking about Lilly. I thought...Dad, you know we were struggling to make sense of the evidence," Veronica explains.

"Did you listen to me?" Logan interjects in a quiet, flat voice.

She bites her lip, obviously anxious; she nods slightly, and he exhales audibly.

Logan says faintly, "So you heard me say...you heard me say that I blamed you for Lilly's death."He remembers: _'If she hadn't ratted me out… then Lilly and I would have stayed together. And Lilly wouldn't have been alone that day. I would have been there....Yeah, I blame Veronica.'  
_  
Veronica mumbles, "Yeah." A little louder, she adds, "I'm so sorry...it's was really wrong of me to listen into your private conversations."

"It was bullshit," he says bitterly, and Veronica looks stricken, thinking he means her behavior. He clarifies quickly, "No...I mean, what I told Ms. James: it was bullshit."

"What? No, Logan, you were right, I knew how Lilly would react, and I knew you loved her, and you would never hurt her, and I never should have—" she babbles.

"It was bull, okay? I was angry at everyone. Angry at everything, don't you get it? I felt guilty, and I was blaming everyone, you, your dad, Lilly, Duncan for..." He sighs in frustration. "I didn't even understand how I felt. I still don't, Veronica. Lilly made me angry. She used me, and I let her treat me like crap. I thought it was what I deserved, I guess." _And after Lilly died, I was angry at you, all the time. That was why I let you get—_ He can't even think it; he refuses to think it. But the remembered rage feels suddenly close at hand, just barely concealed beneath the surface. He tries to focus a little. _ Veronica is trying to tell me something._ "Veronica, you said...you said you didn't mean to talk about Lilly at Briar Hill. Did something happen...that we didn't know about?"

She rushes to explain, and he realizes she's been holding back something she needed to say, trying not to upset him...until now. "I slipped up. I was distracted—it was on the hike, right after they hurt my shoulder—I accidentally said I was thinking about all the people I'd hurt. The night I'd had a terrible nightmare about you; you were telling me you were sick of me using all the people around me." She swallows; even saying it aloud hurts.

Logan stares at her. _Of course she was having nightmares; she'd been having them before we even left._ "I said that in your nightmare?" _Fuck._

Veronica looks away. "It was...it was kind of what Klein and Alyssa were saying all the time; they were drumming it into me constantly, that I was a user and.... After Maria hurt my shoulder, they took us on that hike. I was hurting so much; every step was agony, and I was just trying to make it through. I didn't want to give up—I was furious at Klein for having Maria hurt me like that, and I wanted him to go down hard for what he was doing. But they wouldn't let up. I was flustered, and I couldn't think of any of the stories we had prepared. Before I knew it, I started talking about my best friend who had died." She glances at him helplessly. "I'm so sorry, I know I shouldn't have."

Keith recovers his voice. "Veronica, it's okay. They were stressing you. You were injured! We're not mad about anything that happened during the undercover operation. Veronica, you did an incredible job."

"I'm not mad," Logan concurs. "Please, Veronica, believe me. You don't have to explain."

"I wouldn't blame you guys if you never trusted me again," she says wretchedly, resuming her stare out the window. "Now the whole world will be dredging up everything about Lilly again....Logan, I'm so sorry for everything, for talking about Lilly at Briar Hill, for bugging Ms. James. I never think what my actions do to everyone else."

He takes her hand and strokes it gently with his thumb. "It's all right, Veronica. I'm glad you heard me with Ms. James if it helped you to figure out what happened to Lilly."

She stares at him in disbelief. "You're _glad_ I figured out that your dad killed her? Wouldn't we all have been better off if Abel Koontz had taken the rap?"

"You don't mean that!" Keith says, shocked.

At the same time, Logan says viciously, "Fuck no, we wouldn't have been better off! My dad deserved to be executed. My only regret is that he didn't suffer enough. If I'd had the balls, I would have killed him myself."

Veronica is speechless.

Logan continues, trying perceptibly to calm himself, "Veronica, you are not allowed to feel bad about investigating Lilly's murder. He drove my mother to an early grave. He killed my girlfriend. I could never forgive him, and he would have gotten away with all of it if you hadn't investigated. I hated him for what he did, Veronica."

"But he was your dad," she protests quietly.

"And Stewart Manning was Meg's dad! What's your point?" he says with more heat than he intends.

She sucks in her breath. "Oh god, I'm sorry, Logan."

They lapse into strained silence again.

Logan finally mutters, "Damn it. This is why we never talk about it."

Keith's brow creases with additional worry. He says, "We need to get gas," and takes the next exit off the highway, pulling into the first gas station. Keith extracts his wallet and hands Logan some cash. "Can you fill up the tank? I need to make a phone call."

Logan exits the Saturn and prepays for the gas. As he fills the tank, Veronica watches her dad talking on his cell phone. Her dad had taken the precaution of yet another prepaid, disposable cell phone and had cleaned out the petty cash from the office safe to pay for all their expenses. Keith hadn't needed to explain to her that if they were truly tracking an FBI agent, they would have to conceal their movements. She triggers the switch and lowers her window. Keith is pacing, holding the phone tensely about twenty feet away from the car, with the conversation inaudible but obviously upsetting. Suddenly, Keith raises his voice. "Jim, there's got to be something we can do. She can't handle much more of this, and frankly neither can I." She realizes he's speaking to Epstein, searching for something to counteract the publicity being given out by the Briar Hill representatives.

Logan is staring off into space, barely paying attention as the gas pump clicks off the gallons. Veronica reaches over the seat and grabs the envelope laying on the passenger seat; she extracts the papers and reads, 'Civil Complaint, Peter Klein et al. v. Keith Mars and Veronica Mars.' The causes of action listed are property damage, false arrest, defamation, fraud, breach of contract, and civil harassment, and Klein is asserting fifteen million dollars in damages due to their actions. _Gee, why not throw in loss of consortium while you're at it? _she thinks in disgust. She replaces the paperwork in the envelope, reflecting that fifteen million dollars would far exceed their personal liability coverage, not to mention that she and her dad would probably lose their PI licenses if the suit is successful.

_I need to be strong_, she thinks suddenly. _We can't afford all this moping around._ Her dad starts to walk back to the car, and she's struck by his haggard appearance. _I'm not the only one who's exhausted._

Logan opens the side door, and she suggests, "Logan, why don't you drive for a while? I think Dad could use a nap."

He looks surprised but nods his agreement. She extends her hand, and Logan helps her crawl out and get settled in the passenger seat up front.

Keith puts his hand on the handle of the driver's door, and Logan says, "Okay if I drive? Maybe you could stretch out on the back seat and rest for a while."

Keith is about to protest when he notices Veronica's expression. She says, "Please, Dad. I'm going to need you at full strength."

He nods reluctantly and gets in the back as Logan takes the wheel. Logan pulls out into traffic and heads for the on-ramp to the freeway. Veronica reaches over the seat. "The cell phone, Dad. I want to check in with Kavner."

"Speed-dial, two, honey," he says as he hands it over. Keith passes a hand over his eyes. "You know, I think I will lie down for a while."

"Lots of traffic ahead," Logan comments. "Of course, it wouldn't be L.A. without traffic."

Veronica mutters into the phone, and Logan zones out as they move slowly down the freeway. He tries to remember what else he had said to Ms. James that day. He recalls being upset about the paparazzi and the stories about his dad cheating more than anything; he had really let loose at Becky—for once being honest about his feelings and admitting that life really wasn't worth living. He glances over at Veronica, who has terminated the call and has resumed staring out the window.

Veronica turns and says quietly, "I thought you'd be more upset with me. You know, for bugging Ms. James."

"I knew you were investigating," he replies. "You'd been asking questions."

"I'm sorry I wasn't a better friend to you," she offers.

"What do you mean?" he says, puzzled.

"You know, I shouldn't have...ratted you out to her." She looks into the backseat at her dad, who appears to be sleeping already. "And I should have taken your feelings into consideration about my dad investigating when everyone was already so upset about Lilly dying."

"No, you don't get to say that. I mean, I wish you hadn't told Lilly...but, Veronica—" He sighs deeply. "You know that I was the one spreading rumors about you, the one who turned everyone against you. You didn't do anything to deserve that."_ You didn't deserve the way I treated you._

"I could have—"

"No, you couldn't. You couldn't go against your dad. He was doing his job. And if the Kanes hadn't lied, maybe...." He looks at her. "Lots of maybes."

"We can't change anything," she said morosely.

"Except maybe how we feel about it. Do you think...do you think we would have ended up together if...." He can't quite complete the question, but she hears him just the same:_ if Lilly hadn't died._

She doesn't answer. After a pause, she says, "I meant what I said yesterday. I need you, Logan. I want to find a way to be together and have both of us be happy."

"I know, I do too. Veronica, I swear to you I'm not upset about anything you said or did while we were at the school. While we were there, I was...I couldn't handle it. It was too hard for me, to restrain you, to watch you be in danger like that. You know how I am, how hard it is for me to know that you're doing risky things, scary things. I thought it would be worse to imagine what was going on, but it wasn't. I couldn't handle playing a part like that. It's not like acting...I don't know what it's like, but I know I thought I was losing my mind. Sometimes I reacted to you—to the role you were playing, and I shouldn't have."

She takes a breath, and he knows she's going to apologize again. He rushes in, "Veronica, it was my decision to go undercover. I don't want to be upset about the decisions we made anymore. I have to say...I'm hating how much you're afraid right now. I want my old Veronica back, who rushed into danger and wasn't scared of anything. I want to argue with you again about taking chances. That's the Veronica I fell in love with. It scares me when you back down from snarking with Dick."

Veronica looks at him, stunned. "I thought you guys were....All you've been saying is how foolish I've been."

"Yeah, well, I guess I'm okay with you being foolish sometimes. Veronica playing it safe is a lot scarier. And sometimes Dick needs to be slapped down. Full-contact beer pong for Mac's welcome-home party, are you kidding me?"

She exhales and then suddenly laughs under her breath.

He looks at her and grins. "I mean it, Veronica."

"Okay, in the spirit of full disclosure, there was also the time I activated the tracking device in your cell phone."

"I wouldn't have it any other way," he says mock-seriously. "Any other surveillance I need to be aware of?"

"I think that's it," she replies, pretending to think about it. "Can I get back to you on that?"

"I was proud of you at the courthouse, Veronica. You didn't let the paparazzi see you react, and I know that was hard," Logan says. "We're going to get through this." _Please...please let us get through this...let her forgive me for...._ He stutters a little, saying, "W-we...we still have to figure some stuff out, but—"

"No, you're right. I don't want to be afraid anymore. We are going to figure it out."

In the backseat, Keith smiles slightly, keeping his eyes tightly closed as he pretends to sleep.

Fri. 3/20/09 late morning: Somewhere in the United States

Mac opens her eyes. _My head hurts like a motherFRAKker_, she thinks, closing her eyes again to counteract the throbbing pain. She licks her lips; she is unbelievably thirsty. _I'd kill for a glass of water._ She tries to sit up, and she remembers.

Her arms have fallen asleep, tied behind her back. She wriggles her fingers, trying to get the blood to flow. The room is dark; she hears the murmur of voices from next door. She tries to listen closely.

_"What do you mean, you lost them after the hearing?! Are they still in Neptune? FUCK!"_ The voice quiets down, and she is unable to distinguish any more words.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Running Around in Circles**  
Leo's investigation; Weevil rescues Wallace;  
Keith, Logan, and Veronica compare notes  
with Mike Fields; a lead in Kendall's murder  
investigation.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Eli: Francis Capra.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
Dr. Friedman: Lorraine Bracco. Mike Fields:  
Michael Trucco. Sacks: Brandon Hillock.  
Officer #1: James Martin Kelly. Officer #2:  
Tom Yi.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEEN: "RUNNING AROUND IN CIRCLES"

Fri. 3/20/09 late morning: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Leo puts his head in his hands and sighs. There hasn't been a single break in the case. Griffith's wife swore repeatedly that, to her knowledge, her husband was running a legitimate plastic surgery business and that she had never seen her husband even talking to one of the Fitzpatricks. The Griffiths were on vacation with their then four-month-old baby in Cabo San Lucas over the Martin Luther King Day holiday; they had cut their trip short when the news of Hannah's murder broke. A quick check with the Mexican hotel and Griffith's credit card company seemed to confirm the story.

Mrs. Griffith claimed to have no idea where her husband would run to. She said she had never seen Kendall Casablancas before and had never even heard of her. Mrs. Griffith had only moved to Neptune a year and a half ago, long after Richard Casablancas had dominated the front pages of the newspaper and his son had taken off a header off the Neptune Grand Hotel roof. When questioned about her husband's alibi the night of Kendall's murder, she had said that she was pretty sure he was home with her that night, but she was unable to offer any proof. Leo had pressed her about the money laundering at the medical practice, but she appeared to be ignorant of her husband's business dealings.

Mrs. Griffith had admitted that her relationship with her husband had been extremely tense recently, although she attributed the stress to Hannah's murder. Leo had hinted that perhaps her husband knew more about his daughter's murder than he had let on to the press. She had stared at him uncomprehendingly before telling him that he was crazy. After several hours of questioning and with no evidence to press charges, Leo had been forced to let her go. But he notes that she seems to be pondering something, and he makes a mental note to question her again after she's had a chance to process all the information.

Griffith's clean getaway seemed to indicate that he had had his escape planned; above all, he would need money and transportation. Leo muses whether a doctor can do plastic surgery on himself before dismissing the thought as ridiculous. But he realizes, at the very least, Griffith would be cognizant of how to make small changes that would alter his appearance drastically.

One of Griffith's neighbors, several blocks away, had recalled a taxi in the area around the time that Griffith ran, and one of the deputies is going through the tedious process of examining all the local cab companies' call sheets. Other than the neighbor who occasionally baby-sat for Griffith's baby, Griffith seemed to have no friends in the neighborhood. He had bought the house when he remarried and had kept a low profile; several neighbors mentioned that he had turned down invitations to holiday get-togethers.

"Sheriff?" Sacks asks, knocking lightly on the half-open door. "They found Fillipelli's car. It was abandoned at a rest area on the I-8, heading toward Phoenix. Near Yuma, Arizona."

"Any signs of foul play in the vehicle?" Leo replies, recalling Keith's observation that Griffith's office manager probably wouldn't be found alive.

"Nope. The car was clean. I got the locals in Yuma checking all the area hotels," Sacks says. "'Course...Yuma's pretty close to the Mexican border."

"Right," Leo concurs. "Send a request to–"

"The Border Patrol...already did, Sheriff. I spoke to the Chief Patrol Agent of the Yuma Sector. And Sheriff...Deputy Clark picked up Bridget Mulvaney. She's waiting for you in interrogation."

"Let her sweat for a little longer," Leo instructs. "I'll speak to her in a while."

Sacks leaves, shutting the door behind him. Leo thinks about the sequence of events last night. _Someone found out about the arrest warrants and immediately called to warn the Fitzpatricks and Griffith. From the phone records, it looks like no one called to warn Fillipelli; I think someone was sent to make her disappear before we could arrest her. Griffith is involved enough that whoever is pulling the strings can't afford to have him arrested. But it looks like Griffith got away cleanly; the Fitzpatricks aren't known for their compassion, and have on more than occasion cleaned up a problem with murder. That means...Griffith has some kind of insurance policy—something that is preventing the Fitzpatricks from dropping him with a bullet._

Fri. 3/20/09 late morning: Pan Sheriff's Department, Pan, CA

Weevil parks his motorcycle and enters the nondescript building housing the Pan Sheriff's Department. He spots Wallace waiting on a bench behind the counter partitioning the room. Weevil approaches the desk clerk. "I'm here for Wallace Fennel."

"One hundred dollars and your friend is free to go," the clerk replies.

Weevil takes out his wallet and hands over the cash. The clerk nods to Wallace, who stands up and walks through the swinging gate that the clerk holds for him.

"Thanks, man," Wallace says.

"A ticket for trespassing? You're lucky I've got a hundred dollars to spare," Weevil replies.

"I was lucky all the way around. They said they could charge it as a felony since I trespassed on school grounds, but they talked to somebody at the Neptune Sheriff's Department who said I didn't have a record. So they charged it as simple trespass and wrote a ticket."

"Don't you have a credit card?" Weevil snipes. "Not that I'm not happy to bail you out, _chilito_."

"Uh, I know what that means, and _a viente, amigo. _My mom sees the bills. No way am I using my credit card. And you know I couldn't call Candice," Wallace says emphatically. "I'll pay you back. I'm sure Mr. Mars will reimburse me when they get back to Neptune."

"You know, Veronica did this shit all the time and never got in trouble."

"I know."

"Did you try tilting your head?" Weevil asks, demonstrating. "It always worked for her."

Wallace rolls his eyes. They exit the building, and Wallace stops short. He turns to Weevil and says incredulously, "You came on your bike?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry, but the limo was in the shop," Weevil retorts sarcastically.

Wallace looks at Weevil. "Maybe I should call a cab."

"Just keep your hands above the equator, and you won't lose them. You said you left your car in the visitors' lot at Pan High?"

"Yeah."

"That's just a couple miles from here. And I don't know what you're worried about; I'm the one whose reputation would be ruined. Your stock could only go up," he snorts. "Do you want to tell me what you were doing at Pan High?"

"I was looking for that kid you saw with the Fitzpatricks. Remember? Veronica said she thought she remembered him, maybe from here."

"Right...or from Java the Hut, or Gameland, whatever the fuck that is," Weevil recalls.

"Yeah, I was trying to find him in the yearbooks in the school library," Wallace says.

"You know, I think there's an easier way," Weevil muses. Wallace raises his eyebrows, and Weevil explains. "Rest Stop 15. If this dude is from Pan High and he's doing anything illegal, my homies at Rest Stop 15 will know about it."

Fri. 3/20/09 noon: Mike Fields' apartment, Los Angeles, CA

Mike Fields greets them at the door of his apartment. He shakes Keith's hand and brushes his lips against Veronica's cheek, lingering for just a moment too long. He nods brusquely at Logan. "Come on in."

Logan notes that Veronica has plastered a smile on her face. _She doesn't want him to see that she's hurting._ He resolves to let her and Keith take the lead; any tension between him and Mike isn't going to help anything. He sits off to the side and keeps quiet as Keith and Veronica take a seat on the couch.

"How are you feeling?" Mike asks with concern.

"It's nothing," Veronica says dismissively. "Surgery and physical therapy will fix me right up."

"You look tired, Veronica." Mike glances at Logan and returns his gaze to Veronica and Keith. "You all look tired...and upset."

"It's been hectic lately," Keith explains. "But we'll be fine. I'm sorry we haven't been in touch."

"Yeah, I heard something about the Neptune Sheriff filing a request for information on the operation in Vermont—something about an alibi. I talked to Agent Lynley; he filled me in on some of the details." Mike stares at Veronica. "He's very impressed with you, Veronica."

She blushes under his scrutiny and quickly changes the topic. "Mike, we were hoping you had been able to investigate Mac's list of the agents who had accessed the Slasher files."

Mike pushes a stapled sheaf of papers to her; about half the names are crossed out. "I began by checking the names on the list to see if they were on duty during the time when Hannah was killed. I was able to eliminate about half the agents. Then I had to hand the list over to Alan Sheffield."

Veronica asks, "Who's—?"

"He's Mac's handler. As I told your dad, Mac found out that the FBI believed the bombing wasn't related to the work she did on the Russian identity theft scheme, and she told Alan about the snooping she'd been doing in the FBI files on the Slasher case."

Veronica queries, "You mean Mac thought whoever killed Hannah was trying to get to her because she'd been investigating the copycat murderer?"

"That, or to _you_ through her. Mac wanted the whole funeral scenario to be canceled in case someone had been alerted by her hacking into the databases. Alan was dubious, but I believe he took the precaution of reassigning any agents from the list to other duties the day of the funeral. We went through the timeline, and it did look possible that someone was reacting either to what Mac and I were doing here or to what you were doing in Vermont. I had been checking on alibis on my end, and you had been stirring up things at the school; then late Sunday night, someone bombed the Mackenzie house. But of course we know now that the bombing was unrelated."

Keith nods. "Right. So you haven't done anything more on the project?" Keith asks.

"No. I was suspended and reprimanded, and my passwords were deleted," Mike explains. "I don't have access to the databases anymore. Except...I did spend some time on my own researching connections to the Briar Hill people."

"And?" Veronica prompts.

"I didn't find anything on anyone employed by the school. But the FBI Serial Killer Task Force did brief the California Assembly's Public Safety Committee last September. And Vincenzo Frazzino is the chair of that committee. I was able to confirm that he was present in the Assembly that day for a roll call vote."

"Can we get a transcript of that briefing?" Veronica asks her dad. "I know the Assembly posts a lot of the debates on their website."

"Doubt it," Keith says dubiously. "I'm sure if they were discussing open criminal cases, it was a closed session." He looks at Veronica curiously. "You really think Frazzino had something to do with this?"

"No," Logan interjects, breaking his silence. "No way. I'm sure it was the Fitzpatricks."

Mike looks at him quizzically. "Who?"

Veronica explains, "You know, the Neptune local crime boss, Liam Fitzpatrick. He was in business with Hannah Griffith's father. Last night, we gave the sheriff evidence that the Fitzpatricks were laundering money through the good doctor's medical practice."

"And Dr. Griffith was seen with a Fitzpatrick accomplice, Kendall Casablancas, who got murdered on March 11," Keith explains.

Mike huffs in frustration. "You guys are leaving this alone, right? We're talking organized crime, racketeering, a serial killer, and apparently a corrupt agent. This doctor sounds like he has a lot to lose to. I remember this Fitzpatrick character now; he was a total psycho. You've got to take this to the authorities; you don't have a choice anymore."

"And if the person we talk to is the dirty agent?" Veronica asks.

"You need to leave it alone, Veronica," Mike says firmly.

Annoyed, she replies, "No, we're not leaving it alone. We won't be safe as long as they're on the loose."

"You're impossible, Veronica," Mike says in frustration. He turns to Keith and adds, "Can't you talk some sense into her?"

His words hit Veronica hard; she looks forlorn for a moment before she recovers. She struggles to maintain her composure. Finally she breathes out, and whispers intensely, "Hello? I'm right here." Her voice slowly gathers strength. "You don't need to talk sense into me. It's been made clear to me how much it hurts the people who love me when I do things without their knowledge and take too many risks. So we're sharing everything, and we're proceeding cautiously. We've got protection—there are two guards surveilling us. We're being careful."

"You always said that, Veronica," Mike replies. "Right before you went off half-cocked!"

Keith protests, "Mike!" He glances at his daughter, who flinches reflexively at the accusation.

_God, did I sound like that?_ Logan thinks. "Geez, cut her some slack," he says aloud, trying hard not to react. "Like she said, we're working together on this."

Mike sneers, "Oh, great, the amateur weighs in. Good job protecting her at the school. What's the final tally, a dislocated shoulder and a kidney infection?"

"Oh, this was a really bad idea, Veronica. I don't know why you thought this FBI flunky had any information at all," Logan says bitterly, his fists clenched at his sides.

Keith looks sternly at Logan and says, "Enough. Let me handle—"

"Damn it!" Veronica swears suddenly. "This isn't helping." She throws a look at Logan, who is resisting every instinct to beat the crap out of this guy. "Mike, I know you think we should leave it alone. But...if we don't...can you think of anything that would help?"

"This is too big for private investigators, Veronica. I really think—"

"Mike," she says quietly. "We can't just hide from the Fitzpatricks for the rest of our lives."

He sighs and nods slightly in resignation. "What about Mac's handler? He probably was making discreet inquiries about the names on that list. At least talk to him."

"What's his name again?" Keith asks.

"Alan Sheffield. I'll get his number for you." Mike walks into the other room.

"Well, you got your wish," Veronica comments wryly to Logan.

"What are you talking about?" he asks, puzzled.

"Mike was arguing with me about taking chances. Right? Like you said you wanted to?"

"I think that's _my_ job," he replies. "He's overstepping."

Veronica flashes him a wan smile as Mike comes back in.

"Here's Alan's cell phone number," Mike says, studiously avoiding looking at Logan.

"There's one other thing we could use your help on," Keith says. "These are two men who have been seen with the Fitzpatricks lately. We haven't been able to identify them." He gives Mike copies of Weevil's surveillance photos.

"I've never seen them," Mike comments, scanning the pictures.

"Is there any chance you can run them through the FBI's Facial Recognition Database?" Veronica asks hopefully.

"If my reinstatement comes through...maybe on Monday. You say these guys are involved with the Fitzpatricks?"

"Do you have any other ideas how to trace them? I have this sense that I should know this guy," Veronica says, tapping the photo of the younger man.

"You're not going to leave this alone, are you, Veronica?" Mike says.

"No," Veronica replies. "We can't."

Mike nods in defeat. "I'll get one of my buddies to run these photos for me, see if anything turns up. I'll call in some favors."

Keith stands up, and Mike escorts them to the door. Veronica turns and hugs him. "Thanks, Mike. I'm so sorry about your suspension. I promise you, I'll make it up to you someday."

"Just stay alive until then, okay? I'll do what I can on my end," he says morosely. Mike extends his hand to Logan tentatively. "I'm sorry, man. I know you helped a lot in Vermont. Lynley said it was a tough situation all the way around."

"Thanks," Logan replies, taking his hand. "I promise I'll take care of her."

"Yeah. That'd be good," he says. As he shuts the door, Mike's eyes meet Veronica's again. She is startled by the longing she sees in them.

As soon as they get in the car, Keith calls the phone number and leaves a message asking Agent Sheffield to call him as soon as possible.

Fri. 3/20/09 early afternoon: Rest Stop 15, near Pan, CA

Wallace leans on his mom's car waiting for Weevil, who is speaking with several rough-looking young men on the other side of the parking area. He watches as Weevil clasps hands with one of the others and bumps fists with another before returning to Wallace's vehicle. He asks impatiently, "So? Did they know the guy?"

Weevil shakes his head. "One guy thought he might have seen him around when he bought some weed from one of the Fitzpatricks last year, but he didn't know who he was."

"We're back at square one," Wallace says morosely. "I don't know how to work on this without tangling with the Fitzpatricks."

"Listen, I got to get back to Hearst."

"Thanks anyways, Weevil. I got to get going too. I have to run a background check on Oswaldo Cortez for Keith, and then I'm getting together with Candice tonight."

Weevil grabs Wallace's arm roughly. "Wait...who?"

"Oswaldo Cortez."

"Is he involved in this?" Weevil asks harshly.

"I'm not sure. Keith said he was a witness in the Kendall Casablancas case. He didn't give me the details, but I think Cortez might have been the one who told Leo about Logan's affair with Kendall. Why, do you know him?"

"He's Hector Cortez's cousin." At Wallace's blank look, he explains, "Hector took over the PCHers."

"After you—" Wallace begins.

"Yeah. After I was forced out of the gang," Weevil says harshly. He sneers, "Because Oswaldo was spying on me and Logan."

"Whoa," Wallace comments.

Weevil says, "I think I'm going to talk to Oswaldo and see what the hell is going on."

"You really think that's a good idea?"

In a mean voice, Weevil replies, "I'm not going to talk to him without help. And you know, it's about time I had this talk with him."

"Hey, at least let me call Keith and find out more about this before you do that," Wallace says. "I'll call you later and let you know what he says."

"All right," Weevil says reluctantly. He mutters, "Oswaldo..._hijo de la chingada._" He strides over to his motorcycle and mounts it without another look back at Wallace.

Wallace stares after him as he rides off. He pulls out his cell and leaves a message for Keith.

Fri. 3/20/09 early afternoon: Ca$hNow Pawnshop of National City, near San Diego, CA

Two officers from the San Diego Police Department are executing a search warrant in a large pawnshop. One officer notes a large number of car stereos and begins logging the serial numbers into his report. "Kenwood DNX7120," he mutters as he writes. "Serial number 805033479."

His partner looks up. "Hold on...Kenwood DNX, isn't that the stereo on the call sheet from the Neptune Sheriff's Department? The one marked urgent?"

"I'll call it in." The officer looks over the device. "Pretty sweet, combination GPS, DVD player, satellite radio. Some people got it rough, right, Jim?"

Fri. 3/20/09 afternoon: Dr. Friedman's Office, Los Angeles, CA

Outside the waiting room to Dr. Friedman's office, Veronica suddenly stops short a few feet from the door. Logan, holding her hand, is forced to stop with her. He glances at her quizzically; she shakes her head, uncertain herself why she halted.

She sighs finally and travels the last few feet, as if compelled. She notices that her hand is trembling slightly, and she pulls it from Logan's grasp, curling it into a tight fist.

The door to the doctor's treatment room is ajar; Dr. Friedman calls out, "Hello?" and walks out.

"I"m Keith Mars. Veronica's father," he adds unnecessarily, extending a hand in greeting.

"Mr. Mars, I'm Dr. Friedman." The doctor turns and says quietly, "Logan. Veronica."

"What happens now?" Veronica asks nervously, trying hard to keep her voice steady.

"I'd like to speak with Logan alone for a moment," Dr. Friedman replies.

Logan follows her into the inner office, casting a quick glance in Veronica's direction.

Dr. Friedman shuts the door and says, "Logan, I have to reiterate my objections at this time. It's completely unethical for me to treat both of you."

"I know, I understood what you said on the phone," he answers. "What if I signed something, that's it's okay if you reveal something you told me?"

"I'm not worried about you suing me. I'm worried about what's best for your mental health. You need a safe place to reveal your thoughts and emotions, even if you're feeling angry at Veronica."

Logan stares at her without speaking for a moment. "She trusts you."

"It might mean that you have to find a new therapist, if she wants to continue with me. Is that really fair to you, when you and I have been working together for almost nine months? We've barely scratched the surface of what made you run to Texas in January."

He ruffles his hair nervously. "I'm not happy about it, but I don't see a way around it. She's not the kind of person who could see just any therapist. I want her to talk to you, too." Logan says honestly, "I hate seeing her this way. We have stuff to work out, and I'm scared of how she is right now. Please. It'll be all right."

Dr. Friedman sighs. "Let's see how it goes today."

Logan leaves, and Veronica walks in hesitantly. She takes the same uncomfortable chair as the first time she was here. Dr. Friedman settles in a chair facing her. "How are you doing, Veronica?"

"I'm good," she replies automatically.

The doctor waits patiently.

Veronica says nervously, "How do we do this?"

"However you'd like. Tell me what's on your mind."

Veronica opens her mouth and closes it. _I've been imagining talking to her for days, but...I can't do it._ "You know, maybe this is a mistake." She rises from the chair.

"Why is it a mistake?" the doctor replies.

"Ugh. I hate when you do that," Veronica responds.

The doctor smiles. "We're just talking."

"Well, I don't know what to say."

Out in the waiting room, Keith is fidgeting. He stands up, walks to the window and looks out. "What do you think she's saying in there?" he asks suddenly. "It's good, right? It's got to be good that she's asking for help. I guess...it's just, I'll never get used to Veronica asking for help. You know what I mean?"

Logan reflects that he certainly does know what Keith means. He says obliquely, "She's still strong...you know that. Maybe it's a sign of strength that she knows she needs help."

"Okay," Keith replies. "Still...." He turns back to the window and stares at a building across the street without really focusing.

Logan realizes that Keith has been far more worried than he's been letting on for the last few days. "You know, I had an idea...something to cheer her up a little."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Weak Become Heroes**  
Veronica talks to the therapist.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Dr. Friedman: Lorraine Bracco.  
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CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED NINETEEN: "THE WEAK BECOME HEROES"

Fri. 3/20/09 afternoon: Dr. Friedman's Office, Los Angeles, CA

In Dr. Friedman's office, the doctor watches as Veronica sits nervously unable to speak. "Can you tell me about what happened at the school? From the beginning?"

"Logan told you what happened, right?"

"I'd like to hear what you thought happened," Dr. Friedman says noncommittally.

"They took me in the middle of the night. I was handcuffed because I tried to run away—I was setting it up that I was resisting against them. We thought it would take too long to get the evidence we needed unless I fought back from the beginning, you see."

Dr. Friedman nods that she understands.

"So when I got there, they strip-searched me, and I resisted again, so we got 'em hurting me on video and me asking for a doctor. I stabbed Maria in the arm with a pen when they tried to make me sign voluntary commitment papers. Maria was my oldcomer, you know—"

"I know the terminology," Dr. Friedman interrupts. "Please continue."

"They sentenced me to Observation Placement for the pen incident. Then, you know, they let me out, and I had to talk with Klein, and he went over all my flaws and bad behavior."

Dr. Friedman makes a few notes, and Veronica stops talking. Friedman looks up. "I'm just keeping it straight by taking a few notes. I'm not writing anything about you."

Veronica breathes for a minute. Hesitantly, she continues. "After that we had group therapy. I was really tired; I had been up all night when they transported me to the school, and I didn't get much sleep while I was in isolation. And I just nodded off, and all of a sudden, they were hauling me down to the floor, really hard. And—"

Dr. Friedman waits quietly.

"Logan had to hold me down. You know, he was working as a guard. To protect me."

Dr. Friedman nods.

"A couple days later, I screwed up. I mean, you know, in the long run, it was good I screwed up, but...." Veronica sighs, tangled in her words. "I comforted one of the other girls in group therapy, and they assigned me an essay to write. You can't understand how insane it was...they kept saying 'We love you', and then they'd keep confronting us unless we admitted how fucked up we were. So I needed to get evidence of that, but...I didn't hug her on purpose, I just reacted."

"And they made you write an essay?"

"I realized it was an opportunity to provoke them. I just wrote, 'Fuck you Briar Hill', over and over again." Veronica stops, remembering what came next: trying to escape and Logan hurting her, on purpose it had seemed at the time. She recalls struggling against him, feeling his strong arms tightening angrily—feeling a sense of panic overtaking her.

"What happened?" Friedman presses.

"They put me in restraints for a couple days. It was good; we needed to document the use of restraints."

"It was good?"

"You know, for the case." She avoids looking at Friedman's sympathetic eyes. Veronica mutters, "I was surprised how hard it was, being in restraints I mean." _I don't have to talk about the bucket yet._

There is an awkward silence; Veronica seems reluctant to continue. Finally, she says, "Afterwards, they kept it up. They didn't leave me alone, even if I was cooperating. Klein had Maria hurt me by twisting my arm behind my back." She motions with the arm in the sling. "And you know, it was pretty bad, they kept confronting me, yadda yadda yadda, and then...um...I broke down and called for help, but they didn't come."

"That must have been terrifying," Dr. Friedman comments.

Veronica nods but keeps silent.

"How did it actually end?"

"I was feverish—in the hospital they diagnosed a kidney infection. You know, they didn't let me use the bathroom often enough and the...hygiene was...." Friedman nods that she understands. "So I don't really remember the last day. There was another group therapy session, and I guess the headmaster was confronting me." Her voice begins to speed up. "The whole operation was very successful; we documented a lot of the abuse, and I'm doing okay now. I'm fine."

"You know, the average girl sent to the school would be going along to get along her first week and scared to death about what was happening. It sounds like you were pushing back from the minute you got there. They would have made that first week very intense for you. I think you're minimizing how bad it was."

Veronica stares back; she finally admits, "Yeah, it was a lot harder than I thought it would be."

"What was the worst part?"

Veronica thinks for a moment. "No one to talk to. Not being able to control anything—having to sit and think instead of doing something."

Friedman frowns. "It wasn't that you were becoming uncertain of your own mind? That's a common result from these kinds of stressors."

Veronica shrugs.

"When somebody tells you that you are a bad person over and over again, even if you know you are playing a role and not really that person, you will begin to question your own worthiness. It's called a 'situational' effect."

Veronica doesn't react.

The doctor continues, "Someone like Peter Klein is a skilled manipulator. He would be able to read his victims like a book. Even if they were trying to hide the truth from him."

Veronica shivers reflexively. In a quiet voice, she says, "I never knew how weak I was. I always thought I was a strong person. I let him—" She breaks off.

"You're weak because you had to ask for help? Because you had to stop the operation?" Dr. Friedman prompts.

"No! Because I'm such a bad person...he was able to see it and use it against me," Veronica moans, as the tears begin to run down her face. "I always thought the worst of everyone, especially Logan. I accused him of murder! I loved him, and I told the sheriff he had killed Lilly! Klein was right, I do have a black hole instead of a soul. Just the other day, one of my best friends Weevil was kidding with me, calling me a blackmailer. That's how he thinks of me. Everyone knows that's how I am!"

Dr. Friedman asks calmly, "What did your friend mean, when he teased you and called you a blackmailer?"

Veronica is startled out of her crying jag. She sniffles a bit and grabs a tissue from the table. "What did he mean? I guess that I use information to get what I need, to force people into doing things they don't want to do."

"Isn't that partly what it means to be a PI? You get evidence for divorce cases and insurance claims, which influences the outcome. And you gather information and analyze the data."

"I guess. But still I shouldn't be doing it to my friends. You know, trading information on them for their cooperation," Veronica replies.

Dr. Friedman asks thoughtfully, "Have you ever just asked your friends for what you need?"

"Of course...sometimes. But usually...I'm always asking for a favor, but I never intend to pay it back...and I always think the worst of them."

"Tell me about your friends, Veronica."

_This was a bad idea. We're not getting anywhere,_ Veronica thinks. _How is this helping?_ The doctor is waiting for her answer; finally she says, "Logan obviously. Wallace was my best friend in high school; he works part-time for my dad now too. Weevil: he used to be in a motorcycle gang and went to my high school; he works at Hearst now. Mac is my best girlfriend; Duncan is an old boyfriend who's back in town again. Maybe Dick, Logan's best friend, I guess we're friends too, now. My dad of course." _I can't tell her that I just use all of them whenever it's convenient. I can't even help myself anymore._

"Okay, we know Logan was willing to go undercover for you. That's a pretty good friend."

Veronica scoffs. "That was only because he was worried about me—he knew I was being foolish."

"Still, he was there for you, even though it wasn't exactly what he wanted." Friedman checks her notes. "What about Wallace?"

"Yeah, Wallace would do anything for me. But he gets frustrated, because I'm always asking for favors and not telling him everything that's going on. And it's always a one-way street: it's what I want, all the time."

"Always? You don't ever do _anything_ for him? What about Weevil, the one who teased you? Can you count on him?"

"Of course."

Dr. Friedman looks at Veronica, her eyebrows raised suggestively.

"Okay, I see your point, I have good friends I can rely on," Veronica mutters.

"People who help you when you need them. All you have to do is ask. People who care about you. And you help them when they ask?"

"Yes. If I give them a chance to ask," she says, with self-loathing.

"You're not your job, Veronica. You might not be happy about some of the things you've done to the people around you in the past, but they clearly love you and are loyal to you, and you to them. Does that make sense for a person whose soul is a black hole?"

Veronica blurts out, "But they don't trust me now. They always hold things back from me."

"Such as?"

_The gun that my dad gave to Logan. The lawsuit that Klein just filed._ She says instead, "They weren't going to tell me about my friend's family dying. Mac's family...we thought they'd been killed in a terrible accident." _We thought they'd been killed...it sounds like a soap opera. I sound insane._

"You mean they were protecting you?"

"Yeah. Because I'm so weak."

"That doesn't sound like they don't trust you."

"Logan is— He's afraid to tell me what's going on, what he's—" _Whatever it is that he doesn't want me to remember about Shelly's party._ The words spill out thoughtlessly, unheeded. "He keeps saying he's worried I'm going to leave him. I don't understand why he would think that. I keep telling him how much I need him, even though I hate that everyone knows how...fucked up I am now. I feel like I lose a little piece of myself, every time I admit I need their help. And they keep going over all the times I let them down in the past. I mean, I know we have to: the problems we have now are because of the past, and we have to talk about these things, but I always feel so bad about all the choices I made that put my friends and my dad in danger now. You see, we think somebody's trying to hurt us because of...because of...." She finally stops because she's out of breath.

Veronica takes a couple deep breaths and continues, "And I feel so guilty about making Logan go undercover. He's been so upset...terrible nightmares; he won't really tell me about them. I feel like...I've made him give up his life. And...whenever he's around me, his life goes to hell."

"Veronica, how do you think Logan feels about you?"

"He has this irrational love for me."

Dr. Friedman appears to be surprised, and Veronica has a flash of smug satisfaction at being able to shock her, before she realizes that she is once again being 'self-centered,' 'self-important'. She remembers Alyssa drumming it into her: 'You need to get out of your head. Let go, and let God.'_ What was that list of my faults again? Oh yeah, reckless, sarcastic, self-righteous, suspicious, critical...._ Veronica attempts to focus. _Alyssa was full of shit,_ she thinks, trying to convince herself.

Friedman asks, "Why do you call Logan's love for you irrational?"

"It doesn't make sense that he loves me. I've never been able to trust him—never had faith in him. I've always thought the worst of him. I couldn't tell him I loved him for the longest time. He's romantic. I'm not."

"Veronica, do you think you're worthy of being loved?"

"Of course," she says without thinking.

Dr. Friedman stares at her.

Veronica, uncomfortable, repeats, "Of course I'm worthy of being loved. Logan is the one who...."

"Does it make you uncomfortable, Logan's unconditional love for you? The way he's willing to give up his life for you?"

Veronica mutters, "I hate you."

"What was that?" the doctor queries, not sure what Veronica said.

"I hate this. Do you enjoy doing this to your patients?" Veronica asks in frustration.

"Of course not. We're just talking, Veronica." Dr. Friedman stands up. "I'm having a glass of water. Would you like one?"

Veronica nods. As the doctor gets two cups of water from a cooler in the corner of the room, Veronica thinks that this was the stupidest idea she's ever had. _We're not even talking about—_

"You said you hate feeling weak, Veronica. What would make you feel strong?" Dr. Friedman asks as she hands Veronica a cup.

Veronica lifts her injured arm. "I need to get rid of this damn sling. I hate being injured. I hate having to ask everyone to help me."

"Not just because you're injured, you mean."

"Okay, I admit it, I don't like being so dependent on them. I hate having to ask for help," Veronica replies.

"Veronica, I'm not trying to make you admit anything. What's going on with your shoulder, medically?"

"I'll need surgery and physical therapy, I guess. But I have to get over this kidney infection first. I just have to get through the next few days." Veronica shrugs.

"So you're still on antibiotics."

Veronica nods.

"Aren't you supposed to be resting?"

"I'm taking it easy," she says evasively.

Dr. Friedman frowns. "You look tired to me."

"Things have been going on. The funeral...there was a shooting; we had to investigate somebody—sort of an emergency."

Friedman raises her eyebrows.

Veronica sighs. "The sheriff was investigating us in a murder case; we had to clear our names."

"That sounds stressful, especially when you're sick and injured. You have to take care of yourself, and let the people you love take care of you." Veronica winces unthinkingly. Friedman adds, "Logan was injured too, and you took care of him. Now he has to take care of you."

"I know."

"That was easier, to take care of him, wasn't it?" Dr. Friedman asks.

"For me. It was hard on him." She bursts out, "I don't know how to do this."

"Do what?"

"Figure out a life with him."

"No one knows how to do it, Veronica."

"Yeah, they do. They seem to be able to make decisions and just do what they need to. The problem is that his life always goes to hell when I'm around."

"Did you cause his problems this semester?"

"Well, some of them. He thought he had to protect me. I asked him to be there at the school so I'd feel safe."

"But Veronica, that was a huge step for you. That was progress. I remember how you struggled with that the last time you were here."

_It doesn't feel like progress,_ Veronica thinks.

"What about Hannah?" the doctor asks.

"What about her?" Veronica replies.

"Is that your fault too?"

"Well, maybe...maybe if I hadn't broken up with Logan the summer before...." Veronica sees Dr. Friedman's expression. "Okay, I know. I know! I'm being ridiculous!! And it's what Logan does too...he always feels responsible when it's not even his fault."

"One of the ways that the tough-love programs work on their victims is by methodically destroying their value systems. They purposely break you, so that they can re-instill a new system of moral behavior. There's a lot of emphasis on personal responsibility, and they force you to question everything you think you know about your life."

"Tell me about it," Veronica says bitterly.

"You were under attack at the school. From what I've read, Peter Klein is one of the best manipulators in the industry...he's extremely adept psychologically. He's able to read his victims; he can find your weaknesses and use them against you to break you. Just because you assumed a role to play while you were undercover doesn't mean that he wasn't able to determine exactly how to hurt you the most."

"But Klein was just discovering the truth about me," Veronica whispers. "If I had been stronger...if I didn't have all these _issues_ before I went undercover, it wouldn't have—"

"Veronica, do you remember talking about how survivors of these tough-love programs have to find a way to make the experience worthwhile? They have to find something positive in the experience in order to move on, maybe even embrace the program as their salvation."

"I don't want to do that. There was nothing positive there," she replies bitterly.

"Our lives are a sum of our experiences. You can't erase your time there, even if you want to."

"I don't want to erase it!! I need to—" Veronica stops, terrified.

"What?"

Veronica exhales heavily. "On the last day...the day I don't really remember...Klein was confronting me about my rape. I assume Logan has mentioned that I was raped?"

Friedman nods reluctantly.

"I don't remember much about the night that I got raped five years ago. I'd been dosed with Liquid X without my knowledge. Most of the information I have about that night is from the other people who were there. And some of them...had very good reasons to lie to me." Veronica wipes a tear from her eye. "I thought I'd made my peace with it. It was complicated but...the boy who raped me is dead." She meets Friedman's eyes and knows immediately that the doctor knows about Duncan as well. "I think...that last day at Briar Hill I remembered something about my rape."

The doctor maintains a poker face, and Veronica immediately surmises that Logan has discussed this with her. She says, "He told you."

Dr. Friedman nods reluctantly. "That's one of the reasons why it's problematic for me to treat both of you."

"I don't care," Veronica cries suddenly. "I can't start over from the beginning with a new therapist. It would take a year just to get through high school."

"I understand, but—"

"And I trust you," Veronica interrupts. "You don't understand how rare that is for me."

Dr. Friedman inclines her head. "Thank you, Veronica. That's a great compliment."

_You don't know the half of it...well, maybe she does._ "I know I remembered something that last day...I can feel it."

"But now you've lost the memory again?"

Veronica nods.

Dr. Friedman asks, "And that's worse? Not knowing?"

"I don't know anymore," Veronica says, wretchedly. "I spend every waking minute investigating all these cases, but I can't figure out what happened to me. It used to be the most frustrating thing in the world, but then...." She sighs and looks down at her lap.

Dr. Friedman queries curiously, "Have you ever talked to Logan about that night? Asked him to help you remember as much as possible? He could try to take through the evening chronologically."

Veronica sucks in her breath. _Why haven't I ever asked him what he remembers? Am I afraid of what he'll say? I wouldn't let him talk that night in the pool house...I cut him off when he started telling me about the salt lick. And now...he always acts like he did something monstrous at Shelly's party._ "He's...scared to talk about it. I don't know why. He's admitted he's afraid I'll leave him because of that night."

"Do you think he did something that was...unforgivable?"

"Other than buying the drugs? And putting some in Duncan's drink?"

"Is that unforgivable?" the doctor asks.

"He thinks so."

"What do you think?"

"I don't know," Veronica says honestly. "It wasn't wise. But then again he did a lot of things in high school that weren't very wise. I don't know if he did something else that night that he doesn't want me to find out." She looks out the window and says softly, "If he did do something else...I want to think I could forgive him, but...I don't know if I would. But I think...I think Logan is just afraid I'll decide he should have saved me that night, and I won't be able to get past it. It's what he always says about that night: 'I can't take that I hurt you when all I want to do is protect you.'"

Veronica turns back and gazes directly into the therapist's eyes. "Dr. Friedman, it's not just because I need to know what happened, although that's part of it." Her breath comes in pants; she's incredibly anxious physically. She is sweating profusely, and she has to work hard to keep her knee from jiggling compulsively. She closes her eyes and says, "I think they're going to use my rape at the trial...to discredit me, or to threaten me. They've already released a letter I wrote while undercover...I assume you saw it? They're going to paint me as a lunatic, a rape survivor who's psychotic at best, possibly even insane and violent because of what I've been through. I need to be prepared. It can't be for nothing. I can't have gone through that for nothing." Veronica opens her eyes and stares at the therapist. "So you see, I want to watch the surveillance tapes from the last day, and I think I need you to help me with that. I want to watch the video and remember everything, and then help win the lawsuit so that other girls don't have to go through that."

"You'd be watching some very difficult material, Veronica. It could be very traumatic to see yourself being so vulnerable."

Veronica's voice trembles. "I know, but I'll be _more_ vulnerable if I don't know everything ahead of time. I can't testify, wondering what they're going to say about me."

"You're being very brave, Veronica. Many women would withdraw from the lawsuit rather than subject themselves to this."

Veronica looks away, tears forming in her eyes. "I'm not brave."

"What are you really afraid of, Veronica?"

She buries her face in her hands and wails, "I'm afraid to face Klein in court. I can't do it. He beat me, he won. I gave up."

"In an impossible situation, you called for help; you were performing a heroic task, Veronica. You were ill, injured, and sleep-deprived. You know that, right?"

"I know that. But I knew what it was going to be like, and I still let him beat me. He beat me by...." she sobs. "I let him beat me by assigning me jumping jacks. No one's going to see how hard it was. They're going to laugh at me for being so pathetic. They're going to believe him when he tells everyone that I'm just another user. I'm so ashamed."

"Veronica, you've been through a physical and mental ordeal, and the stress hasn't let up since you left the school—"

Veronica interrupts, "You don't understand...I've been doing better when we've been working. Everybody keeps congratulating me on the operation, but I feel like I failed; I feel like I'm lying every time I accept someone's compliment. It's when I...it's when I sit down and think, that I can't—"

"I understand. But Veronica, you have to give yourself some time to get over this. You did battle with experts who have perfected their brainwashing techniques for the last fifty years, and you won. You _won_, Veronica. They are scared to death that you will prevail at trial. That's why they're hitting back so hard; they wouldn't be worried if your case wasn't strong. Veronica, you caused them to be arrested and exposed for what they are. I promise you; you'll be a strong woman again, mentally and physically, with time. You have people who love you and are taking care of you. I see that you're torturing yourself with possibilities and worries about the legal battles ahead. We're all going to help you; you have people to rely on. That's not a weakness, that's a strength. I want you to do an exercise for me. Every time you start to think about Klein or the school, or how upsetting is to need people to help you right now, I want you mentally to list all the people who care about you, and think about the last time they told you they love you. And I want you to think about the quality of the love that they give you. You have people who care about you deeply, Veronica. I want you to say to yourself, 'I'm strong, and I'm getting stronger.'"

Veronica looks dubious.

Dr. Friedman presses, "Promise me you'll try?"

She nods reluctantly.

"Can you say it...I'm strong, and I'm getting stronger. I have people who love me," Dr. Friedman prompts.

Veronica repeats, "I'm strong, and I'm getting stronger. I have people who love me."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Do Not Pass Go**  
Leo's investigation; Veronica, Logan, and Keith  
try to relax; Candice and Wallace on a date;  
Weevil contemplates payback.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
Dr. Friedman: Lorraine Bracco. Wallace:  
Percy Daggs III. Eli: Francis Capra. Candice  
Pauling: Toy Connor.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED TWENTY: "DO NOT PASS GO"

Fri. 3/20/09 afternoon: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Leo sits at his desk reviewing the evidence, or rather, the lack of it. Daniel Mulvaney was picked up a short time ago; he asked for a lawyer and refused to say another word. His aunt Bridget denied knowing anything about the theft of the SUV. She admitted she had the code to the alarm system written on the key ring to the Crawford's house, but she claimed that her nephew doesn't have access to her purse. Leo decides to keep both of the Mulvaneys in custody while he tries to get a search warrant for their house.

Sacks took a statement from Griffith's receptionist, who said she was never allowed any access to the financial databases. She had only booked appointments and answered the phone. When pressed about the lack of patients at the practice, she had shrugged and said it was easiest receptionist job she'd ever had and she certainly never complained about it.

The border patrol and the Yuma, Arizona police have checked in: there's been no sign of Karen Fillipelli. The anesthesiologist isn't talking and has asked for a lawyer; Leo's pretty sure he doesn't know anything and just took a check from his old business partner Griffith. Checks were direct-deposited into an account, then cash was withdrawn, presumably by someone other than the anesthesiologist.

The intercom buzzes, and Sacks tells Leo the car stereo from the Crawford's SUV has turned up in a pawnshop outside of San Diego.

_Finally, a break in the case._ "Send Davis right away," Leo barks. "Find out where that stereo came from."

Fri. 3/20/09 late afternoon: Dr. Friedman's Office, Los Angeles, CA

Veronica emerges from Dr. Friedman's office into the waiting room. Both Logan and Keith notice immediately that she's been crying.

Keith stands up and goes to her, enveloping her in a hug. "Are you okay, honey?"

"Yeah, I'm okay," she replies. Veronica turns slightly and says, "Thank you, Dr. Friedman."

"Of course. Mr. Mars, can I speak with you?" the doctor asks.

Keith says, "Logan, why don't you take Veronica to her surprise?"

"You finally got my pony," Veronica says wanly. "It's about time."

Keith huffs a laugh and releases her from his hug. He follows Dr. Friedman as Logan puts his arm around Veronica's shoulder and escorts her out of the office.

"What's the surprise?" she asks as they walk into the hallway.

"It wouldn't be much of a surprise if I told you, right?" he says evasively.

"But I'm going to like it?"

"Oh absolutely," he replies, pushing the down button for the elevator. They step in, and they have the elevator to themselves. Logan hums along with 'The Girl from Ipanema' playing on the loudspeaker. "We haven't been alone in an elevator for a while now. Got any ideas?" he whispers into her ear.

"Didn't we get into enough trouble in the last one?" she replies.

"Penny-ante stuff. Just false murder charges...it was totally worth it for a little nooky in the elevator." He bends down and begins kissing her neck as she watches the numbers flash by. "How much would you give me to hit the emergency stop button right now?"

"I'd give you all my money _not_ to do it," she laughs. She turns and whispers, "You're just trying to distract me with your kisses and groping."

"Groping?!" He puts his hand on her ass and squeezes gently. "Is it working?" he asks.

"Actually it is," Veronica replies softly.

The elevator dings as they reach the main floor. Logan exits first, gently grabbing her hand and pulling her along. He leads her to a hair salon in the main lobby. "After you, milady." He makes a sweeping gesture and allows her to precede him.

The woman behind the counter says, "Ah yes. Here you are. Your friend told us you'd be interested in going back to your natural color and straightening your permanent?"

"Oh yes," Veronica says ecstatically.

The woman turns to Logan. "And you wanted a haircut and double-process hair color for yourself?"

He nods.

Veronica dumps her purse on the counter. "I have a picture you can use." She rummages with her left hand and extracts her wallet; she flips it to a picture of the two of them from the summer freshman senior year. Logan is tanned, with highlights in his short hair; Veronica looks happy and relaxed, with long blonde waves of hair swept back from her face.

The woman looks at the photo and says, "I don't think this will be a problem."

In Dr. Friedman's office several flights up, Keith sits down and faces the doctor. "How is she? Is she going to be okay? She was crying, wasn't she."

"Mr. Mars. First of all, I'd like to say that what you did at the school was very important work that truly needed to be done. There's been tremendous publicity, and I think your lawsuit might be the first step in getting some new laws on the books."

"But?" Keith prompts.

"You were listening and observing during the operation, correct?"

He nods, abashed. "I know, I should have gotten her out sooner—"

"It was a difficult situation. I know what it must have been like, and once she was there, you didn't want to waste the opportunity."

"Right."

"I'm sure Veronica's going to be all right. She has tremendous resilience and strength. What's going on now is that a random word or phrase will remind her of the programming they were trying to do on her. The brainwashing, you might say. Because she was fighting back, they were particularly intense with her."

Keith opens his mouth and Dr. Friedman quickly adds, "Mr. Mars, I'm sure you have a lot of questions. But I know you're aware that Veronica's sessions need to be completely private so that she feels free to discuss anything with me. You wouldn't want your own therapist to discuss your statements with your daughter."

He nods. "I understand. I'm just very worried about her."

"I've encouraged Veronica to speak with you about a particular topic we discussed today. She has legitimate concerns. But please don't pressure her. She's finding her courage right now. Mr. Mars, what Veronica needs right now is a little break from all this stress. I know that she mentioned that there are some things going on right now, but whatever you can do to help her relax and maybe even laugh a little would be very beneficial." Dr. Friedman scribbles something on a piece of paper. "This is my home number and my cell phone number, in case you need to reach me. Mr. Mars, I'm wondering if you have somebody that you can talk to. Veronica needs you at your best right now."

He remembers Veronica encouraging him to nap on the way here; _'Please, Dad. I'm going to need you at full strength.'_ "Yes, Veronica does need me. And I do think I have someone I can talk to. Thank you for everything, Dr. Friedman."

"Good luck, Mr. Mars."

Fri. 3/20/09 early evening: Navarro Residence, Neptune, CA

Weevil rummages through his bedroom closet and finds his old leather jacket. The last time he wore it was when he accompanied Veronica to East L.A. That time he wore it to blend in so they could get the information they needed quickly. Now, he puts in on and studies his reflection in the mirror. He scratches his chin; the stubble of his beard can't hide the slight puffiness of his cheeks from the painkillers he takes for his knee. The leather jacket, soft and well broken in, is a little more snug than it used to be. He pulls on the hem, adjusting the fit a little.

_FLASHBACK:  
On a construction site off the Pacific Coast Highway, the PCHers are gathered around as Weevil confronts Thumper about dealing drugs for the Fitzpatricks. Thumper asks sarcastically, "Let me make sure I got this straight. Working with our enemies, you got a problem with that?"_

_Weevil replies strongly, "You bet I do."_

_Thumper pretends to look puzzled. "Then maybe you can tell us what you were doing meeting at the Neptune Grand with Logan Echolls."_

_Weevil shakes his head, realizing that this is not going to go well._

_Hector chimes in angrily, "And you were gonna bust me up for selling to an '09er last week."_

_"Hector's cousin works maintenance there," Thumper says accusingly. "He saw you, all buddy-buddy with the piece of trash who killed Felix. You're right, there's rules. Like not selling out your brothers. I'm not like you, Weevil. I don't make good speeches, so I'm just gonna say, adios. Hope that covers it."_

_The PCHers gather around. They grab Weevil and begin to beat him viciously._

Weevil thinks about all the hard choices he's made in the last few years. It hasn't been easy to keep on the straight and narrow. When he scored the Magneta-corp ID encrypting machine two years ago, the temptation to profit from it had been fierce. He had ended up building a new brick fence in his backyard and encasing the device in a waterproof container inside the wall. There have been many late nights since that time when he lay awake on the bed wondering just when he turned into a sucker working for the man. His knee would throb likes a mother, and all he could think about was grabbing a sledgehammer and busting out the easy way from behind the bricks.

Yesterday's adrenaline-fueled playacting at Dr. Griffith's office had made him ache for the old days when they would relieve a spoiled '09er of their vehicle, or at least their rims. He remembers how people would quickly get out of the way when he and the PCHers had roared up a street; he had felt powerful and unstoppable.

Truth be told, most days he can't even reconcile this man in the mirror with the boy who had taped Wallace Fennel to a flagpole and laughed like hell when Bootsie misspelled 'SNICH'.

His cell phone rings, and he answers. "Yo....After second shift? So ten o'clock....Yeah. I'll be there, Arturo."

Weevil hangs up the phone. His eyes light on his tool bag near the door, and he pulls out several items that he thinks he might need.

Fri. 3/20/09 early evening: Candice Pauling's apartment, Neptune, CA

Candice and Wallace are sharing a pizza in her apartment. Wallace has been describing the various ruses they used to get information on Dr. Griffith's operation. She giggled when Wallace demonstrated his messenger boy act but had looked appalled when she heard that the office manager was missing and, Keith had said, presumed dead because of her knowledge of the scam.

"You mean they killed her," she says.

"Yeah, probably."

"And you're still investigating these people," Candice adds, her voice getting louder.

"They're a threat to Veronica and Mr. Mars, and probably to Logan too."

"Because you exposed them. If you'd left it alone—"

Wallace turns to her in confusion. "If we'd left it alone, Duncan might have been charged with a felony and lost custody of his kid. You told me you liked him."

"I did, I mean I do."

"And we had to get the sheriff to stop investigating Veronica and Logan," Wallace says strongly. "Don't you get it?"

"I get it. I just don't think it'll ever end. You said it was the Fitzpatricks? And that's the same people who...." She swallows. "Shawn was mixed up with them. They don't screw around, do they?"

They stare at each other.

Finally Wallace clears his throat. "It's going to be all right. And I think when the dust settles we might find out what happened with Shawn."

Fri. 3/20/09 evening: Logan's House, Venice Beach, CA

After sharing several cartons of Chinese food from Woo Too, Keith, Logan, and Veronica are playing Monopoly, trying to forget about the long day and just relax for a change. Without spelling it out, they all seem to acknowledge that they need to forget about Briar Hill, the Fitzpatricks, and the rest of it for an evening. Keith watches his daughter surreptitiously, worrying and wondering about her long session with the therapist. Occasionally he checks his cell phone, but Alan Sheffield has not returned his call. Wallace has reported that he hasn't identified either of the photos yet, but Weevil might have some information by the morning on Oswaldo Cortez. Keith had pressed Wallace for details, but Wallace had said that Weevil wouldn't tell him what he was planning.

Logan seems destined to win the game, having acquired both Boardwalk and Park Place with a hotel on each, although he has few other properties. Veronica throws the dice and lands on Park Place.

"Pay up, honeybun," Logan says with a smirk.

"Wealth is so wasted on the rich," Veronica replies sarcastically.

"You know, if you play your cards right, I might let you slide on the rent."

"Play my cards right?"

"You know, give me a little sugar."

Veronica pretends to be appalled. "Sexual favors?"

"I can't watch this," Keith says. He stands up and walks to the kitchen to get a drink. He carefully turns his back on the couple and pours a soda.

Veronica says, "What are we talking about here? A kiss? I know." She whispers. "A hand job."

"Unh-uh." He bends to her ear. "The whole nine yards, baby. Otherwise, it's the poorhouse for you." Logan reaches over and fingers Veronica's stash of play money. "I don't think you have enough here to pay the rent."

"I'll give you one of my railroads," she says, pretending to plead.

"At a fire sale price, of course. Railroads are so twentieth century."

"How about this 'get out of jail free' card? I know you'll need that sooner or later," she replies, waving a yellow card in his face.

"Number one, conjugal visits are hot. And number two, I think you need that card more than I do. After committing fraud in that beauty contest, you're going up the river, sugarpuss," Logan teases.

Veronica scoffs. "Fraud? I won second place fair and square." She calls to her dad, who is steadfastly ignoring them. "Daa-ad. Can I borrow some money? Please."

"You need to learn to stand on your own two feet, honey," Keith answers from the kitchen.

Veronica tsks in annoyance. "You guys are double-teaming me." She sighs dramatically. In an exaggerated Southern accent, she says, "What's a young girl to do when she don't have a dowry? I'll have to kiss him, Pa."

Logan replies, "'I don't think I will kiss you—although you need kissing badly. That's what's wrong with you. You should be kissed, and often, and by someone who knows how.'"

In the kitchen, Keith shakes his head at their banter.

Veronica frowns theatrically at Logan before kissing him thoroughly. She pulls away with a smug expression.

"Whew. That was good." Logan puts out his hand expectantly. "Fifteen hundred dollars, please. Or thirteen hundred, the railroad, and the 'get out of jail free' card."

Veronica sulks as she hands over almost all her cash and the two cards. "I want to play 'Clue'."

Keith comes back from the kitchen and comments, "I'm guessing it's going to be a shotgun wedding?"

"She used her feminine wiles on me, sir," Logan explains. "I resisted with all my might."

"Oh, I know," Keith replies. "Believe me, I know." He leans down and kisses Veronica on the forehead. "Buck up, honey, you'll beat him next time."

"I ain't going take this lyin' down, Pops," Veronica says.

"Wouldn't expect you to."

Fri. 3/20/09 evening: Employee Parking Area, Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

Oswaldo Cortez is walking from the service entrance of the hotel. A white panel van is parked next to his car. As he walks past it, the rear door bursts open and three young men jump out. They throw a black hood over Oswaldo's head and hustle him into the van as Oswaldo struggles violently.

In the passenger seat, Weevil says, "Let's go." The driver throws the van into gear and heads out, tires screeching as he exits the lot.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Land Mines**  
Veronica's reacts to therapy; Weevil pursues  
vengeance; Mac's situation worsens.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Eli: Francis Capra.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Dick: Ryan Hansen.  
Ethan Lavoie: John Prosky. Peter Klein:  
Clancy Brown. Carrie Bishop: Leighton  
Meester. Madison: Amanda Noret. Epstein:  
Scott Grimes. Judge: Don Worley. Inga  
Olofson: Seraina Jacqueline. Oswaldo:  
Frankie Rodriguez. Alan Sheffield: Ned  
Vaughn. Man: ???  
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-ONE: "LAND MINES"

Fri. 3/20/09 late evening: Logan's House, Venice Beach, CA

Logan helps Veronica get ready for bed after the first relaxed evening in recent memory. _It's like we forgot how to laugh,_ he muses. After the Monopoly game ended, they had given in to Veronica's pleadings and played 'Clue' with her. Veronica had triumphantly identified the perpetrator as Colonel Mustard in the library with the lead pipe, and he and Keith had shared a laugh at her over-the-top exultations.

She snuggles against him and closes her eyes. Logan conks out immediately, but Veronica lies awake thinking about her session with Dr. Friedman. Finally, tossing and turning, she falls asleep and begins to dream.

Veronica is seated in the witness chair and is recounting her time spent in restraints at Briar Hill, guided by Ms. Denenberg's attorney, James Epstein. "Ms. Mars, tell us again. Did you have any respite from this punishment?"

"I was led to a bathroom and allowed to use the facilities. I estimated that these breaks took place every six hours."

Epstein asks, "And if you had needed a break before that time?"

"I was alone in the room. There was no one to ask for a break." The courtroom murmurs; Veronica senses that they are on her side.

"No further questions." As the attorney steps back, Veronica's eyes meet those of Peter Klein. She is shocked to see that he doesn't look worried; in fact, he regards her with amusement.

Klein has hired Ethan Lavoie as his attorney. Veronica tenses as the weaselly lawyer approaches her; she remembers his sarcastic insinuations from Aaron's trial and prepares for the worst. He says, innocuously, "Nice to see you again, Ms. Mars."

"Can't say the same," Veronica replies without thinking as Lavoie paces in front of the witness box.

Abruptly, the attorney whirls around. "Isn't it true that you were placed in restraints at Briar Hill because of your violent behavior?"

"I struggled against one of the guards who was trying to put me under control," she answers. "I wouldn't say that I was violent."

"This guard was in actuality your own undercover operative, Mr. Echolls."

"Yes."

Lavoie leans in. "And he intentionally hurt you at that time."

Veronica sucks in her breath. _How the fuck does he know that?_ She recovers and says, "He misjudged how hard to hold me in order to pretend to restrain me. It was important that he act like a typical guard." She sees Klein lean over and whisper something to his legal team.

"I see. So this operative that was in place to protect you was so frustrated with your behavior that he hurt you?"

Epstein leaps up. "Objection. Relevance, your honor."

"Sustained. Move on, Mr. Lavoie."

Mr. Lavoie acknowledges the judge's ruling and paces around the room. "Let's talk about your therapy at the school. What was the primary focus of the therapy you received at the school?"

"I didn't receive _therapy_ at the school," Veronica replies, barely keeping the sarcasm from her voice. "I was punished repeatedly for not repeating the slogans espoused by the school."

"Your honor, please instruct the witness to restrict her remarks to the question asked."

"Ms. Mars...."

Barely holding her sarcasm in check, Veronica says, "I'm sorry, your honor. Can you rephrase the question please?"

"What was the school's assessment of your psychiatric problems?"

"They claimed that I was a drug abuser."

"Yes, of course." Lavoie pretends to ponder for a minute. "What about sexual addiction?"

"Excuse me?" Veronica asks incredulously.

"Isn't it true that Mr. Klein determined that you were lying about a supposed rape in your past?"

"What?" Veronica looks wildly at Epstein, who doesn't look up from scribbling notes.

"Ms. Mars, isn't it true that you made up a story about being raped five years ago? Mr. Klein was attempting to get you to admit that the incident in question was in fact consensual sex with two boys."

"NO! I was raped."

Lavoie asks condescendingly, "I'm sorry, I'm confused. Are you saying you were raped twice in one night?"

Veronica exhales. "Well, no, the first boy was...." She doesn't know how to say it, and her voice trails off.

"Wasn't the first boy whom you claimed raped you in fact your long-term boyfriend Duncan Kane? And did you not subsequently have _another_ relationship with him after this rape supposedly occurred?"

"It was complicated," Veronica says weakly. "We were both drugged."

"So you were high and had sex with your ex-boyfriend, then later you got back together with him."

"That's not what happened. Logan put—" She realizes and stops dead.

"You were saying?"

"We were drugged against our will and...I don't know...I can't remember most of that night."

"Really. Let's go on to the other supposed rapist that night. A Mr. Cassidy Casablancas, I believe."

"Beaver," Veronica says.

"Yes, I understand that's what you called him. He was your friend. In fact, he hired you as a private investigator almost two years after this rape occurred. And you were so incensed at his raping you that you took the case."

Veronica tries to explain. "I didn't know then that he was the boy who raped me." _I sound like a lunatic._

"Oh, so Duncan Kane did not rape you, but Cassidy Casablancas did."

"It was consensual with Duncan, but not with Bea– with Cassidy," Veronica protests.

"But you're unaware of the entire night supposedly. How can you be sure it was consensual with Duncan and not with Cassidy? Perhaps you gave consent. Perhaps you were just looking for a good time."

"NO!! It was rape! When I woke up without my underwear, sore and bloody, I knew I'd been raped."

"So you reported the rape. It's strange, there was no incident report." Lavoie pretends to look through a sheaf of papers in front of Peter Klein.

Klein tents his fingers and stares directly at Veronica. She tries not to look at him and focuses on Lavoie. "The sheriff didn't believe me."

Mr. Lavoie addresses the judge. "If you'll give me some latitude, I'd like to explore this supposed rape incident a little further. And I'd like the option to recall Ms. Mars at a later time."

"Granted. You may step down, Ms. Mars."

"Your honor..." Veronica pleads but the judge ignores her. She stands up and realizes she's wearing the infamous white dress from that night...and no underwear. She hangs her head and returns to sit down next to Ms. Denenberg's lawyer. Ms. Denenberg casts her a furious glance, obviously upset that Veronica has managed to damage their case. Veronica tugs on the attorney's sleeve. "I need to go change."

"No. You need to stay." He looks at her dress with disgust. "I don't know what's wrong with you: we talked about you wearing something modest and conservative."

"I did." She remembers putting on a skirt suit that morning, with conservative low-heeled shoes and pantyhose. Veronica looks down at her fuck-me high heels and bare legs; she touches the choker at her neck. She wants desperately to check her face in a mirror; she's certain she's wearing too much makeup. _How did this happen?_

"If that's what you call modest...." Epstein shakes his head, and Veronica flushes and looks away.

Lavoie says, "We call Carrie Bishop to the stand."

Veronica is horrified. Carrie walks in and flounces up to the witness chair to be sworn in by the bailiff. "Ms. Bishop, can you tell us what you witnessed at Ms. Pomroy's party."

"I saw her," Carrie indicates Veronica, "In a room with Duncan Kane. She was pulling his clothes off. She didn't even care that the door was open and everyone could see."

"Did she appear to be incapacitated?" Lavoie asks.

"No, of course not. She'd been drinking, but she was certainly not incapacitated."

"Then you were surprised to hear that she was claiming to be raped?"

Carrie snorts. "Nothing Veronica does would surprise me. She tried to defend a teacher who had had sex with an underaged student."

"Thank you, Ms. Bishop. I call Madison Sinclair to the stand." While they wait for Madison, Lavoie holds a whispered consultation with Klein. The two men keep glancing over at Veronica, and she shivers apprehensively.

Veronica asks Epstein anxiously, "Aren't you going to question these witnesses?"

He shakes his head 'no'. Veronica, still uncomfortable in her white dress, tries to pull the bodice a little higher to cover herself up. She crosses her legs and pulls the hem of her skirt down to cover her knees. _God, if a reporter sees that I don't have underwear on...._

Madison is in her element on the witness stand. She is simpering seductively, obviously posing for the crowded courtroom. Veronica clenches her fists, wishing that she could wipe that smirk off Madison's face.

Lavoie says, "Tell us about what happened at Shelly Pomroy's party."

"Veronica Mars was making out with all the boys in front of everyone. She grabbed my boyfriend, Dick Casablancas, and started dancing with him. She pushed him down on the couch and started kissing him. Even after Dick tried to push her off, Veronica kept making out with him. He finally got her off him, and she went on to the next boy down the line, Casey Gant. He at least was smart enough not to want to catch whatever STD she was running a special on that week."

Veronica is flaming red, furious at Madison. _I've never regretted not cubing that bitch's car more than right this second._

Lavoie asks, "It's my understanding you wrote something on the windshield of Ms. Mars' car that night." He ostentatiously checks his notes. "'Slut', I believe, is what you wrote."

Furiously, Veronica shakes Epstein. "How is this relevant?" she hisses in his ear.

"Yes, because 'whore' had too many letters," Madison says triumphantly. A few people in the courtroom titter, and despite her anger, Veronica has a flash of pettiness as Madison realizes that the observers think that she couldn't spell 'whore'. Madison flushes and adds quickly, "There wasn't enough room to write five letters."

"Was this the first time that you witnessed the defendant acting in such a lewd manner?" Lavoie asks.

_The defendant?!_ Veronica stands up and protests, "I'm not on trial here."

The judge stares at her sternly. "Yes, you are. Sit down, Ms. Mars. I want to hear this."

Veronica is consumed by panic. "Epstein," she whispers. "You've got to stop this!"

He sighs. "I'll try to get you off, but you know the penalties for false accusations. I wish you had told the truth about that night."

Madison is beaming at the judge. "The rumor was that she pleasured the entire swim team while jacked up on goof-balls." The judge huffs in disgust and makes a note on the paper in front of him.

Lavoie clarifies, "So she had a long history of multiple sexual encounters?"

"Yes. Apparently it runs in the family. I heard her mother was a drunken slut, too."

Lavoie asks, "Ms. Sinclair, are you aware that Ms. Mars has accused you of giving her a drugged drink that night at the Pomroy's?"

"She always says that. The truth is, there were so many tongues in her mouth that night that she has no idea what she swallowed." The crowd murmurs at the nasty insinuation. Veronica tries to look at her dad, but he avoids her gaze. As she turns back, Klein catches her eye and smiles benevolently.

Lavoie stares at Veronica as he asks Madison, "So it _isn't_ true that you spit in a drink and gave it to her?"

Madison rolls her eyes. "Yes, it's true. Oh my god, like she was _so_ scarred for life."

"No further questions. Mr. Epstein, your witness." Lavoie says magnanimously.

Veronica sighs in relief. _Finally._

Epstein says, "Ms. Sinclair, did you actually witness my client having sexual relations with either Duncan Kane or Cassidy Casablancas?"

"No," Madison says sullenly.

"So your entire testimony is based on rumors and innuendo?"

Madison says defensively, "She's a slut, okay? It's not a rumor, it's a fact."

"So you say." Epstein sits down and Veronica smiles at him gratefully. Epstein whispers in her ear, "We're not out of the woods yet, Veronica, by a long shot."

Lavoie says, "The prosecution calls Richard Casablancas, Jr."

Veronica grabs Epstein's arm. "You can't let Dick testify!!"

"We don't have a choice, Veronica," the attorney replies.

Dick appears uncomfortable in a suit and tie. As he is sworn in, he avoids looking in Veronica's direction.

"Mr. Casablancas, can you tell us what happened at Shelly Pomroy's party?"

Dick glances at Veronica momentarily before looking away. "Nothing really."

Lavoie says strongly, "Is there a problem, Mr. Casablancas? Has Ms. Mars been intimidating you?"

"No, definitely not. We've never been intimate."

Lavoie is flummoxed by Dick's mistake. He restates, "No...Mr. Casablancas, has Ms. Mars threatened you in any way?"

"No." Dick steadfastly refuses to look at Veronica.

Mr. Lavoie approaches the bench. "Your honor, permission to treat this man as a hostile witness. He's obviously afraid of the defendant."

The judge nods his agreement and casts a disapproving look in Veronica's direction.

Lavoie asks, "Isn't it true that Ms. Mars threatened you in the spring of 2005? She was overheard saying, 'Insulting me right now seems like a good plan, how?' At the time, she was about to destroy your personal property."

"Yeah, my surfboard. I really loved that board," Dick says dreamily.

"Focus, Mr. Casablancas. What happened at Shelly Pomroy's party?"

"I don't want to say," Dick protests.

"Mr. Casablancas, you will be charged with perjury if you don't answer my question."

Reluctantly, Dick says, "I found Veronica in the guest bedroom with my little brother."

"Was she resisting his advances?"

Dick looks at Veronica for help. She gives him a look of frustration. _Please...use that pea-brain for once, Dick. No more Pi Sig rate. All favors on the house from here on out._

"Mr. Casablancas, do not attempt to communicate with the witness." Lavoie positions himself between Dick and Veronica. "What did you see in the bedroom?"

Dick sighs. "Veronica was crawling toward Beaver. She said, 'Beaver, don't go, you said you were gonna stay here with me.' Then he said, 'Yeah, well, I'm here, I'm staying. Veronica, I'm here.' You know, they were kinda...making eyes at each other." He turns to Veronica. "I'm sorry, Ronnie!!"

"Mr. Casablancas!" the judge admonishes.

Dick hangs his head. "Veronica said, 'Well, why don't you come back here? It's an awfully big bed.'"

Lavoie paces in front of the witness stand. "Isn't it true that you also provided your brother with a prophylactic that night?"

"A prof-a-what?"

"A condom. You gave him a condom and stated, 'You better suit up. You don't know where she's been.'"

"Yeah, I said that," Dick admits.

Out of the corner of her eye, Veronica sees Klein nodding knowingly.

"So you knew that the defendant was sexually promiscuous? She slept around," Lavoie clarifies for Dick's benefit.

"That's what we thought. I really don't—"

"Thank you," Lavoie interrupts. "Mr. Casablancas, is it true that you and Mr. Logan Echolls procured some Liquid X for this party?"

Dick looks around wildly.

"Answer the question, Mr. Casablancas," the judge chides.

"No, I didn't get the drugs. Logan, Sean, and Luke did. But Luke gave me his dose."

Lavoie presses, "And did you and Mr. Echolls put the Liquid X in the cup that was given to Ms. Mars?"

"No. I don't know what Logan did with his. I put mine in Madison's cup."

"Who then gave it to Ms. Mars."

"I don't know. I wasn't paying attention. I swear," Dick says sincerely.

"No further questions. Your witness," Lavoie concludes.

Veronica whispers to Epstein. "Ask him about Beaver. He can tell you about the Sharks, how Beaver was abused by Woody Goodman."

Epstein whispers back, "I don't think it's relevant. The issue is whether you made up a story about a rape that never happened. You probably should think about coming clean, Veronica. It looks bad for you...all this evidence that you're a slut."

"I'm not a slut," Veronica protests. "Beaver raped me."

Epstein stands up and says, "No questions, your honor." Veronica gapes at him in disbelief.

Lavoie says, "The prosecution calls Inga Olofson."

Veronica sighs in relief. _Finally. Inga will tell the truth._

Inga looks nervous. For all her years working in law enforcement, she's never had to testify in court before.

"Ms. Olofson, do you remember that morning when Ms. Mars walked into the sheriff's department?"

Inga is relieved; this question is easier that she had anticipated. "Ja, of course. She asked to speak to the sheriff."

"And did the sheriff take a report from Ms. Mars?"

"No," Inga replies.

"He didn't arrest anyone for rape?" Lavoie says strongly.

Inga sighs. "No."

"In fact, what did he say to you after Ms. Mars left?"

Hesitantly, Inga says, "Sheriff Lamb said, 'She probably got drunk and had sex and wants to get her story on the record in case she gets the clap or turns up pregnant.'"

Veronica, furious, shoves Epstein. "Object, goddammit. Isn't that hearsay?"

"Dead men tell no lies," he answers. Veronica just stares at him, unable even to protest any more.

"The prosecution calls Keith Mars to the stand." Veronica drops her head, unable to look at her dad. _I'm so sorry, Dad. I fucked up bigtime._

"Mr. Mars, tell us about the last day of your daughter's undercover operation at Briar Hill."

Veronica's leg begins to twitch uncontrollably under the table. She holds it with her hand to try to force it to be still.

Keith keeps his voice calm and measured. "Veronica was receiving group therapy. We didn't realize that her audio bug had stopped functioning and that she had actually asked for the operation to end."

"Or so she said later."

"Excuse me?" Keith replies, puzzled.

Lavoie explains, "You only have her word for that, isn't that correct? Mr. Klein says that Veronica approached him and told him she wanted to come clean and discuss her behavior in group. Perhaps your daughter sabotaged the bug because she finally wanted to work on her character flaws, and she was reluctant to have her father listening."

Keith's mouth is open in shock. Finally, he responds, "I don't have any proof that Veronica's bug had stopped working. But you don't have any proof that she sabotaged it either."

"Well, we'll hear from Peter Klein later on that issue," Lavoie remarks, glancing at the headmaster. "What did you observe over your surveillance devices?"

"I heard my daughter talking about her rape."

"Her rape or her sexual encounters? Let's be clear, Mr. Mars."

"Her rape, Mr. Lavoie."

"Does your daughter ever...lie to you, Mr. Mars?"

Keith replies, "I'm sure she's had occasion to fib. She is a teenage girl, after all."

Lavoie nods. "Other than the occasional fib, would you say that you have a close relationship?"  
**  
"**I would say _very_ close."

**"**So, you would expect to hear the truth on what most people would call the..." Lavoie makes air quotes, "big issues."

"I would," Keith says firmly.

"So did your daughter come to you when she supposedly had been 'raped'?" Again, Lavoie makes air quotes.

"No...my daughter did not come to me when she was raped," Keith says through gritted teeth.

"Did your daughter have a personal relationship with Duncan Kane?"

"Yes, they dated. Freshman year, and then again in her senior year."

"So after she claimed this rape occurred, she dated him again," Lavoie continues.

"That's correct."

"Well, doesn't it stand to reason that it wasn't actually a rape after all, but just a sexual encounter with her old boyfriend?"

"She was raped by another boy that night," Keith says in a menacing tone.

"After she had sex with Duncan Kane. So let me see if I got this right. She convinced one _boyfriend_, Logan Echolls, to give her drugs that night. She had sex with another _boyfriend_, Duncan Kane. Then she had sex with another boy, Cassidy Casablancas, but she realized she might have contracted a sexually transmitted disease or become pregnant, so she tried to file a false report at the sheriff's department."

"You want to be careful there, Mr. Lavoie. My daughter _was_ raped by Cassidy, and she did not file a false report."

Lavoie changes tacks. "I believe it was a surprise to you when you learned in open court that your daughter had a sexually transmitted disease."

"Yes, it was," Keith admits.

"And that was when Ms. Mars decided to renew her claim that she had been 'raped', so that you wouldn't find out that she had had multiple sexual partners on numerous occasions."

"That is not true," Keith says angrily.

"Witness is excused. I'd like to recall Ms. Mars to the stand," Lavoie intones.

Veronica is shell-shocked from her dad's disastrous testimony. She stands up and walks unsteadily to the witness stand. When she turns around, the room falls completely silent. Every eye is trained on her; Peter Klein is smiling broadly. She looks down; her dress is ripped and her breast is exposed. She tries to cover herself and sinks down below the railing to hide in the witness box. "No! No!" The bailiff grabs her arm and tries to pull her up into the seat.

"Veronica...it's all right...you're dreaming." Logan has turned on the light, and he is shaking her gently. "Veronica."

She looks at him and bursts into tears. Veronica sobs uncontrollably for long minutes as he strokes her back, trying to get her to calm down. At one point, he asks if she wants him to get her dad. She cries, "No, please don't tell Dad," and he wonders what the hell she could have been dreaming about as he holds her tighter.

Finally, she cries herself out. Veronica hiccups twice as she gets herself under control.

"Veronica, what do you want me to do?" he asks helplessly.

She exhales loudly. "Logan."

"What?" he replies, stroking the hair from her forehead and kissing the tip of her nose.

"I need you to tell me everything you remember from the night of Shelly Pomroy's party. Everything, Logan. I don't care how bad it was. I need to know. I can't not know anymore."

_Land mine,_ he thinks.

Fri. 3/20/09 very late: Deserted warehouse, Neptune, CA

Oswaldo Cortez's hands are tied together, and he is hanging from a hook in the darkened warehouse. One eye is swollen almost completely shut, and his lip is split and bleeding. His head hangs down, and Oswaldo breathes heavily through a battered nose.

Weevil has bummed a cigarette from Arturo. He takes a long drag; _damn, that's good._ He looks at Oswaldo and thinks. Oswaldo has told them nothing—has mostly kept his mouth shut, in fact. Weevil drops the cigarette and grinds it into the concrete. He reconsiders and picks up the butt, putting it in his pocket.

Weevil walks up to Oswaldo and slaps his cheek lightly, then hard enough to sting. Oswaldo moans, sagging against the chain holding him up. Weevil says menacingly, "You and I have a score to settle. You're going to tell us about the Fitzpatricks—what exactly you've been doing for them. And I'm going to find out why you told the sheriff about Logan Echolls and Kendall Casablancas. The only question is whether I kill you or not."

"You better kill me," Oswaldo croaks out. "Liam's going to fucking destroy you, _joto_. How much does Echolls pay you to suck his sweet cock?"

"You're really fucking pissing me off," Weevil retorts. He goes to his bag of tools off to the side and rummages around. He pulls out a pair of channel-lock pliers and says sarcastically, "They taught me a trade up in Chino, you know. I'm a productive member of society now." To the other PCHers, he directs, "Hold him." Weevil walks toward Oswaldo holding the pliers.

Fri. 3/20/09 very late: Somewhere in the United States

Mac is woken by someone dragging her off the bed. They pull her, stumbling, into the next room, her arms still bound behind her back. She blinks against the bright light after more than a day in darkness. She sees Alan Sheffield, tied to a chair; he's been badly beaten and appears to have passed out.

"What did you do to him?" she says angrily.

"We're going to do more if you don't cooperate." The man grabs Alan by the hair and yanks his head up. She sees the blood and bruises on his face and winces.

"I need some water," Mac says, stalling. "You haven't let me eat or drink since you took us."

"Get her some water," the man in charge says.

They hold a glass to her lips, and Mac drinks.

"Thanks," she says. _Think, Mac. What would Veronica do?_

Abruptly, the man says, "You're going to help us find Veronica Mars."

"I don't know where she is," Mac replies. "I've been in Witness Protection for the last month."

"You're going to tell us anywhere she might have gone. Otherwise, your friend Alan is dead."

Alan's eyes open a small slit; he shakes his head almost imperceptibly, and Mac thinks she gets the message. _They're going to kill Alan anyways...don't tell them anything._

* * *

loss of consortium - inability to have sex due to the wrongful actions of the defendant  
chilito - little dick, literally little chili pepper  
a viente - right back at you  
hijo de la chingada - fucking bastard  
joto - faggot


	36. Chapters 122 to 125

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Kazy and Poniesforall. Any remaining errors are my responsibility. My Mexican dialogue expert was unavailable this time around, so all the Spanish might be nonsensical, but it's damn colorful. For this update, I relied heavily on some helpful information I got from wily_one24 back in August of Ought Eight, when this fic was only a little out of control.

* * *

**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from chapters 117-121:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/101670•html )

_**THIS SUMMARY REFERS TO THE CHAPTER POSTED 2/8/09; GO BACK AND READ CHAPTER 35 IF YOU MISSED IT.**_

_**

* * *

**Wallace pursues the lead of the unidentified cohort of the Fitzpatricks; he goes to Pan High, but is discovered and arrested for trespassing. Weevil bails him out; they show the picture around at Rest Stop 15 and are told that no one knows him. Weevil finds out that Oswaldo Cortez, Hector's cousin who spied on him and Logan senior year and caused him to be ousted from the PCHers, is involved somehow and decides to seek revenge as well as information. Along with Arturo and the PCHers, he kidnaps Oswaldo and is about to question him._

_Now that Duncan's custody hearing is over, Keith, Veronica, and Logan are heading to Los Angeles to speak to Mike Fields and Logan's therapist, Dr. Friedman, and then to Rio Linda to investigate Hannah's murder. Briar Hill has released Veronica's guilt letter to the newspapers to try to damage her credibility. When Logan reads the letter, he realizes that Veronica not only used her real feelings about Lilly while undercover, but also somehow knew that, at one point, he had blamed her for Lilly's death. Veronica admits that she had bugged Ms. James's office and overheard Logan. She expresses her worries that she always uses the people around her, the way the counselors had told her she did while undercover. She says that she regrets investigating Lilly's murder because of all the trouble it caused, including getting Logan's father arrested, but Logan rebukes her, saying his father deserved what he got. Veronica says she wasn't a good friend to Logan that year, but he reminds her that he was the one who tormented her for supporting her father. Logan tells Veronica he's not upset about anything she did or said during the undercover operation, and he's not going to spend any more time regretting his decision to go undercover with her. He says he misses his old Veronica, who took risks and fought back._

_Sheriff D'Amato continues to investigate Kendall's murder. Dr. Griffith and Liam Fitzpatrick still elude capture. The vehicle of Dr. Griffith's office manager is found abandoned in Arizona. The deluxe stereo from the Crawford's SUV that was used in Kendall's murder is found in a pawnshop in San Diego. Daniel Mulvaney, nephew of the Crawford's housekeeped and known Fitzpatrick associate, is placed in custody but isn't talking. Griffith's anesthesiologist also refuses to talk._

_Veronica, Logan, and Keith meet with Mike Fields, who tells them that he and Mac told Mac's handler about Veronica's theories in the Slasher case. He tells them he has been checking the alibis of everyone who had access to the Slasher files, but since he was suspended has been unable to complete work on the project. Mike has also found out that Vincenzo Frazzino, Maria's father, was briefed on the Slasher case. They share the information they've acquired regarding the Fitzpatricks; Mike unsuccessfully tries to convince them to leave the case alone. They leave a voicemail message for Mac's handler, Alan Sheffield._

_Veronica has an intense therapy session with Dr. Friedman, who reluctantly agrees to speak with Veronica despite the conflict of interest. Veronica tells about her experience undercover and tries to minimize how hard it was, but the doctor sees through her deflections. Veronica admits the operation was much harder than she had anticipated, and that she hates realizing what a weak person she is. She tells the therapist that the school was able to see what a bad person and a user she is. Veronica relates how guilty she feels that she made Logan go undercover, and how worried she is about their relationship. Dr. Friedman reminds Veronica how skilled a manipulator Peter Klein is and how effective the techniques used by the programs are at brainwashing their victims._

_Veronica tells the doctor what she remembers about the last day; she believes she remembered something about her rape when Klein was confronting her, and she wants the doctor to help her view the surveillance tapes in hopes that she'll remember again. Dr. Friedman urges Veronica to ask Logan what he remembers from that night, and Veronica realizes she's never asked him what he saw, possibly because she's afraid to learn what he did or didn't do that night. Veronica is certain that Briar Hill will use whatever Veronica said during the last group therapy session to discredit her testimony at the upcoming trial; she admits that she's terrified to face Klein at trial because he has already beaten her. The therapist reminds Veronica that in one sense, Veronica has beaten him, by gathering evidence that caused him to be arrested, but Veronica insists that she's ashamed to have been beaten by the ridiculous assignment of jumping jacks. The therapist urges Veronica to try to reduce the stress in her life (hah!! fat chance with VanessaGalore in charge), and she reminds Veronica how much her friends and family love her._

_After the therapy session, both Logan and Veronica get their hair cut and styled in their normal fashion as a way to distract Veronica from everything that's going on. The therapist urges Keith to help Veronica avoid stress and relax; she doesn't reveal what Veronica told her, but explains to Keith that a random word triggers memories of the mental reprogramming the school was trying to instill in Veronica. The three of them have a fun evening at Logan's beach house._

_Veronica has a vicious nightmare. Klein is on trial, and she is testifying against him. Klein's attorney is Ethan Lavoie, Aaron Echolls' defense lawyer, and he calls as witnesses Carrie Bishop, Madison Sinclair, and Dick Casablancas and has them testify that Veronica is a slut. Keith testifies that he didn't know about his daughter's rape; the defense attorney hammers home the conclusion that it wasn't really rape and recalls Veronica to the stand. By this time, it's clear that it is Veronica who is on trial, not Klein. She wakes up and begs Logan to tell her what he remembers of the night of Shelleys party._

_Mac has been kidnapped; she overhears her captors express frustration about losing the trail of somebody 'after the hearing'. Alan Sheffield has been beaten badly, and her abductors tell her that she is going to help them locate Veronica Mars. (dun-dun-da.)**  


* * *

**_•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Remembrance of Things Past**  
Logan tells Veronica about Shelly Pomroy's  
party.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-TWO: "REMEMBRANCE OF THINGS PAST"

Fri. 3/20/09 very late: Logan's House, Venice Beach, CA

"Veronica, what do you want me to do?" Logan asks helplessly.

She exhales loudly. "Logan."

"What?" he replies, stroking the hair from her forehead and kissing the tip of her nose.

"I need you to tell me everything you remember from the night of Shelly Pomroy's party. Everything, Logan. I don't care how bad it was. I need to know. I can't not know anymore."

_Land mine,_ he thinks. Hesitantly, he replies, "Veronica. Please...don't make me." He rolls away and looks at the ceiling. "The last time you questioned me...you know, 'seeing each other, warts and all'...don't you remember? You couldn't take it, you couldn't forgive me."

"I did forgive you."

"Eighteen months later. And...." he swallows. "It wasn't even...I know I shouldn't have but...we weren't even...."

"I know, we weren't even together, and I held you to an impossible standard," Veronica mumbles.

"You say that now, but I remember what you were like. I can't lose you again," he says desperately. "I won't survive."

They lie in silence, and then he hears her crying again.

She sobs, "I don't know what else to do, Logan. In my nightmare, it was Klein's trial, and they had everyone from Shelly's party testifying that I was a slut and I wasn't really raped. And I knew I couldn't defend myself because I can't remember what happened."

He turns back to her and folds her into his arms again. She trembles against him as he murmurs, "You weren't a slut, Veronica. We treated you like one, but you didn't do anything wrong."

"Then tell me what happened. I promise...I promise I'll forgive you, whatever it was," she offers. "I know Klein is going to use my rape against me to try to discredit me in the lawsuit. ...Logan, I'm so afraid."

Logan is shaken to the core. _God...Veronica's afraid. I've never heard her say that...Veronica's AFRAID._

She says tremulously, "I thought I was..._over_ my rape. I thought I was okay. But I'm not okay. I don't know what to do, Logan. Please. Tell me what you remember, maybe I'll...maybe I'll remember what I remembered at Briar Hill. I promise...we'll deal with it together. I won't run away, I'll talk with you about it, like I should have done after you told me about Madison. Please, Logan."

He stares at her wordlessly.

"Say something, Logan."

"I'm just wondering if this is the last time you'll let me hold you," he replies in a desolate voice. Logan touches her cheek, so gently that his fingertips just barely brush her skin, and she feels his longing and his fear deep inside her core.

She closes her eyes and tries to focus on that whispery touch. "Logan, I'm sorry...I'm sorry that I need this," she weeps. "I wish we could just forget it too."

He takes a breath and begins.

"I got to the party about nine o'clock. The first person I saw was Duncan. He was with Lilly's friend, Amanda. She was all over him, but Duncan wasn't into her. You remember, he was still acting like a ghost, hardly talking. When Amanda went to the bathroom, I told him he should loosen up and get laid. He told me to shut the fuck up and walked away."

Logan plays with his hair nervously. "I started drinking. I think we were doing jello shots; then I probably had four tequila shooters in about twenty minutes, and the world was nice and fuzzy, just the way I liked it that year."

He pauses, trying to remember. "I think Dick was trying to get Madison to go off to one of the bedrooms with him. He brought her a drink, and she made a face and blew him off."

"She was on Atkins," Veronica muses. "She told Dick it would be like drinking lard."

Logan nods. "Right, I remember Lilly was doing that diet too for a while. But Lilly never turned down a drink. Then Luke and Sean showed up. They were hanging out with Dick and Casey."

"So I still hadn't arrived yet?"

"No. I saw Luke hand something to Dick. I'm guessing it was the GHB."

"Luke told me Dick was going to take one dose and give the other to Madison."

"That sounds right. I wasn't paying that much attention."

"And then I got there. I remember walking in, pushing my way through the crowd."

Logan says quietly, "We were making fun of you. Your dad had just lost the recall election. Everyone was saying that the Mars family should just leave town." He hesitates, then amends, "_I_ was saying that the Mars family should just leave town. I thought your dad had leaked the crime scene video to make Jake Kane and Duncan look guilty."

"Dad didn't do that."

"I know," he agrees softly.

"I think it was Lamb who leaked the tape. Then one of his buddies in the Town Supervisor's office pushed for the recall election, and Lamb got appointed sheriff." She exhales. "So you were making fun of me. That means you were watching me."

He nods.

"So what happened after that?" she presses.

"You got a drink, and then you were just standing at the bar drinking it. No one was talking to you; a couple people moved away. You drank the drink fast—you know, you were nervous, you just kept sipping it."

"I remember that. I tried to talk to Carrie Bishop, and she just walked away. I was wishing I hadn't come to the party, but I wasn't going to just leave even though you were all being such assholes."

Logan says, "Then Dick came over and started talking to me, and I didn't see where you went."

"I think that's when I went out to the pool. I remember just feeling really sick all of a sudden and wanting to get some air. I was having such a hard time walking."

They stare at each other in silence. Veronica finally says, "Then you found me by the pool."

"It must have been about half an hour later. Tad had come inside and asked me if I would sell him some of the GHB. I guess Sean told him I had some. So we went outside, he gave me the money, and I gave him one dose. He said he was going to split it with Carmen."

"You know that he took a video of her pretending to give a blowjob to a popsicle that night."

"I know. Veronica, I'm so sorry, we were such a bunch of jackasses that night."

"Yeah, you were," she replies. "You found me by the pool," she prompts again. "Just...tell me."

_FLASHBACK: Out by the pool, Logan puts the money from Tad into his pocket and is about to head back into the party. On the far side of the pool, well away from the groups of kids chatting and drinking, he sees a familiar girl in a white dress on a lounge chair._

_He walks over, incredulous. In a snide tone, he remarks loudly, "Oh, this is fucking great. Veronica Mars, drunk off her ass. You must have started before you got here. Come on, Ronnie, let's have another one." He withdraws a flask from his pocket and uncaps it; he holds it to her mouth. "It's the primo stuff, Ronnie, Don Felipe, 100% agave, from my dad's stash. Not that rotgut your mom drinks."_

_Veronica weakly pushes the flask away, almost spilling it._

_"Whoa, Ronnie, this is expensive stuff, watch what you're doing." Logan takes a long pull off the flask. "Okay, stick to the rotgut, I don't give a shit." He pulls out his phone. "Let's take a picture to send to your daddy."_

_Veronica mumbles, "No...no. Logan...."_

_"Oh, she begs...she pleads. Maybe you should have thought of that before you took your dad's side, bitch." Logan takes a picture and examines the result. "Fuck, you can't see it, it's too dark."_

_Dick and Sean amble over and stare at Veronica curiously. Dick says, "What the fuck, Logan?"_

_"Ronnie's in the mood to party tonight," Logan replies. "I think she's trying to change her image. She's up for anything." He reaches down and strokes her leg, and Veronica pulls away from his hand as Logan laughs hysterically._

_"She's not completely repulsive," Sean notes. "I'd hit that."_

_"You'd hit Mrs. Murphy, you're so desperate," Logan comments. "Try to have some standards, Sean."_

_Sean snorts. "Fuck standards. And from what I've heard, Ronnie'll do anything."_

_Dick says with superiority, "Aren't only virgins allowed to wear white dresses? Who does she think she's kidding?"_

_"I know, right?" Logan chortles._

_Veronica moans a little, and Sean bends down to her. "What's that you say, Ronnie? You'll take us all on?"_

_The boys whoop in response. Logan says, "Like mother, like daughter. Ronnie likes 'em big and hard."_

_"At least that's what it says in the boys' room," Dick adds._

_"Because that's what you wrote," Logan points out._

_"I have a duty to inform the public of Ms. Mars' moral decay. Dootie," Dick smirks as Logan and Sean bust up laughing. "What's your favorite position, Ronnie? Grabbing your ankles?"_

_"Hey, Mars, is it true that Duncan likes it freaky?" Sean chimes in._

_Veronica struggles to sit up, and Logan pushes her back to the lounge. "Easy, Ronnie. We're going to have a little party." He turns to the others and says, "You remember that hooker last week in Tijuana?"_

_"Body shots," Dick says, nodding. He pumps his fist, "Yes!"_

_"Yeah. See if you can get some more tequila, I don't think this is going to be enough." Logan shakes the flask theatrically._

_"I'll get the salt and the limes," Sean suggests. He and Dick disappear to find supplies._

_Logan leans down and says in Veronica's ear, "You don't mind if we have a little fun, do you, Ronnie? Sweet little Veronica Mars, who knew? You were probably stepping out on Duncan the whole time, you bitch." Logan notices that a few people have gathered around, murmuring. He waggles his fingers and announces, "Show starts in five minutes, people. Veronica Mars is practicing for her new career at the Seventh Veil."_

"You were so out of it. You were conscious, but you couldn't really talk." He closes his eyes, remembering. "I put my hand on your leg, and you sort of tried to pull away. But you couldn't, and I laughed at you. I was so mad at you, mad at everyone...my dad was on the rampage at home, and Lilly was gone and Duncan was a zombie.... You were an easy target for all the hate I had. Dick came over and asked what I was doing—I guess Madison had completely blown him off by that point. I told him that you had said you were up for anything. We started making fun of you; we said that only virgins were allowed to wear white dresses. Someone asked you what your favorite position was, and was it true that Duncan liked it freaky."

Veronica frowns. "I...I don't remember that...I think I remember pushing your hand away—well, trying to, at least. Then there were a lot of people around. I thought...I remember thinking I was glad because people had stopped shunning me."

"People were wondering what was going on, and they gathered around." He swallows. "I might have called people over...I don't remember. I was really fucked up that night, Veronica. Then Dick started tickling you, and you were giggling. You couldn't get away, and we thought it was hysterical. God, Veronica...I wish I could take everything back."

Veronica asks, "So the salt lick was your idea?"

He nods. "I said we ought to do a salt lick like we saw in Tijuana the week before. It was a hooker in one of those bars on Avenida Révolución: you paid five dollars and got a shot and a lick."

Veronica shudders. "Ugh. You were licking a prostitute in Tijuana?"

"We just watched; it was a really disgusting bar." Suddenly, he bursts out, "Veronica, I can't do this. I can't tell you these things...I've tried to blot the whole night out, I've wanted to erase it from my memory for so long. I'm so sorry about everything."

"You haven't told me anything I didn't already know. You just added a few colorful details," she replies, her eyes unfocused and her face blank.

"Are you...are you remembering something new?" he asks nervously.

"No...not really. I sort of remember the salt lick. I remember you guys all around me laughing; I remember feeling sticky and the smell of tequila. I've never been able to smell tequila since then without feeling nauseous. I remember laughing because you were tickling me...it felt good to laugh, I don't think I'd laughed since Lilly died. I remember thinking that maybe you guys didn't hate me anymore. You were talking to me, hanging out with me...I guess I thought maybe you were going to be my friend again. I missed you so much, Logan. I lost you and Duncan too when Lilly died. My mom was being my mom...Dad was...he was barely talking, he was so upset about everything. I was so alone."

Logan rolls over and sits up on the edge of the bed. He drops his face into his hands and weeps. Veronica struggles to sit up and hitches herself over to him. She leans against his back. "Logan, I forgave you for the salt lick a long time ago. I don't even care about you giving Duncan the GHB."

He scoffs, "You should care. He was trying to save you from me. He was the hero, I was the villain."

_FLASHBACK: Duncan, trying to escape the persistent Amanda who has licked his neck one too many times, wanders out to the pool and sees the crowd around the lounge chair. Curious, he walks over and is appalled to see what's going on. He grabs Logan's arm and yells, "What the hell are you doing? She can barely sit up, you freak!"_

_Logan laughs scornfully. "Wait dude, you can't be the cavalry and a martyr, man. Pick a side."_

_Angrily, Duncan retorts, "Leave her alone." He bends over and tries to get Veronica to sit up. She shakes her head, barely cognizant of her surroundings, as Duncan takes a napkin and tries to wipe the salt, sticky from saliva, from her chest and arms. He pulls her up onto her feet; Veronica is unsteady but stays standing._

_Logan stares at Duncan for moment; he turns a little to conceal what he's doing as he opens a vial of GHB and pours it in a drink. Faux-apologetic, he taps Duncan on the shoulder and says, "Hey, I'm sorry, dude. You know, man, you're, I mean, you're totally right. It's no way to have fun, huh?" He hands Duncan the drink and smiles as Duncan accepts it. "Cheers."_

_Logan drinks, hoping to get Duncan to join him. Duncan stares back for a moment before drinking. Logan walks away, with a smug smile on his face. Behind them, Veronica, obviously still out of it, staggers away from them into the party._

"I left you there after I dosed Duncan. I...I didn't give a shit what happened to you, and I didn't let Duncan take you away."

"Is that what you think is so unforgivable? That you prevented Duncan from saving me that night?" Veronica asks.

He keeps staring into space. "I didn't just prevent him from saving you. I drugged him so that he raped you."

"It was consensual, Logan. It wasn't rape with Duncan."

He turns around and says intensely, "You say that, but you know it's not true. Neither of you were in a condition to consent to sex. So...it was rape with Duncan too."

"But he couldn't have intended to rape me. You just said yourself, he wasn't in a condition to—"

Angrily, he retorts, "Exactly. So it's the person who drugged him who's responsible. Me."

"Logan...lie back down with me," she begs. "Please."

Reluctantly, he turns around and lies down with her. She touches his face gently. "I believed you when you told me you just wanted to see Duncan having a good time. I was worried about him too. It killed me not to be able to talk to him, to not know what was going on with him after Lilly died. It scared me."

He nods.

She continues, "So you don't know what happened after you gave Duncan the drink with the drugs in it?"

"You disappeared when my back was turned, Veronica. I didn't know where you went. I should have been worried about you; I should have taken care of you, but all I wanted to do was get incredibly fucked up...and then get laid. I didn't want to think about anything that night."

"Did you see me again after that?"

He shakes his head. "The next day, I heard some people talking about you, how you were making out with everyone by the bar. Someone said you were even kissing Shelly."

"I don't remember that at all. Everything after the salt lick is a blur.... When I started asking everyone what happened, I kept expecting to suddenly remember everything about that night. But all I remember are the different stories everyone told me. And the only person whose story I trusted was Meg's...and all she saw was the salt lick."

"I should have taken care of you." He gazes at her with a haunted expression. "I hate that...that I was capable of that, to torture you like that. You didn't do anything to me."

She stares at him, trying to hear the unspoken words. "You're...." _You're afraid you're like your father._ Veronica whispers, "I don't think you're like your dad, Logan. You regret what you did."

"But...." He stares into space, remembering how easy it had been to hurt her when he was frustrated at Briar Hill, how seductive the rhetoric of the other guards had been. He knows that if they had been there longer, he might have.... _No!_ he swears. _I fought it, I'm not like him._

"I'm okay, Logan," she offers. "It was just words...and careless drinking and—" She stops short, suddenly certain that he hasn't told her everything about Shelly's party.

"You're not telling me everything," she guesses. "What are you holding back? What did you see that night that you're not willing to tell me?"

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Truth of the Matter**  
Weevil questions Oswaldo; Logan reveals  
what else happened.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Eli: Francis Capra. Oswaldo: Frankie  
Rodriguez. Arturo: Mario Ardila, Jr.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-THREE: "THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER"

Fri. 3/20/09 very late: Deserted warehouse, Neptune, CA

"You're really fucking pissing me off," Weevil says to the boy hanging suspended from a hook in front of him. He goes to his bag of tools off to the side and rummages around. He pulls out a pair of channel-lock pliers and says sarcastically, "They taught me a trade up in Chino, you know. I'm a productive member of society now." To the other PCHers, he directs, "Hold him." Weevil walks toward Oswaldo holding the pliers.

"You see these?" Weevil asks. "These are a motherfuckin' great invention. Adjustable pliers." He demonstrates for Oswaldo. "I could make them fit anything."

Weevil remembers one of his cell mates at Chino telling him about working as an enforcer for a loan shark. _'You have to make them think you're crazy. You keep your voice completely rational, and then you say something completely batshit loco. It's the threat of what you're going to do that gets them. I hardly ever had to hurt them. Of course, when I did...'_ His cell mate had shrugged, with a broad smile that made Weevil's nuts shrivel in response. The man had been absolutely insane; he had never shut up the entire time he was locked up with Weevil.

Weevil says quietly to Arturo, "Take off his shoes and socks."

"What the fuck are you doing?" Oswaldo asks nervously. He struggles ineffectively as Arturo and one of the other PCHers get his shoes and socks off.

"Do you know you don't actually need your pinky toes? If you shoot off your pinky toe, it doesn't even keep you out of the army. I'm just going to take it off for you, get it out of your way," Weevil says calmly. He scrutinizes the pliers ostentatiously and adjusts them to pinky size. "Hold him tight now."

Oswaldo yells, "You're fucking crazy! My cousin's gonna kill you!"

Weevil laughs. "Your cousin? Hector's serving a dime up in Chino. And he's doing exactly what the Mexican Mafia tells him to on the inside. I don't think he's going to be able to help you, Oswaldo. It's too bad you decided to work for Liam. You know Emilio runs la Eme there; he'll probably be surprised to hear you're in with the fucking micks. Might even take it out on Hector." Weevil motions toward Oswaldo's foot; Arturo holds it tightly as Oswaldo kicks against him. Weevil puts the jaws of the pliers around Oswaldo's pinky toe and begins to tighten, slowly.

"Stop...stop," Oswaldo calls out, terrified. Weevil does not remove the pliers, but he stops increasing the pressure. When Oswaldo doesn't volunteer anything, Weevil shrugs and begins to tighten the pliers again. "Stop!...motherfucker, stop, what do you want to know?"

"I want to know why you told the sheriff about Logan Echolls and Kendall Casablancas. Then I want to know what else you do for the fucking Fitzpatricks. And ¿_pendejo?_ Don't keep me hanging_._" The PCHers laugh at Weevil's joke and yank Oswaldo a little higher on the hook.

Weevil reflects, _Fuck, it's the first time I've felt like a man since this motherfucker got me kicked out of the gang._ Oswaldo is silent and appears to be considering his words carefully. "I'm waiting," Weevil says harshly.

"Liam told me to tell D'Amato about them."

"Why?" Weevil asks, leaning into Oswaldo's face. The man tries to pull away, and Weevil grabs his jaw. "Why did Liam have you do that?"

"I don't know! He's got a hard-on for Echolls, I think."

"And you always do what Liam says," Weevil comments.

"I know I don't give a shit about that white boy." Oswaldo looks like he has more to say, but he refrains and avoids Weevil's eyes.

"What else?" Weevil asks. "What else are you doing for Liam?"

Oswaldo mutters, "I tell him whenever I hear anything about the PCHers."

The PCHers are muttering angrily and glaring at Oswaldo. "Why the fuck would you do that?" Weevil says scornfully. "Go against your brothers? Be a fucking _leva_?"

Oswaldo stares back resentfully. Finally, he spits, "Because you turned the PCHers into a bunch of pussies. It's fucking embarrassing, but the Fitzpatricks have more _cojones_ than you do, Navarro.

Arturo breathes in with a hiss; he pushes Weevil aside and kicks Oswaldo viciously in the crotch. "How do those _cojones_ feel now, _malinchista_?" He pulls his fist back, ready to strike Oswaldo in the face.

Weevil grabs Arturo's fist. "Hold up! I'm not done with him." He pulls Arturo aside and says quietly, "Don't worry, I have plans for Oswaldo. But I need some more information from him."

Arturo nods reluctantly. "All right."

Weevil turns back to Oswaldo and pulls out a photograph, putting it front of Oswaldo's face. "Who's this guy?"

"What?"

"Who is this guy? We know he works for the Fitzpatricks," Weevil asks again. He grabs Oswaldo's jaw painfully and forces him to look at the photo. "The name."

"I don't know him," Oswaldo protests.

"Look closer, _baboso_."

Oswaldo sighs. "I think they call him KC. He's an errand boy."

Weevil asks, "How do I find this KC?"

"How the fuck do I know?" Oswaldo retorts.

Weevil stares at Oswaldo impassively. Finally Oswaldo says nervously, "He's from Neptune...that's all I know."

"He didn't go to Neptune High, fuckhead."

Oswaldo frowns. "I'm pretty sure he's from Neptune. I swear, that's all I know." Slyly, he adds, "Maybe you should ask Liam."

"Oh, you fucker," Weevil replies bitterly. He walks away and thinks. He decides Oswaldo doesn't have anything more useful to add. He beckons to Arturo. "Phase two." He hands Arturo a tourniquet and a syringe; Arturo nods approvingly. Oswaldo sees the devices and begins to struggle and scream.

Weevil walks back to Oswaldo. He motions to one of the PCHers. "Duct tape." He tears off a strip and with difficulty manages to place the tape over Oswaldo's mouth. "I'm not going to kill you, _chingador_. This is going to be even better. A little poetic justice for Hannah Griffith." Arturo pushes up Oswaldo's sleeve and ties the tourniquet around his arm.

Weevil steps back. He bums another cigarette and watches impassively as the PCHers shoot heroin into Oswaldo's arm. He thinks about that waif-like girl Logan was seeing senior year and imagines one of Liam's flunkies doing this to her as she begged them to stop. Wallace had told Weevil enough about Veronica's theories that he had connected the dots, and they had spelled Fitzpatrick.

Weevil is well-aware that if this fails—if Veronica's theories aren't proven and the Fitzpatricks aren't rounded up and sent to prison—there will be all-out war between the PCHers and the Fitzpatricks. _You better be right, chica._

He has a moment of trepidation before he decides, _Fuck that. Veronica's right. And...what the fuck. We haven't had a good gang war in years. It'll be good to bust some heads again._

Fri. 3/20/09 very late: Logan's House, Venice Beach, CA

"You're not telling me everything," Veronica guesses. "What are you holding back? What did you see that night that you're not willing to tell me?"

Logan closes his eyes. "It's not what I saw, it's what I did...and it wasn't just that night."

"What?!" she says, beginning to get angry. "What happened, Logan?"

"We set Beaver up. We played a prank on him. A really terrible prank. I never told you...because we thought Duncan was the one who ra—...who had sex with you that night. Then...after we found out about Beaver...you and I were trying to be together. I was trying. I was trying to be a good enough guy for you, and failing almost all the time. I didn't want you to know about it. I was trying so hard, Veronica."

"Tell me, Logan," she says apprehensively. "Please."

"The week before Shelly's party, Dick caught Beaver checking out a shirtless picture of Johnny Damon, you know, the baseball player. We spent that whole week calling him a faggot. We were fucking vicious, Veronica. We tortured him day and night. Then I had the brilliant idea of playing a joke on him. We stopped calling him a fag and told him we were going to help him lose his virginity. We set him up with a freshman girl named Cindy for the night of the party. Except...at the last second, when he had his clothes off, we were going to send in Seth. You know...our most flamboyant classmate."

Veronica is appalled. "Beaver told me that Dick set him up with her...and he said _you_ left with Cindy."

"Yeah, she played her part perfectly. She went in a bedroom with him and kissed him a little, then told him to take off his clothes while she went to the bathroom. Then Seth went in instead; we threw open the door and took a picture of Seth trying to kiss him. Beaver was completely humiliated."

"You confronted him with his worst fear," she says slowly.

"We laughed our asses off, and then I took off with Cindy."

Veronica tries to think. "When was this? After the salt lick?"

"Right after."

Veronica says, "So later that night I ended up in the guest room. Either Dick carried me in there, or I stumbled in there to get away from them. And then they pushed Beaver toward me and left me with him...knowing that Beaver was upset about the prank you just pulled...and had a lot of motivation to prove he was a man." Bitterly, she adds, "A whole new reason to hate Dick Casablancas."

"We thought Beaver was harmless, Veronica. You did too. I'm sure Dick was laughing about it, thinking that Beaver wouldn't even have the guts to make a move on you."

"Are you defending Dick?" she asks angrily. "Right before he left me there with his psycho little brother, he said, 'You better suit up, you don't know where she's been.'"

"Yeah, well, that's my line. He was just repeating what I'd been saying all day, every day, ever since you told me you were taking your dad's side. And Veronica, I swear to you, Dick never thought Beaver could do something like that."

"You're incredible. You're eaten up by guilt because you played on a prank on Beaver, but Dick left me there with him, and you're defending him."

"They would have done whatever I asked. If I'd told them that sunshine came out of your ass, they would have knelt down and prayed to you. But I told them you were a...slut and—" Logan is unable to continue.

"You don't get to take credit for that. Dick is going to have to answer for this."

Veronica falls silent. Logan searches her face, trying to read her expression. Finally, he can't bear it and says, "Say something. Veronica. Please...just yell at me or tell me I'm an asshole."

"I don't know what to say," she mumbles. "I've been imagining all sorts of scenarios. You saw him hitting on me, you told him that I wanted to have sex with him...I don't know what I thought. This is just...pathetic. You didn't know about Woody, and you played a juvenile, horrible prank on a damaged boy." Her voice begins to tremble. "But Logan...how could you...Logan, you were so cruel to him...and to me."

"I'm sorry, Veronica; I don't know how else to say it. I think I should go sleep on the couch," Logan says morosely.

He rolls away and quietly leaves the bedoom. As he shuts the door, his eyes meet hers; she is curled into a fetal position again, her body heaving with silent sobs. He wants nothing more than to go to her and comfort her. He hesitates. "Do you want...are you sure you don't want me to get your dad?"

She shakes her head and hugs herself tighter.

_That's it, _he thinks. _That's the end. I didn't think I could hurt worse than I did after the fight about Madison, but I do. And I have no one to blame but myself._

He walks out to the living room; Kavner is stretched out, sleeping on the couch. Logan walks to the sliding door and goes out on the deck. He sits down and looks at the ocean. The events of Shelly's party pass in front of his eyes on an endless loop. He remembers how angry Beaver was—betrayed and shamed. Beaver had fought off Seth as if possessed while Dick tried to get a picture.

And Logan had laughed.

The next school day, when the rumors of Veronica's slutty behavior raced through the hallways of Neptune High, he remembers feeling almost relieved—she had proved him right. _She really was...._ But he had still been shocked when he saw her, with her chopped-off hair and new tough attitude. It wasn't the same girl who had walked through those hallways the Friday before the party.

_Did I even feel guilty? Or did I just enjoy it?_

That day, she didn't even try to sit with anyone at lunch. She had slammed her tray down on the table that would become hers and hers alone, and dared anyone to approach her. She had tossed her head back, enjoying the freedom of her new short hair, and had clearly told the world—and him—FUCK YOU.

_I don't deserve her forgiveness. All those times in the years afterwards, when she didn't trust me, when she berated me for my sins...somehow she knew what we did, how we hurt her. Be honest, asshole, what YOU did. It wasn't Dick's idea to set Beaver up with Cindy._

He can't even remember being with Cindy. Faceless, no-strings-attached sex, with a girl who didn't care about her reputation: it meant less than nothing...a physical clenching and release that probably didn't assuage his pain and anger for more than a second.

He hears the sliding door opening, and he whirls around. Veronica struggles a little to close the door with one arm but manages before he can stand up from the deck chair to help her.

"Veron—" he starts.

"Don't talk," she whispers. She approaches his chair and says simply, "Hold me."

He helps her get settled in his lap; Logan tentatively strokes her back as she relaxes against him. Finally, after a long silence, she says quietly, "You were a kid. You were grieving for your girlfriend and acting out. God knows what your dad was doing to you. You played a cruel joke on your friend, but you didn't know what had been done to him and what he was capable of. You didn't make him rape me. It was five years ago, and you've been trying to make it up to me ever since. I'm not _okay_ with it, but I think I will be." She sighs in frustration. "I don't want to be angry with you, Logan. Please."

He hesitantly puts his arms around her, and she says firmly, "No, really hold me, Logan. I want to get through this. I need you."

_I'll never get used to her saying that,_ he thinks. Logan grasps her tightly, trying somehow to make her believe that he's sorry, that he won't ever let her down again. Suddenly, she begins shaking, and he realizes that she's sobbing anew. "What is it? Veronica?"

"I still don't remember anything. Logan, I don't remember anything!" She trembles compulsively in his arms as he tries to comfort her, rocking and patting her, and feeling each of her sobs like a lash from his father's belt.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Out of the Past**  
Oswaldo's fate; Logan and Veronica  
grapple with the new information.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Eli: Francis Capra. Latina babe: Mayrin Villanueva.  
Sacks: Brandon Hillock. Clark: Zadran Wali.  
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-FOUR: "OUT OF THE PAST"

Fri. 3/20/09 middle of the night: Cortez house, Neptune, CA

Deputy Sacks and Deputy Clark walk up the front steps onto the porch of a small and ramshackle house. "I don't hear anything," Sacks comments.

"Domestic disturbance, we got to check it out," Clark responds. He looks in the window and grabs Sacks' arm. "Look."

Through the window, Sacks notes several parcels wrapped in brown paper, plastic bags, and a scale on the kitchen table. "In plain sight," he remarks quietly. "I'll call it in."

He mutters into the radio reporting their observations as Clark draws his gun and looks around nervously. Sacks says in a low voice, "Okay, let's do it."

Clark bangs on the front door loudly. "Neptune Sheriff Department, open up." When there is no response, he knocks out the glass window and opens the door.

They find Oswaldo Cortez passed out in the bedroom, with more drugs and almost a thousand dollars in cash.

Fri. 3/20/09 very late: Logan's House, Venice Beach, CA

Logan rocks Veronica like a baby, but she is inconsolable. "Talk to me, Veronica." It's become cold on the deck, and he wishes he had a blanket for her. He doesn't quite know what to do with his hands; he tries to caress her shoulder, but every move that he makes feels wrong—presumptuous and insufficient all at once.

"I thought...I thought—" she hiccups. "I thought maybe I'd remember something if we talked. I thought maybe I remembered something you did when Klein was questioning me. I thought maybe I blocked it out because I didn't want to think about you doing something awful. I've been so scared to ask you about the party. You're telling me everything?"

"I swear it, Veronica," Logan replies. _Isn't it enough?_ "Maybe you remembered the salt lick...what we said to you was terrible. I wouldn't blame you for trying to forget it."

She stares vacantly at the ocean. "You said that and worse to me every day at school. I must have scrubbed my locker a hundred times that year. After a while, I just started putting stickers over the words," she remembers desolately. Veronica turns to face him. "Why would you....If you were mad at me for taking my dad's side, why would you say I was a _slut_? Why would you...you _knew_ I wasn't. You knew Duncan and I had hardly kissed."

"I don't know. I guess it was the easiest way to hurt you." He touches her face hesitantly, wondering if she'll bat his hand away. "I convinced myself it was true, that the whole Mars family was despicable."

"It just seemed so unfair. Half the girls in school were having sex on a regular basis, and _I_ was the one being called a slut."

"It's not easy to take you down a peg, Veronica. You're so goddamn strong. Any other girl would have pretended to go along with us at school and then supported her dad at home. But you took a stand."

She remembers what Dr. Friedman had said: _'The average girl sent to the school would be going along to get along her first week and scared to death about what was happening. It sounds like you were pushing back from the minute you got there.'_ Bitterly, she says, "And it always gets me in trouble."

"What?"

Veronica shakes her head, not willing to explain.

"Veronica...I don't want you to feel bad about supporting your dad. He was right; Jake Kane did cover up some of the facts of the murder, and that caused a lot of problems...for all of us."

Veronica keeps shaking her head, doubting him and doubting herself. "Maybe it would have been better to—"

"Veronica, stop."

She moans, "I hate that I need you...and I'm furious with you for what you did...and I hate that Lilly was so stupid as to sleep with your dad and set all this in motion. And I _hate_ that I was so weak that I let Klein beat me. Everyone's going to know— Big tough Veronica, beaten by jumping jacks," she says with self-loathing. "I know Klein's going to try to make me look like a whore."

"He's not going to—" Logan suddenly realizes, with a sickening certainty, that this is exactly what Klein will do.

"He will. And Logan, I'm not as strong as you think I am. I'm not as strong as I thought I was. I'm not strong at all, I'm...god, I hate this, I hate that I need you so much." The revulsion in her voice is overwhelming.

Still at a loss, he tries to think of something to say that would help. Finally, he offers, half-joking, "Say the word and I'll beat Klein up for you. You know I would."

She laughs despite herself and snuffles a little. "No beating up, please."

"You _are_ strong, Veronica. God...the way you faced me down in high school. You were scary as hell. You barely flinched when I broke your headlights."

"The poor LeBaron."

"I miss your LeBaron. The Saturn is nice. But...you're not a soccer mom. You deserve...I don't know...a Corvette or a Mustang. You're too cool for the Saturn."

"It's a hybrid," she protests, sniffling.

"Fuck the environment," he replies. Logan takes a chance and strokes her thigh. She doesn't pull away, and he caresses her softly and kisses the top of her head. "Are you cold? Let's go inside."

"Not yet. Just hold me for a little while."

He wraps his arms around her tightly and breathes with her.

Fri. 3/20/09 middle of the night: Navarro residence, Neptune, CA

Weevil's cell phone vibrates on the nightstand. He grabs it quickly and hits 'send'. "Yo?...Good. I'll be in touch." He hangs up.

The woman next to him caresses his bare chest. "Everything okay, _nene_?"

He turns to her. He had needed a drink badly after leaving the PCHers and had stopped off at Cabo Cantina. The brunette lying next to him had smiled at him across the bar, and he had decided to go for it. Weevil strokes her hair and murmurs into her ear, "_Nada importante. Hazme el amor, cariño._" He kisses her and pulls her into an embrace.

Sat. 3/21/09 very early: Logan's House, Venice Beach, CA

Logan wakes up with a jolt. After holding each other tightly on the deck for a while, they had stumbled back to the bedroom and had fallen asleep in exhaustion. He squints against the sunlight streaming in the window; Veronica's back is pressed against his torso, and he is suddenly acutely aware of a raging morning erection. He eases back away from her, and she whispers, "No, stay."

"I'm sorry," he replies quietly. "Stupid...."

"No, not stupid, feels nice," she says with a sigh, wriggling her ass slightly, sending a surge of excitement and anticipation through his body.

He buries his face in her hair, so thankful for its renewed blond coloring, and breathes in deeply. "It's what you do to me, Veronica."

"Come on...help me," she asks, pushing on her pajama bottoms, trying to push them down her body. When he hesitates, she adds, "Please, Logan. I want to make love to you."

"Veronica...." he begins. He's stunned by her fortitude and her insistence on normality; he remembers fearfully how she was concealing her anguish after the operation ended. But she seems calm and certain, with a new determination. When he looks at her face, he thinks he sees the strong Veronica that he loves, and Logan knows, somehow, not to ask if she's sure she's okay. He's pretty sure that both of them woke up crying more than once during the night, but in the hours before dawn, she seemed to relax against his body, and he against hers, ultimately surrendering to their love for each other rather than to the pain of their shared history.

Veronica's breathing speeds as he eases her clothing down and pulls his own boxers off. "The sling too," she whispers, fumbling with the buckle. "I want to feel your body." Logan assists her, throwing it aside, and helps her to unbutton her pajama top and slip it from beneath her torso. He gathers her in his arms and slips his cock between her legs, thrusting gently, as she moans under her breath. He brushes her hair aside and presses his lips against the tender flesh of her neck.

"Love you, Veronica," he mutters. "I thought—"

"Shh," she responds, arching slightly. "Logan, touch me, please...I need you to touch me."

"Not yet," he murmurs as he kisses behind her ear. "Want to drive you crazy." He bites her neck gently, making sure that if he marks her, it will be concealed by her hair. Logan draws the back of his hand down between her shoulder blades to her waist and reaches around to caress a circle on her stomach; he keeps the pressure of his cock on her slick opening tantalizingly subtle. "I could make love to you all day long," he whispers. "When this is over, I'm going to take you someplace beautiful where we don't need clothes and the only mystery is how much to tip the cabana boy in the local currency."

With a slight giggle, she asks, "When did you start tipping? Ah!" She catches her breath as his hand dips a little lower, almost, but not quite, where she wants it.

"I'm all about the little people, you know that," he replies.

Veronica, frustrated, reaches down and tries to grab his cock; he eludes her by pulling back. "You are a bad boy," she pouts.

"Bad to the bone," he admits as he eases her onto her back. "I've hardly kissed you; what's your rush, sugarpuss?" Logan plants a kiss under her chin and begins to kiss his way down her chest. He lingers between her breasts and seems to hesitate.

"What's wrong?" she asks.

"Can't decide which one is my favorite," he says with a smirk. "I guess...I'll have to assess the situation thoroughly." Logan pushes his arms underneath to hug her tightly to him as he slowly licks a trail to her right nipple. She gasps from the tickling sensation; she looks down and sees him staring at her intensely as he swipes his tongue roughly across her nipple. He keeps his eyes on hers as he licks her with rhythmic and merciless strokes until she writhes under him.

"Lohhgahn," she moans.

"More?" he says superciliously, tonguing her furiously.

She throws her legs around his ass, trying to give him the hint. She begs, stuttering a little,"Please, t-touch me, Logan...god."

"Mmm. I still haven't picked a favorite." He lays his head on her chest and looks at her other breast; he softly flicks the nipple with his forefinger. With a mischievous look in his eye, he kisses up to her neck and whispers in her ear, "If I made you scream, how long do you think it would take your dad to get in here with his gun drawn?"

"I'm not going to scream," she says firmly.

He pinches her nipple lightly, and she inhales sharply. "Wanna bet?" he says smugly, and she smiles. Suddenly, he feels overwhelmed by her forgiveness and strength; when he had stumbled out to the deck the night before, he had been certain that it was over—she finally knew it all and would never be able to.... His voice breaking, he says honestly, "I love doing this to you, Veronica. I'm so...." He stops; he knows she doesn't want any more apologies or even his gratitude for her forgiveness. Unbelievably, she wants nothing more than to lose herself in his loving caresses. He settles for trapping her mouth with a kiss, tonguing her deeply, trying to show her how insanely thrilled he is to be with her still.

Logan gently rolls her nipple between his fingers; she breaks the kiss, gasping for air. "Need to breathe," she explains breathlessly before he begins to kiss her anew.

"Your left, I think," he whispers against her lips.

"What??"

"Your left breast is my favorite," he explains.

"What's wrong with my right breast?" she asks indignantly.

He laughs. "I could still change my mind. Let me see." Logan twists on the bed and kisses down to her right breast. He looks at her out of the corner of his eye and strokes his hand on her hip. He blows on her nipple and flicks it with his tongue as he watches her. "But my absolute favorite spot is right...here." He suddenly moves his hand and strokes her clit with his thumb as she arches off the bed with a little squeal. "Remember, you don't want to scream, Veronica. Your dad might run in here and catch me doing unspeakable things to you." He licks her nipple lasciviously, and she jerks compulsively at the sensation.

"Ahh!" Veronica goads him, "Unspeakable? You promise? Show me what you got, big boy."

"Is that a challenge?"

"You go too far, Marlowe," she snarks, making a face at him.

"Those are harsh words to throw at a man, especially when he's got his hand between your legs," Logan says slyly, pressing his thumb against her forcefully. Veronica grabs futilely at the sheet with her left hand and throws back her head with a moan. He watches her panting and struggling heroically to keep quiet. He whispers, "I think you like this, Veronica. You're so wet for me." He dips his finger to her slit and spreads her moistness around as she writhes for him.

Between pants, she gasps, "A lot depends on who's in the saddle."

He chuckles and twists on the bed to put his head between her legs and his tongue directly on her clit.

"Ohhh...ahh," she manages. "Logan, turn your..." She flails at his waist, and he gets the idea, turning his body so she can reach his cock with her hand. She circles him with her hand and gently strokes up and down as he sucks on her, alternating with rhythmic swipes of his tongue. "Logan, come up here," she hints again, and he finally gets her meaning. He arranges himself on the bed, his pelvis by her head, and she rolls on her side and takes him into her mouth.

"Fuckkk, Veronica," he can't help saying before resuming his ministrations on her. He remembers all the fun they had in this house before everything went to hell with Hannah's murder. Even with his leg in a cast, they had tried just about everything—both of them apparently eager to make up for all the lost time when they had been apart. _When we were pigheaded idiots,_ he thinks as he luxuriates in her attentions. _Fuck...there's so many things I want to do with her. I want to take her camping in the Grand Canyon and make love to her as the sun rises. I want to take her to the finest hotel in Paris and share oysters and caviar before I go down on her._ He licks her, tonguing her hard and rough, as he imagines what he wants to do with her._ I want to go sailing in the South Seas and get baked by the sun while she writhes on top of me. I want to buy her emeralds and diamonds and a cool convertible that suits her...and then let her lead me around by my cock for the rest of my life. I want to be good enough for her...I'm going to make her proud of me._

He loses his focus momentarily as she runs her tongue around the rim of his cock and then takes all of him inside her mouth again. "Slow down, Veronica," he begs. He looks up to see her swallowing him, and he has to close his eyes to try to maintain a semblance of control. Logan sits up and gently extricates himself. He rolls off the bed and stoops to look for a condom in their overnight bag. She is watching, her calm countenance unnerving after such a traumatic and emotional night. He kneels and puts on the condom under her watchful eye.

Logan lowers himself on top of her, and she whispers forcefully, "I'm not going to let them take this from us. Make love to me, Logan." She takes him and guides him into her, and he thrusts hard. He gives her a moment to adjust and then begins to fuck her slowly, never taking his eyes off hers. The demons are still there, but she has a look of determination that makes him think Klein should be the one who is running scared.

"I wish...I wish I could be on top," she says suddenly, and Logan is so surprised he stops mid-thrust.

He eases in and out, keeping up a slow rhythm, and replies, "But your shoulder..it's too—"

"I know," she says.

He looks her in the eye, and she blushes. Logan knows it's not just the novelty of the position; she's struggling for control and independence. He tries, "Your shoulder will be okay soon and—"

"I know."

"And you know you're in charge. Whatever you want...." Logan sees her expression of doubt and falls silent. He has an idea and surprises her by pulling out. "Let's try something." He rolls off the bed and grabs a straight chair, placing it in front of a full-length mirror.

"What _are_ you doing?" she asks dubiously.

"You know me, I'm always thinking...at least, about sex. I'm an artist, and the bedroom is my canvas. Indulge me for a moment." He returns to the bed and picks her up in his arms, as she suppresses a startled giggle. Logan sits on the chair and turns her on his lap so that they are both facing the mirror. "Spread your legs a little...lean back...like that...ahhh." Veronica eases herself down on his cock, with her tiptoes on the floor and her back leaning against Logan. "I've got you," he mumbles, holding her torso and helping her to thrust up and down on him. As she begins to get the hang of it, he moves his hand to her clit and begins to stroke her. "I like the access," he murmurs, "And I love watching you get off."

Veronica is watching in the mirror as well. Logan is kissing her neck and staring at her intently, unable to tear his eyes away from her; she protectively keeps her arm pulled to her side, and he sees that she is a little tentative in her movements, fearful of aggravating her injury. She turns her head and kisses him as he thrusts up hard into her. She tears herself away from his mouth and tries to speed up but the awkwardness of the position hinders her; he grasps her torso firmly and takes over, lifting and lowering her until she gasps, "Dammit! I need...Let's go back to the bed...Logan...."

He helps her stand up and hurriedly takes them back to the bed. As soon as Veronica lays back down, she reaches for him. He kneels between her legs and seats his cock within her in a single aggressive stroke. She wraps her legs around him and matches the movements of her pelvis to his. Logan catches her mouth in a kiss and speeds up, fucking her intensely, until she has to break the kiss to pant for breath. "I'm coming," he says breathlessly. "Are you...." He fumbles, trying to connect his thumb with her clit as they thrust together; when he succeeds, she gasps and moans, arching into him as he climaxes. She throbs around his cock, her entire body humming with desire and adrenaline and her vision just a little red-black around the edges. He collapses beside her, his cock still inside her, and caresses her ass. He nuzzles her neck as she breathes heavily in his ear.

"That was...creative," she observes drily.

"Veronica Mars, ever the romantic," he chuckles. He palms her breast gently and adds, "You know, if we ever get to have sex when we're both healthy, my brain might explode from it. I think you enjoyed watching in the mirror, Veronica." He whispers seductively, "I really love watching you get off, Veronica. And I love knowing that I'm the one doing it to you."_ And that you're letting me do it...god, Veronica, you're letting me in your body again._

She teases, "There's something you need to know, Smarty Pants, and it's for your own good—" She stops abruptly with a confused expression on her face.

"What's the matter?" he prompts.

She closes her eyes and mumbles, "'There's something you should know; it's for your own good...it's for your own good.'" Her whole body has tensed up in his arms, the relaxation and satiety of the moment before completely forgotten.

He quickly pulls out, uncertain what has just happened. She rolls onto her back and stares at the ceiling. "Veronica, what's going on?" he says, caressing her hair, desperately afraid of whatever she's thinking. _What is she remembering...what is she thinking...did I do something, say something?...god, Veronica, don't...._

She lies perfectly still, lost in thought. Veronica opens her eyes and stares at him blankly. "It's something about Beaver. I need to talk to Dick. I need to ask him something," she replies finally.

She refuses to say anything more, and he's too scared to press her. A few minutes later, Keith knocks on the door to wake them up. Veronica goes through the motions of packing like a zombie. She catches him staring at her mournfully and says quietly, "You didn't do anything. We're okay, I promise. I'm just...I'm trying to make sense of something. If I'm right...it changes everything. I promise we'll talk as soon as I speak to Dick."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Theory of Convergence**  
Mac's captors try something new; Weevil  
and Wallace plan their next step; Veronica  
talks to Dick.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Dick: Ryan Hansen.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
Eli: Francis Capra. Man #1: ??? Man #2: ???  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-FIVE: "THEORY OF CONVERGENCE"

Sat. 3/21/09 morning: Somewhere in the United States

The man says furiously, "You're holding back. Where else would Veronica Mars be?"

Mac protests, "I'm telling you, I don't know. They weren't at Logan's condo in Aspen?" Mac knows full well that Veronica will probably never cross the town limits into Aspen after the incident with Madison, but Logan jointly owned the condo with Trina, and his sister had refused to put the townhouse on the market. Mac had hoped it would be a plausible location that would buy her some time, but the man had made a phone call and received an answer within an hour. Mac adds, "I know they like to get away to Aspen."

"Enough of this bullshit," the other man says. Mac has become certain that he is in charge, despite the other man's seeming to take the lead. He explains, "They're not in Neptune, but their cell phones are still there. So I'm betting they're using disposable phones. You're going to leave a message on their machine asking them to call you. You're supposed to be returning to Neptune tomorrow night. You want to set up a get-together, maybe. And then, when they return your call, we'll be able to track them."

"I won't do it," Mac exclaims.

"You _are_ going to do it. You have a little brother, don't you?"

Mac stares at him furiously.

"I'll write down what I want you to say, and then we'll practice. We might even let you live if you cooperate."

Mac looks at Alan, unconscious across the room, and thinks that she doubts that very much. She nods, trying to appear cooperative, as she tries to think of a way to warn Veronica.

Sat. 3/21/09 morning: Candice Pauling's apartment, Neptune, CA

Wallace's cell phone vibrates on the nightstand; he hustles from under the covers and grabs the phone before it can wake Candice. "Hello," he whispers as he exits the bedroom, quietly shutting the door behind him.

"Hey, sleeping beauty," Weevil replies. "Do you think you could get your ass out of bed? You said you would call first thing."

"It's only ten o'clock, _vato_. Candice and I went to a late movie. You talked to Oswaldo last night?" Wallace asks.

"In a manner of speaking. I don't think you want to know the details. Plausible deniability, I think they call it."

"No, I definitely don't want to know the details. What did he say?"

"He's working for the Fitzpatricks, which we already knew. He said Liam told him to tell the sheriff about Logan's affair with Kendall."

"So Liam wanted to throw suspicion on Logan, in other words," Wallace muses. "Did Oswaldo know the kid in the picture?"

"He said they call him KC, and he's from Neptune...said he was an errand boy for the Fitzpatricks. That's all he knew."

"But he's about our age...why isn't he in the yearbook for Neptune High?" Wallace walks to Candice's computer and boots it up.

"I was thinking about that...maybe he transferred to one of the alternative schools."

"You mean..."

"Like auto repair, or cosmetology," Weevil suggests.

"How would we find out about that?"

"I asked my cousin Lucia who got her associate's degree in cosmetology. She said the principal of the school has to sign off on any alternative program."

"Clemmons," Wallace comments, nodding his head. "Maybe he knows who this kid is."

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking. I'll meet you in half an hour at your dorm."

"Uh...I'm not at the dorm. I'm at Candice's. Hold on a sec...I'm googling KC and Fitzpatrick." Wallace stares at the results. "I don't know. Lots of Facebook results." He types a few keystrokes and sighs. "When I add felony or crime, I get hits for the Kansas City police department. Let me work on this before you come over. Give me a couple hours, okay? We haven't had breakfast yet."

"You can drive, right?" Weevil asks.

"Yeah, I got my mom's car. What happened to your car? I thought you said it would be fixed by the end of the day."

"I sold it. I needed some cash all of a sudden, to finance a personal matter," Weevil explains obliquely. _Revenge isn't cheap,_ he thinks, _even if you get the PCHer discount.  
_  
Sat. 3/21/09 late morning: Venice Beach to Rio Linda, CA

Keith has been driving for about four hours when he announces they're stopping for lunch. Veronica has been napping in the back seat. Logan has been uncharacteristically quiet all morning, dozing on and off in the passenger seat. When they pull off the highway into a diner, Veronica asks if she can have the phone. "If it's okay...I kind of need privacy for this call. It won't take long. I'll meet you inside in five minutes."

"No, not good enough. Someone needs to stay here with you," Keith says as he hands her the phone.

"No one's following us, Dad. Kavner said it was all clear the last time you checked in with him."

"How about if I stay out here outside the car?" Logan suggests. Keith nods, and he and Logan step out of the car. Veronica smiles, without it reaching her eyes, and turns her back to them.

Outside the car, Keith looks to Logan for an explanation of Veronica's behavior. Veronica had asked Logan not to discuss her nightmare or his revelations with her father just yet; and she had refused to tell Logan what she wanted to ask Dick. 'Please don't worry...I'm just trying to understand something. We'll talk about it after I talk to Dick,' she had said again.

Logan says carefully, "Veronica's trying to work on something, maybe something she talked about with Dr. Friedman yesterday."

"She's okay?" Keith asks with concern.

"I think so. We talked for quite a while last night."

"You're not concealing something from me, are you, Logan?" Keith presses.

"She asked me not to talk about it yet," he replies. "I'm sorry, sir."

"Logan..." Keith says sharply. "If there's something—"

"I know she's going to tell you when she's ready. Please."

Keith sighs heavily, not reassured in the least. He nods toward the diner. "Burgers, you think?"

"Yeah, I'm sure that would be fine. I'll help with the driving after lunch, too."

In the car, Veronica dials Dick's number with trembling fingers. "Hey, Dick, it's me, Veronica."

Dick asks, "Ronnie? What's going on? Have you heard from Mac?"

"No, Dick, that's not why I'm calling." She falls silent, uncertain how to broach her questions.

Finally Dick says, "You're scaring me, Ronnie."

"Dick, Logan told me about the prank you pulled on Beaver at Shelly Pomroy's party...setting him up with Cindy and then sending in Seth." She waits, but Dick does not speak. Veronica exhales heavily. "We're going to talk about that at some point, Dick. You knew he was upset and worried about being a man, and you pushed him at me when I was basically unconscious."

"Ronnie...Veronica, I'm—"

All her carefully planned words fly out of her head, and she says shakily, "How did Beaver react when he found out about me and Logan junior year? I remember, he was there, at the surprise party Logan's dad put together, when everyone found out we were seeing each other."

"What??" Of all the things Veronica could say, Dick is completely surprised by this particular question.

"How did Beaver react when he found out about me and Logan?" she repeats.

"He was surprised, shocked maybe. We all were."

"Was he worried?"

"Worried? I don't understand," Dick replies, confused.

"What about a few days later, when he came to tell me about Logan's alibi? Did you know that he was going to do that?"

"We read about Abel Koontz being cleared in the paper. Beaver started saying that Logan must have done it, and we had to tell somebody. I told him he was crazy; Logan wouldn't have killed Lilly. I don't care what she did to him—she could have slept with the whole Navy, and he would never have hurt her. The dude is completely pussy-whi—"

Veronica interrupts, "It was definitely Beaver's idea to tell me?"

"He wanted me to tell you, and I told him he was off his rocker. Beaver fussed at me about it for a couple days, and finally I told him, if he was so certain Logan had killed Lilly, to go tell you himself."

"Right," Veronica says, lost in thought.

"Ronnie, what's this about?"

"Did Beaver ever talk about me investigating my rape?" she asks suddenly.

"He, uh, he joked about it."

She hears Dick take a breath, but he doesn't say anything. _First time Dick ever held back, _she thinks. She assumes he was going to say, _'we all joked about it,' _but thought better of it. She has an overwhelming flash of anger at Dick's utter irresponsibility: _how could he have not known that his little brother was a raging psychopath?_ Veronica tries to concentrate on her breathing; she'll have it out with Dick at some point, but right now, she wants to focus on information.

"What did he say happened between him and me? You didn't know, did you? Please tell me you didn't know the whole time, Dick." She wipes a tear from her eye and grips the phone tightly.

"I swear I didn't know, Veronica. I know...I was a total jackass to you in high school. I'm sorry. I didn't know—"

Veronica's voice quivers as she says hesitantly, "Dick, is it possible....Do you think Beaver told me about Logan's alibi to break us up...so Logan wouldn't tell me what happened the night I was raped? You know, the trick you played on him. Beaver knew Logan's alibi was false the whole time, but he never said a word...until I started asking questions about Shelly's party."

"Geez, Veronica. I guess it's possible. I never thought about it."

Veronica is stunned into silence by Dick's usual blasé attitude. Finally, in a hard and bitter voice, she answers, "Well, maybe you should. You know, Dick, I really want you to think long and hard about how you can make up for what you did to me that night."

"What I did? Veronica, I swear we were just screwing around, we never thought—"

"Dick!! You sent your psycho little brother in to molest me. Don't bullshit me! You knew I was drugged, or drunk beyond the capacity to say no. You were manhandling me at the party. You _knew_ I wouldn't let you do that normally. And then, you said to Beaver, 'Don't forget to suit up, you don't know where she's been.' Classy, Dick," she says with a clenched jaw.

Dick protests, "Veronica, that was Sean who said that, I swear it. It was Sean's idea to egg Beaver on."

"But you didn't stop Sean, did you?"

Dick is silent.

"Like I said, Dick, I want you to figure out how you're going to make it up to me. No more excuses. You're Logan's friend, so we have to find a way to get past this. I don't want Logan to have to give up his friend; he's lost too many people in his life, and I know you're his best friend. But this is long overdue, Dick. You owe me, bigtime." Veronica terminates the call before he can respond and sits in silence in the car for several minutes trying to get herself under control.

_Think about anything else. Don't think about it. Stop thinking about it._ She keys in her own phone number and gets her voicemail messages. There's a long message from Duncan, telling her about his and Lilly's first evening together in their new house. Duncan relates Lilly's reaction to the large sandbox in the backyard and the over-the-top princess decor in her bedroom. There is also a message from Mac.

_'Hey, Ronnie. Give me a call at 323-555-7839, that's my new cell. I can't wait to hang out in Neptune tomorrow night.'_

Veronica frowns. _'Ronnie?'_ She dials the number and gets Mac's voicemail; she leaves a message that she'll try again later.

She disconnects and sits staring into space. She can't stop thinking about Beaver trying desperately to manipulate her. She had thought talking to Dick might help, but as usual he only added confusion and uncertainty. Veronica keeps reviewing what Sean, Beaver, and Dick said had happened at Shelly's party; no matter how she tries, she can't decide which version is the closest to the truth. First she hears Dick's voice, urging Beaver to wear a condom; then it's Sean, pushing Beaver toward her while Dick laughs nervously. Then it's Sean and Dick together forcing Beaver into the room and holding the door shut while Beaver tries to leave. She imagines Dick laughing about the rape with Beaver and giving him a high-five for bedding Veronica Mars. Then she pictures Beaver freaking out over her investigation and plotting how best to distract her; she wonders how far he would have gone if she hadn't stopped asking questions.

Logan taps gently on the window, and she jumps a mile high. Veronica turns toward him and pretends to smile. She opens the door and gets out of the car. She unobtrusively checks her reflection in the side view mirror. _Yep, my armor's back in place now,_ she thinks.

Logan asks, "Everything okay?"

"It's fine," she replies. "Mac and Duncan called. Maybe things are going to get back to normal now."

"What did Dick say?" he asks, unable to restrain his curiosity.

She shakes her head and doesn't answer.

He puts his arm around her, and they walk toward the restaurant.

Keith has picked a booth in the back of the diner with no other customers nearby; Logan notes that Keith has positioned himself so that he can see everyone who enters. They slide into the opposite side, and Keith excuses himself to go to the restroom.

Logan turns to her. "_Please_ tell me what's going on, Veronica. Why did you need to call Dick?"

She glances at him nervously before looking back down at the place mat in front of her. Hesitantly, she explains, "Back in junior year...Beaver told me about your alibi, you know...."

He nods that he understands.

"I think he told me about your alibi so I would stop investigating the night I was raped. He wanted us to break up."

Logan frowns. "But you had already found out that Duncan—"

"Beaver didn't know that. He didn't know that Duncan and I slept together that night. We didn't make an announcement, Logan. Only you and I and Duncan knew...well, maybe Carrie Bishop too. All Beaver knew was that I was asking questions about Shelly Pomroy's party, and then you and I were together at the surprise party. And you knew what had happened."

"What did you mean, when you said it changes everything?" he asks, puzzled.

"I've never trusted you, because of the way that I found out about your alibi. I thought you...he made me think you might have killed Lilly. He made me frightened of you, Logan. Even after I found out the truth...Logan, I might have been able to get past the salt lick, but Beaver made sure that I thought you were a liar and a murderer so that he would get away with raping me, and...I'm so sorry, Logan. I've been horrible to you because of him."

Logan says regretfully, "Veronica. He just took advantage of the truth to provide some misdirection. I should have told you I had lied about my alibi when I found out you were investigating."

She just shakes her head. "I hate him, Logan. I know he was molested, and he was fucked up...but I _hate_ him."

"What did you ask Dick?" Logan asks curiously.

"I asked him if he thought Beaver was upset when he found out that you and I were dating." Responding to his quizzical look, she adds, "He's not sure. He did say that it was definitely Beaver's idea to tell me about your alibi after the news came out about Abel Koontz being exonerated."

"Dick said 'exonerated'?" Logan asks dubiously. "Even 'alibi' is a stretch." He takes her hand. "Veronica...I hate Beaver too, for hurting you, for killing those kids, for killing Meg. But...does this matter? We knew he was...."

"Of course it matters!" she replies, glaring at him. "He manipulated me. He made it impossible for me to trust you, no matter how hard you tried."

Nervously, he protests, "But you trust me now. You said you were going to be okay with everything that happened."

"I know. I _know_ I'm not being rational. And Beaver's dead...he can't be punished for anything." She drops her eyes again. "I just feel—" Her dad sits back down, and she suddenly breaks off speaking.

After a moment, Keith says, "You know, some people might even consider me a cool dad, one who you could talk to about pretty much anything, Veronica."

"Dad...it's...I can't, not yet. Maybe I will in a little while," she responds in a quiet voice.  
_  
_"You know I love you, Veronica, and I'm here for you," he adds.

"I know, Dad."

Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Somewhere in the United States

"Got it," the man announces, after scowling at his computer screen for the last half hour as they tried to ping the cellular number that had called 'Mac's' voicemail. "They're moving. It looks like they're on the I-5, heading north, around Los Banos."

"Let me see," the man in charge says. He looks at the display and grabs the mouse; he zooms out on the map and stares intently. "Fuck. I think they're heading to Rio Linda. How the hell did they figure that out?"

"We can pick them up in Rio Linda, no problem. Brian's there. They're probably about two hours away."

The man nods thoughtfully. "Call him. They're driving a Saturn VUE, license plate number 6BLA504." He turns to Mac, who has been listening fearfully. "I think you're going to going to be seeing your friend pretty soon."

_Damn you to hell_, Mac thinks.

* * *

la Eme=Mexican Mafia  
pendejo=dumbass  
leva=turncoat, traitor in Chicano gangspeak  
cojones=testicles  
malinchista=traitor who sells out Mexicans to white people, more harsh than coconut or Uncle Tom  
baboso=idiot, drooling slug  
chingador=fucker  
nene=baby, lover (bedroom talk)  
Nada importante=nothing important  
Hazme el amor=make love to me  
cariño=darling

Dialogue from "The Big Sleep" (noir film)  
**VIVIAN: **You go too far, Marlowe.  
**MARLOWE: **Those are harsh words to throw at a man, especially when he's walking out of your bedroom.

from a later scene:  
**VIVIAN:** A lot depends on who's in the saddle.


	37. Chapters 126 to 130

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. The name of the town discussed in this section is a real town, but my wild ravings have nothing to do with the real town or its inhabitants. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall, Zaftig-Darling, and Kazy. Any remaining errors are my responsibility. Sorry for the delay in updating.

* * *

**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from chapters 122-125:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/105925•html )

_**THIS SUMMARY REFERS TO THE CHAPTER POSTED 2/23/09; GO BACK AND READ CHAPTER 36 IF YOU MISSED IT.**_

_Veronica begs Logan to tell her what he remembers of the night of Shelly Pomroy's party, hoping to trigger her own memory of that night. Logan tells Veronica that they started by drinking tequila and downing jello shots. He saw Duncan being pursued by Lilly's friend Amanda and told Duncan to "loosen up and get laid." Then Luke gave two doses of the GHB to Dick. Veronica arrived; everyone at the part was making fun of her. Logan says he saw Veronica drinking at the bar; she was nervous and finished her drink quickly because no one would talk to her. Logan didn't see Veronica leave the bar._

_A half-hour later, Tadd asked Logan to sell him some of the GHB, and they went out to the pool to conduct the transaction. Logan saw Veronica laying on a lounge chair and decided to have some fun with her. He tried to get her to drink from his flask and mocked her; Dick and Sean joined him, and they took turns harassing her. They set up the salt lick and other people gathered around to watch. Veronica tells Logan that, in her drugged state, she almost welcomed the attention since she had been so lonely since Lilly had died. Logan tells Veronica how Duncan came over and tried to stop it, and Logan had responded by dosing Duncan with GHB, hoping he would relax and have fun that night. Meanwhile, Veronica wandered off and that was the last Logan saw of her that night._

_Logan tells her there's more: the week before, he and Dick had caught Beaver staring at a picture of Johnny Damon and had responded by teasing Beaver mercilessly that he was gay. Then they set up Beaver with Cindy, the easy freshman, telling Beaver that he would lose his virginity, but in reality, once Beaver was naked, Seth, their gay classmate came in and tried to make out with Beaver. They took pictures and laughed hysterically at Beaver's discomfiture. Veronica realizes Beaver had a very good reason to want to prove he was a man that night and instinctively is furious at Dick for his role in pushing Beaver at her._

_Veronica is upset with the revelation, and Logan assumes she won't be able to forgive him; but she comes to him, telling him he was a kid and she doesn't want to be angry with him. She says he didn't know what had happened to Beaver or that Beaver might react the way he did. Distressingly, Veronica doesn't remember any additional details of that night, despite the new information._

_In the morning, they wake up and make love, both of them trying as hard as possible to work on the relationship and to assure the other of their feelings. Logan teases her gently, and she retorts, "There's something you need to know, Smarty Pants, and it's for your own good;" she remembers that Beaver had said almost those exact words to her. She realizes that the timing of Beaver's revelation of Logan's faked alibi could mean that Beaver was trying to distract her from investigating her rape, since Beaver had no way of knowing that Veronica had identified Duncan as the boy she slept with that night and was no longer investigating._

_While driving to Rio Linda, Veronica phones Dick and confirms that it was Beaver's idea to reveal Logan's lack of alibi to her. Dick admits he never thought about it, but it's possible that Beaver did that to manipulate her, thereby ruining her trust for Logan and setting up her relationship problems with him in the years to come. Veronica expresses her hatred of Beaver, saying that she knows it doesn't matter because he can't be punished. She understands intellectually that Beaver really doesn't have anything to do with her being able to trust Logan, yet emotionally she hates that he manipulated her and caused her to doubt Logan when she most needed him._

_Weevil, enjoying his resumed role with the PCHers, tortures Oswaldo Cortez. He learns that Liam Fitzpatrick told Oswaldo to tell Sheriff D'Amato about Logan's previous affair with Kendall Casablancas. Oswaldo denies knowing why Liam wanted him to do that. He admits that he tells Liam everything he can about the PCH Bike Club. Oswaldo doesn't know the boy in Weevil's surveillance photo, but thinks he's called 'KC' and is definitely from Neptune, despite not being in the NHS yearbook. With the PCHers' help, Weevil sets Oswaldo up to be arrested for using and dealing heroin. Weevil realizes 'KC' might have been in an alternate school program, such as a trade school, and he and Wallace contact Principal Clemmons, who would have had to approve such a program._

_Mac's captors are still trying to find Veronica; Mac sent them on a wild goose chase to Aspen. Realizing that Veronica, Keith, and Logan have taken the precaution of using a prepaid disposable cell phone, they force Mac to leave a message for Veronica in order to trace the new number. Veronica picks up the message; she is upset about all the revelations about Shelly's party and unthinkingly returns the call. Mac's captors obtain the Mars' cell phone number and locate them by pinging the phone. Her abductors are upset to realize the Marses are heading for Rio Linda, and they contact a man named Brian, who is already there._

_

* * *

  
_

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Twist of the Truth**  
Keith finds out what's troubling Veronica  
and Logan; Leo interviews Padraig  
Fitzpatrick.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
Padraig Fitzpatrick: Brian Scannell.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-SIX: "THE TWIST OF THE TRUTH"

Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Outside Rio Linda, CA

Logan is driving with Veronica in the passenger seat next to him. Since their lunch stop, the two of them have been lost in thought; Keith, seated in the rear, has tried several times to start conversations only to give up when the other two merely grunted in response. He watches his daughter as she stares out the window without really seeing. Keith observes Logan casting worried glances in Veronica's direction. Finally Logan reaches toward Veronica; he puts his outstretched hand on her knee, and she turns to look at him. Logan says quietly, "You're okay?" She nods slightly and takes his hand.

_Sometimes it's very hard to be Veronica's father,_ Keith thinks. He says aloud, "I think this is our exit."

Logan nods in agreement. As they exit the highway, Veronica asks, "Can we stop for a second? I need to use the bathroom." She motions toward a gas station just ahead.

"Of course," Keith replies. "We can get gas while we're here."

"I'll do it," Logan says.

Veronica gets out of the car and heads toward the convenience store just beyond the gas pumps, and Keith follows her. The men's and women's rooms are directly beside each other, and Veronica disappears into the bathroom without a second look at her father. He uses the facilities and exits into the convenience; he dawdles at a postcard rack displaying cards featuring Sacramento and Rio Linda while he waits for her. Several minutes pass, and a middle-aged woman enters and knocks on the bathroom door. Suddenly concerned, Keith pushes past the woman's husband and taps on the door himself. "Veronica? You okay in there?"

"Just a minute," she says, but her voice sounds off to his critical ear.

"Let me in, honey." He waits, then says again, "Veronica, please let me in." Finally the lock turns, and he pushes in, carefully shutting the door behind him.

Veronica has managed to dump the contents of her purse all over the bathroom floor, and she is trying awkwardly to pick up all her items. Keith opens the door and suggests to the other customer, "Why don't you use the men's room? We'll be another minute. Thanks." The woman harrumphs and turns to the other bathroom.

"I put my purse on the counter, and then I knocked it off. I hate this; I can't even take care of myself anymore. I'm pathetic," she says in an anxious voice. "What the hell is wrong with me?"

"Veronica, let me get it for you," he says quietly. Keith sees that she's been crying again; he tries not to embarrass her by looking. He stoops and busies himself with the miscellany of her purse. She runs the water and splashes her face with her good hand; he notes her awkward movements and sees how frustrated she is by the clumsiness forced by relying on her left hand. "I think that's everything," Keith notes, trying to sound matter-of-fact. _I don't know how to help. How the hell am I supposed to...?_

She turns off the water and towel-dries her face. She stares at herself in the mirror for a long minute before turning to regard him. Veronica tries to smile, but he sees her eyes welling over again. He puts his arm around her and leads her out of the bathroom. Outside the convenience store, he spots a bench and pulls her down next to him. "Veronica, please tell me what's going on. Honey...." He sees Logan by the car doing a double-take and puts up a hand with a subtle shake of his head, hoping Logan will stay away.

"Dad," she sniffles.

"Veronica, it's all right. Please talk to me."

Hesitantly, she begins, "Last night, I...I asked Logan to tell me what he remembered about the night when I got...when Beaver hurt me. I'm pretty sure I remembered something about the party during the last day at Briar Hill when Klein was confronting me, but now I can't remember it again. I've been so worried about what Logan would tell me; he's been so upset since the end of the operation. I've been thinking that maybe Logan did something that night that he's been afraid to tell me about."

Keith draws in a quick breath; the pain of her words is viscerally intense. "What— Did he do something that night?"

She sighs, so deeply it wounds him. "Everyone at the party was feeding me drinks and mocking me because of...because of Mom and because you were questioning the Kanes about Lilly."

"Including Logan?" Keith can't help the anger in his voice.

"Dad, I've known about that for years. I can remember that, just a little bit; it's fuzzy and seems unreal, but I have like...flashes of what happened. I knew Logan was part of it; I remember him being one of the people tormenting me that night. He told me a long time ago how much he regretted what he did. But he...Logan told last night me that he and Dick also played a terrible prank on Beaver at the party; they were...it was so stupid and cruel, like kids are, because they don't know what can happen. They were teasing Beaver about being gay, and they had one of our classmates set him up. I didn't know about that. It was so thoughtless and mean, and I guess it's possible Beaver was upset about it before he..." Veronica's voice trails off.

Keith frowns but doesn't know what to say. Finally, he says, "A prank? They didn't intend to...."

She nods. "Embarrassing, maybe even humiliating..but it was just kid stuff. What they did was really mean, but they didn't know Beaver had been molested, so...." She shrugs expressively.

Keith envisions a fragile boy struggling with the unbearable pain of his abuse cracking under juvenile teasing and feels a renewed surge of anger toward Woody Goodman. _A couple seconds of terror and a relatively painless death was far too good for Woody, for all the unhappiness he caused._

Veronica continues, "Then...in junior year, I was asking questions about the party, and that's when Beaver told me that Logan's alibi for Lilly's murder was false. I think he wanted to stop me from asking questions about my rape. He must have been terrified that I would stumble onto the truth. I called Dick today and asked if he thought it was possible that was why Beaver came to me about Logan's alibi. And...he said, 'maybe.' Dad, if I hadn't stopped investigating, I think Beaver would have—"

Keith is jolted; it's not a connection he had drawn up until now, but Veronica is certainly right—that Beaver was certainly willing to kill to keep his secret safe. He urges helplessly, "Try not to think about that, Veronica." Keith feels nauseous, thinking about a boy plotting to blow up a school bus with no concern for 'collateral damage'.

"Dad, I _can't_ stop thinking about it. Maybe Beaver thought...if I was killed on the bus, it would solve everything. I can't help it; I've been freaking out since I realized that Beaver ratted out Logan to manipulate me. And I've always been so suspicious of Logan; I think Beaver's responsible for that, and it makes me so angry. I've been so cynical and untrusting." She exhales, shaking with stress. "Dad, I still can't remember much of the party. I thought maybe talking with Logan would bring back what I remembered with Klein. You know Klein is going to paint me as unstable. He's going to talk about that last group therapy session to make me look crazy. He's going to say...." Veronica's eyes close, and she drops her head. She mumbles, "I _feel_ crazy, Dad. Sometimes I think I am...unstable. I'm so afraid Klein's going to reveal what I said that last day, and I'll...have a breakdown or something." She breathes out uneasily.

Keith quickly replies, "Do you want to drop out of the lawsuit? One phone call, Veronica, and this will all be over. Let's tell Epstein he's going to have to go after Klein some other way. The feds' corruption case with the payoffs to the education commissioner will have to be enough. Maybe they can convince Maria to testify against Klein. You don't have to testify. Let's drop the case, Veronica." He smoothes her hair from her forehead.

"Don't you dare!" she whispers intensely. "I won't give in to them, I won't! ...It's just, it's just that somehow I have to remember what happened that last day at the school. I'm going to have to watch the videos. I can't be surprised, Dad; I have to be prepared for whatever they're going to say about me. I have to know what I said during the group therapy session. Dr. Friedman said if I decided to do it, she would help me."

Keith is completely at a loss for words. Finally, he says, "Veronica, are you sure? You were...it's going to be very hard to watch."

She turns to him. "Have you watched it?"

He sighs loudly. "Parts of it. And I was listening over the wire while we were rushing to get you out of there. ...You said you and Logan talked about that night? Are you...okay? And...you and him?"

"I think so. Logan and I are trying so hard, Dad. Why does it always have to be so hard for us?"

Keith thinks about what the therapist had said about a random word triggering obsessive thoughts for his daughter because of the programming the school had attempted. He struggles to find the words to reassure her. "Veronica, I—" Keith stops short as Logan walks up.

"What's going on?" Logan asks nervously.

"I told Dad what we talked about last night," Veronica admits reluctantly.

"Everything?" he queries, obviously upset. Logan catches Keith's eye momentarily and looks away. He puts his hands in his back pockets and wavers slightly from one foot to the other in his agitation.

"Logan, sit down," Keith says gently. Logan tentatively sits on the other side of Veronica; she leans against him, and he automatically puts his arm around her. Keith continues, "You know that I don't know much about that night. I don't know if you guys can ever really talk to me about it. Just know I'm here for whatever you need."

Logan lets out a breath he didn't even realize he was holding. Keith recognizes Logan's look of uncertainty, verging on despair, and resolves to find a way to talk to him alone.

Keith adds, "Veronica, are you sure you're up to this today? Why don't we get a hotel room and do this tomorrow, or just forget about it? We can go back to Los Angeles, and you could spend more time talking with Logan's therapist. I think we ought to concentrate on getting you better and forget about Hannah and the Fitzpatricks."

"NO, Dad!" She hesitates, and then continues, "Dad, as we get closer to where Hannah was hiding, I've been imagining how it was for her. She was so alone; she couldn't even call her mom and dad for help." She glances at Logan. "I know Logan feels terrible for what happened to her. We've got to keep trying."

"Veronica, I don't want to do this if it's upsetting you—" Logan starts.

She responds firmly, "Logan, you're not understanding what I'm saying. I've got you and Dad, and Wallace and everyone else who always takes care of me, whether I want them to or not. I keep thinking how awful it was for her on her own, with only a stranger to help her. She had to grow up overnight, without anyone to turn to. And then, whatever they did to her before they killed her." Veronica turns back to her father. "Dad, we can't give up now. I feel like we're close to a big break. Please, I want to do this. I want the world to know what really happened to Hannah. And...you know it's better if I have something to think about so I can't obsess."

Keith turns to Logan. "Are you okay with this?"

Logan looks startled to be asked for his opinion. "Whatever Veronica wants," he mumbles in reply.

"No, Logan, that's not what I asked. Are you okay?"

Distantly, he says, "I keep worrying...I can't help feeling that I caused all this." He waves his hand vaguely. "All the shit that happened at Shelly's party, and then everything with Hannah. I was such a jackass in high school." He sighs in distress. "I don't know what to do. I guess I want to try to make it up to Hannah by solving her murder."

"Logan, you didn't cause—" she protests.

"Logan, you were in an impossible situation with no adults to help you," Keith interrupts. "Yes, it was probably the wrong move to pursue Hannah. I wish I could say that if you had come to me that I would have helped you."

"_I_ didn't even help you very much when you came to me," Veronica notes. "I criticized you instead."

"Your criticisms were duly noted," Logan remarks drily. "I don't know, Keith. I guess we should do this. Maybe we can learn something while we're here. If the Fitzpatricks really did kill her..." he sighs loudly. He looks up and notes, "Maybe I've been hanging around Veronica too long. I want to know. I feel it too...that we're close to something."

Reluctantly, Keith nods. "Veronica, promise me, if you're too tired, or you're upset about something, you'll _tell_ me. You don't have to hide this from me." He glances at Logan. "You're going to tell me what's going on too. And we're going to be okay, I promise you."

They head back to the car. Keith hangs back a little and watches them. Logan's arm is draped solicitously around Veronica; she seems to cling to him, trying so hard to put her trust and faith in him. It's so unlike his daughter to reveal her neediness and worry; it's shocking in its explicit display. Logan's shoulders are slumped, as if he's carrying a heavy burden, and Keith knows that he truly is.

He is suffused with anger at all the adults who let these two down over the years: Lynn and Aaron, possibly the worst parents ever to have lived; the Pomroys, who let that party occur, with all its unsupervised drinking and drugging; Lamb, who refused to investigate Veronica's rape and botched the Lilly Kane investigation and almost every other case during his tenure; the Kanes; the Mannings; the Casablancas; Dr. Griffith; his own wife. Even himself, if he's honest: he was obsessing about the Lilly Kane murder instead of taking care of his own daughter, who couldn't have more clearly called out for help from him with her butchered hair and sudden tough attitude that he now knows was her reaction to the rape.

The list seems endless, with all the Neptune grownups failing their children repeatedly. He remembers Veronica at fifteen, trying so hard to be all grown up, but really still a child and so vulnerable, and he thinks about Logan suffering at home and rocked by three terrible deaths in as many years. They are paying the consequences, but wasn't it really the adults who should have been responsible? They were kids. They're still really just barely adults, and only because life has forced them to grow up too fast. _ Why didn't we see...we should have reached out to them. We could have prevented....  
_  
Veronica triggers the window button and says, "C'mon, Gramps, let's blow this popsicle stand. We're not going to solve this sitting here." She smiles; it's not quite her killer Veronica grin of old, but it's real and palpable.

He smiles back and hurries into the car. "Take it easy on your old man, Veronica." _My badass action-figure daughter is still in there somewhere.  
_  
Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Sheriff D'Amato walks to the interrogation room where Padraig Fitzpatrick is waiting and looks through the one-way mirror at the suspect. The man is a seasoned criminal; he appears confident and calm, but Leo sees cracks in the facade. His foot taps nervously, and Padraig clasps and unclasps his hands as he waits.

Leo unlocks the door and enters; he takes a seat opposite Padraig and places a thick stack of manila file folders on the table between them and a clear evidence bag on top. Padraig looks at the bag surreptitiously before resuming his overtly innocent demeanor. "Sheriff, this is all a big misunderstanding. I don't know anything about money laundering. I think it's my brother Liam you should be talking to."

"Hmm. That's family loyalty for you. Do you happen to know where your brother might be?" Leo asks.

"He doesn't report to me," Padraig replies contemptuously.

Leo consults a paper. "It looks like Liam took a trip to the Cayman Islands in September of last year. Do you know anything about that?"

Padraig's shocked face betrays him. Without thinking, he blurts out, "That sonofa—" He gets hold of himself and clamps his mouth shut. More cautiously, Padraig continues, "Like I said, Liam doesn't tell me everything. I'm his brother, not his keeper. If he's messed up in some scam, it doesn't have anything to do with me. I haven't done anything wrong."

"Really. What about conspiracy to commit murder?" Leo says thoughtfully.

"What? What murder?" Padraig asks, confused.

Leo pushes a photo across the table. "This car stereo is from the vehicle in which Kendall Casablancas was last seen."

Padraig can't help sneering at the name 'Kendall'. "So?"

Leo continues, "The stereo turned up in a pawn shop in San Diego. And the owner produced a bill of sale showing that he got the stereo from Paddy's Used Car Emporium."

"Doesn't prove anything," Padraig remarks. "The murderer probably sold us the radio. And we're a legitimate used parts reseller. We distribute radios all the time to shops up and down the West Coast."

"Well, the judge gave us a warrant based on that radio, and we looked around your chop shop. And we found the car. Well...some of it. Obviously, the majority of it has already been fenced. But we found the frame, and a few parts with the VIN number that you haven't been able to sell yet. And more importantly...we found the seats from the vehicle."

"Seats don't have a VIN number," Padraig replies scornfully. "There's no way to identify seats that belong to a particular car."

"Ah, see, that's the thing. The leather seats with contrasting piping are distinctive; apparently there weren't too many Navigators with that option. And the owner recognizes a rip on the passenger front seat. Seems he had a mishap the week before the car was stolen and hadn't had a chance to have it taken care of yet."

"What's your point? So you found a car seat."

Leo holds up the evidence bag. "Crime scene techs found a hair on the seat. Preliminary analysis indicates it's consistent with Kendall's hair. We'll be sending it to the forensic lab in Los Angeles for definitive identification. I'm confident it will be a match."

"This is ridiculous," Padraig huffs. "I have an alibi for Kendall's murder." He leans forward and says smugly, "I was in your holding cell that night, arrested on a bullshit receiving stolen goods charge."

"That's interesting that you know the date of Kendall's murder off the top of your head."

Padraig stares back angrily. "So I remember the day she was killed. Big deal. It doesn't prove anything. I didn't even know her."

Leo muses, "Says here she took a fall for your brother Cormac back in the nineties."

Padraig mutters, "Don't know anything about that. I didn't kill her. I told you, I was here in your holding cell."

"All right, so maybe you couldn't have actually killed Kendall. It could just be that you were an accessory after the fact. Or maybe it's even criminal conspiracy." Leo shrugs. "It's still eligible for third strike sentencing. And added to the conspiracy and racketeering charges in the Griffith money-laundering case? I think you've got a problem, Paddy. You might want to start talking."

"I didn't have anything to do with that bitch's murder."

"A bitch, huh? So you do know her. Did you have an axe to grind? Did you hate her enough to have her killed? Did you kill her to avenge Cormac's murder? That's still an open case, as I recall."

"I didn't even know she was in town. I didn't even know what she looked like now."

"Oh, so you noticed the plastic surgery." Leo pushes a copy of the photo of Kendall with Dr. Griffith across the table. "Do you think Dr. Griffith did a good job? I hear he doesn't take too many cases nowadays."

"What?" Padraig stares at the photo in horror. His lips work without saying anything.

Leo, watching closely, thinks he's saying, _fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck._ Leo asks, "Sure you don't want to tell me what your brother was up to?"

Padraig glares at Leo furiously. "I want my lawyer. I'm not saying another word."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Welcome to Acheron**  
Wallace and Weevil ask for Clemmons' help;  
Veronica, Logan, and Keith in Rio Linda; Mac's  
captors assess the situation.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Eli: Francis Capra.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Sheriff: William Sadler. Van Clemmons:  
Duane Daniels. Man #1: ??. Man #2: ??.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-SEVEN: "WELCOME TO ACHERON"

Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Clemmons Residence, Neptune, CA

Wallace and Weevil have been waiting outside the Clemmons house for about an hour; the principal had told Wallace he was running some errands and would be available to speak with him sometime after two o'clock.

Mr. Clemmons steps out of his car and glances at the two young men approaching. "Mr. Fennel. Mr. Navarro. I'm wondering what was so urgent that you needed to see me on a Saturday." He walks to the rear of his car and opens the trunk. There are several bags of grass seed, topsoil, and a few garden tools.

"Let us get that," Wallace suggests. He nudges Weevil, and they hoist the bags out of the car and carry them to a spot indicated by Clemmons.

"Thank you, boys, I appreciate the help." Clemmons stands with his hands on his hips, obviously eager to begin working in the backyard. "I'm glad to see you've kept out of prison and made something of yourself, Mr. Navarro."

"Oh, I'm completely reformed," Weevil says without a hint of sarcasm. He thinks about torturing Oswaldo and setting him up the night before, and he smiles genuinely. "Life gives you back whatever you put into it."

"That's good to hear. You're working at Hearst College now?"

"Yeah."

Clemmons turns to Wallace. "And I know you've done well on the basketball court, Mr. Fennel. How about your academics?"

"Engineering honor society," Wallace says proudly. "And it wasn't easy, but it was worth it."

"I think you'll find that most things in life are like that. Well, I'm really enjoying catching up with you, gentlemen, but as you can see, I have quite a bit of yard work ahead of me. What's this about?"

Wallace glances at Weevil and takes out the surveillance photo of 'KC'. "Do you know this kid? Veronica is—"

"Veronica? This is something for one of Ms. Mars' cases?" Clemmons remarks. "I should have known. What's she got you involved with now? Dognapping? Perhaps a photo of a wayward spouse." He tsks audibly.

"It has to do with Hannah Griffith's murder. Veronica believes she wasn't really a victim of that serial killer in Los Angeles," Wallace explains. "You read about Veronica's recent investigation at the school in Vermont where Hannah was?"

"Yes, I do remember reading something about that." Clemmons extends a hand for the photo. "This boy looks vaguely familiar, but I'm sorry, I don't know his name." He tries to hand the photo back.

"Okay, we're going to need more than that," Weevil retorts. "He's not in the Neptune High School yearbook, but we've found out he's definitely from Neptune. He goes by the name 'KC'."

"KC?" Clemmons repeats.

Wallace suggests, "We wondered if maybe he was in one of the alternate programs."

"Ah. Auto mechanics, heating and air conditioning, something like that?" Clemmons replies. "Yes, that could be it. I wouldn't have had much contact with him after he entered an alternative program as long as he completed the requirements."

"Yeah. How can we find out his name?" Weevil asks.

"Well, if you'll come by the school on Monday, I'd be happy to take a look through my files and see if I can find his information for you. Now if you'll excuse me, gentlemen, I'd like to enjoy my day off." Clemmons turns dismissively and picks up a shovel.

Wallace exchanges a glance with Weevil; he sees that Weevil's about to blow up, and he puts a restraining hand on Weevil's arm. He rushes to say, "Sir...it's important. We've been working to identify this boy, and we're worried that Veronica's in danger. You've heard the news about the statewide manhunt for Liam Fitzpatrick and Tom Griffith?"

Clemmons nods thoughtfully. "Yes, I did hear something about that."

"Veronica did a lot of the investigative work that led to those warrants," Wallace explains. "The Fitzpatricks aren't too happy with her right now. Could we go to the school today and look through your files?"

"Mr. Fennel, I hardly think—"

"You know, Veronica helped you out more than once," Weevil interrupts. "I think she told me she helped you get promoted in fact."

Clemmons sputters, "That has no relevance to this—"

Wallace chimes in, "And we helped you out last fall. Didn't that little incident when the school's computer servers were completely compromised get swept under the carpet? I wonder if the superintendent knows what happened."

Frowning, Clemmons says, "I see Ms. Mars has taught you well."

Wallace adds, "She needs our help right now. All of us. Please." He looks around the yard. "And...afterwards, we'll help you with your garden."

Weevil opens his mouth to protest, and Wallace quickly elbows him in the ribs. Wallace says, "We'd be happy to help, right, Eli?"

Weevil rubs his side and says, "Yeah. We'll help you." He glares at Wallace, who ignores him.

Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Sheriff's Department, Rio Linda, CA

Logan drives slowly down M Street as Keith and Veronica look out the window. "Rio Linda is...depressing," Veronica finally sums up. Many of the buildings appear to be rundown or even boarded up, and the cars on the street are mostly older models, many with large dents, fenders attached with bungee cords, and taillights repaired with tape. Even the trees are scruffy; the ground is sandy dirt with few actual lawns and the occasional pitiful palm tree struggling to survive. They pass a hardware store and see several Mexican men lounging, apparently hoping for daywork as laborers. A market advertising cheap cigarettes and discount beer kegs is next to a check cashing establishment that offers 'lowest rates'.

Logan thinks, _Where's the beautiful river of 'Rio Linda'? There's nothing beautiful here._ He imagines Hannah walking down the street, looking fearfully over her shoulder in case someone from Briar Hill followed her here. Or maybe...would she have had an escape plan ready just in case someone recognized her? She probably always carried a change of clothes and enough money to run if necessary. _I wish I'd realized she needed my help._ He clenches his fist, cursing his idiocy in using her against her father and his obtuseness when she called him after she escaped.

Veronica looks at him quizzically, noticing his tension. He mutters, "Just thinking about Hannah."

She nods. "I know. It's pretty bleak. It's a long way from Neptune High and the beautiful mansions in 90909. And it's not the pretty meadow from her postcard."

"I should have—" Logan begins.

"Don't. Let's just see what we find out," Veronica urges quickly. She reads his mind. "If you'd helped her, you would have led her father's private detectives right to her, and she would have ended up back at the school."

"I could have gotten a lawyer—" he replies.

Keith interjects, "It wouldn't have helped. The courts have reaffirmed over and over that parents are allowed to send their kids to any school they want. That's Rio Linda Boulevard up there...turn right," and Logan maneuvers the vehicle into the right lane. They find the county sheriff's Rio Linda office and park in the lot. As they exit the car, Keith pulls Logan aside. "Your weapon...leave it in the car. I don't want a problem in there." Logan nods and removes his weapon and the holster, locking it with Keith's in the glove compartment. They walk into the shabby building and look around while they wait for the desk clerk.

The desk clerk is tapping on an out-of-date computer and cursing its noncompliance. Veronica reads a poster taped onto the cheap paneled wall: 'Support Rio Linda-Elverta Incorporation: Get Rio Linda the police protection it deserves'. She tugs on her dad's sleeve and motions toward the poster. He nods as he looks around the room at the worn furniture and lack of modern office equipment; one deputy is typing a report on an old-fashioned typewriter. He mutters, "Looks like Sacramento County isn't doing much for Rio Linda...just what would have happened to everything outside of 90909 in Neptune if Woody's plan had gone through."

The desk clerk asks them to take a seat for a moment. Veronica wanders over to the wall and reads some of the framed newspaper articles. 'Fiery Plane Crash Kills Three; Rio Linda Deputy Among the Victims', dated December 27, 2008. She reads curiously that the private plane had been on its way back from Vancouver; another posted article dated two months later contains a statement from the National Transportation Safety Board that the officials continued to regard the incident as 'suspicious' and were still investigating. A nearby plaque lionizes the deputy killed in the crash as 'Rio Linda Hero of the Year'. Another article lists the volunteer efforts of the Rio Linda Sheriff's Department at several local halfway houses for prisoners released from nearby Folsom Prison. She has begun to scan an article talking about the private security hired to protect the local combined school district when she notices that the desk clerk has motioned to them to enter the sheriff's office. Veronica quickly catches up and joins the others.

"How can I help you, Mr. Mars?" the sheriff asks, examining Keith's credentials closely. "You're a little far afield here in Rio Linda."

"We've been hired by Ms. Stephanie Denenberg, the mother of Hannah Griffith, the latest victim of the Saturday Night Slasher in Los Angeles. We were told by an informant that Ms. Griffith was living here in Rio Linda just after she disappeared three years ago. Her mother is hoping to find out a little about her daughter's life. It's just for a sense of closure...you can understand a mother's anxiety in a case like this," Keith explains. He pushes a copy of Stephanie Denenberg's contract with Mars Investigations across the desk to the sheriff, who scans it with a frown.

The sheriff appears to be lost in thought. Suddenly he looks up and says, "You're those investigators who were at that school in Vermont...the ones who got Assemblyman Frazzino arrested on those bull child abuse charges. He's done a lot for Rio Linda, including sponsoring a lot of bills supporting child welfare." The sheriff shakes his head in disgust.

_Uh-oh,_ Veronica thinks. She opens her mouth to speak, but her dad places a warning hand on her knee.

Keith replies soothingly, "It was a difficult situation. I'm sure that the truth will come out in the end. There were a lot of victims at the school."

Somewhat mollified, the sheriff grunts in response. "What can I do for you?"

"We'd like to ask your help in reconstructing the last few years of Hannah's life. We have a couple photos here, and we've run a few possibilities for alterations she might have made to her appearance." Keith hands over a stack of 8x10 glossy photos, featuring Hannah with different hair colors and styles, and a sheet of paper with a Rio Linda address. "And this is the address where we believe she was living after she ran away from the boarding school."

"She was hiding here? In Rio Linda?" the sheriff asks doubtfully as he takes the photos.

Veronica chimes in, "From the school and from her parents. She wouldn't have wanted to attract attention. She was living with a woman named Katherine Silver who was using the alias Katey Shaffer. We're assuming Hannah was using an alias as well."

The sheriff looks at the materials cursorily and taps a few keys on his computer. He shakes his head, muttering, "Nothing in the system on either of those names. Just an expired driver's license for Katey Shaffer with an address in Sacramento. There's certainly no record of her here in Rio Linda." He glances up. "We're a little short-staffed here. Money's tight, and we really don't have enough deputies to cover our area as it is. I don't think I can justify putting a deputy on this."

Keith puts up a placating hand. "That's okay. Mostly we just wanted to check in with you before we began looking around. So...we have your permission to operate in your jurisdiction in this matter?"

"Yes. I appreciate your checking in with us. I don't think you'll find anything. When did the girl die?"

"January," Veronica replies.

"Two months ago? Awfully cold trail."

"Her mother is just trying for some sort of peace of mind in a very difficult situation," Keith replies gently.

"Huh. Well, if her daughter ran away, she probably deserved to be at that school," the sheriff opines. He glances at Veronica. "Kids...they think they know everything."

Veronica seethes inside; Logan grasps her hand warningly. Keith quickly says, "Thank you again, Sheriff. We'll be in touch." He stands up and leads them out of the office, grasping Veronica's elbow to propel her forward as Logan closes ranks behind.

Veronica shakes off her dad's hand as soon as they leave the building. "What the hell?" she asks angrily.

"Veronica, I don't trust that guy," her dad answers. "We're not going to get any information out of him. At the very least, he's overworked and underpaid, and he isn't going to go out of his way to help us. And, at the worst...." He shrugs meaningfully.

"I don't understand," Logan remarks.

"I had a bad feeling," Keith says obliquely.

"What do you mean, a bad feeling?" Veronica queries.

Keith sighs. "Something seems wrong here in Rio Linda. I don't know what it is, but I wouldn't be surprised if the sheriff was involved. He had a pile of papers on his desk about methamphetamine busts," he reveals.

Veronica snorts, "Reading upside down, the Mars specialty." She smiles ruefully at her dad. "You're thinking...."

"I don't know what to think, but meth is a possible connection to the Fitzpatricks."

Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Somewhere in the United States

The two men have been holding quiet discussions for several hours; Mac occasionally sees enough of the computer screen to confirm that they are watching a moving dot on a map of Northern California. The man in charge takes several phone calls and gives terse instructions to the callers. Mac tries to hear what they are saying; she's been trying desperately to avoid giving into her fears by concentrating on gathering as much information as possible on the two men. She has refused to think about the fact that she's seen both their faces and could easily identify them.

Alan has been unconscious now for about eight hours in Mac's estimation. She keeps looking at him, trying to determine if he's still breathing. The men not even caring whether he's dead or alive is almost scarier than the beating they gave him the day before. She swallows, certain that Alan isn't going to be able to help her. _It's all me...think, Mac._

As she listens, she tries to move her bound hands and feet to prevent them from falling asleep; with no other options, she's decided she might have to try something crazy. She has contorted her fingers as much as possible but hasn't been able to work the end of the duct tape loose. At one point, she tried so hard to loosen the tape that the chair tilted sideways momentarily before falling back to the floor with a bang; the men looked over suspiciously, and she had said lamely, "Sorry, fell asleep." The man in charge had regarded her with narrowed eyes, and she had realized that he was considering whether she was worth keeping alive.

At that point, Mac had resolved to find a way to become essential to her captors; if nothing else, maybe she could misdirect the men away from Veronica. She fought the rising panic down and tried to imagine what Veronica would be planning in this scenario. _Be smart, Veronica...please realize that I was sending a message with 'Ronnie'._ Mac has been trying to prepare another message in case they have her call Veronica again. _Got to be ready._

The cell phone rings again, and the man in charge triggers the send button. "Yeah....You saw them at the Rio Linda sheriff's department....Both of them are armed? Why didn't you just take the guns?...What do you mean, following them?" His eyes flick to Mac's. "What's the plate number?" He scribbles on a sheet of paper. "Hold on, I'll run the number."

The man cradles the phone between his ear and his shoulder and types on the laptop; Mac recognizes the login screen for the FBI databases she had been using at the RCFL in San Diego. She wonders if they're still near San Diego; when she and Alan had been taken, they had been drugged, but she thinks they were driven here by car, and she has decided that they couldn't have driven for more than a couple hours. Or maybe not.... Mac keeps watching and listening, trying to think of something else.

The man stares at the screen for several seconds before announcing, "The car's registered to the Nick Harris Detective Agency. They must have hired security. You'll have to improvise....Yeah, that's why we're paying you the big bucks, Brian....Perfect....Yeah, we accessed their call records. They called a residence at 849 Santa Ana Avenue near the airfield; why don't you check it out?...I don't know how they found out she was in Rio Linda, but they know a lot....Let me know." He hangs up and turns to Mac. "I think it's time to get out of here." He fumbles in a duffel bag and withdraws a prescription pill bottle. "You're going to take two of these."

"No," she protests weakly.

"Your choice," the man says. "You take the pills, I'll give you some water, maybe even some food when we get where we're going. Otherwise..." He puts down the pill bottle and takes a syringe out of the bag, showing it to Mac.

Mac breathes heavily, trying to think. She says, "What about Alan?"

"Oh, you're right." He rummages in the bag again and pulls out a gun with a silencer attached. He quickly flips the safety on the gun and shoots Alan in the head; he's completely matter-of-fact, almost indifferent to the resulting carnage. Mac's vision blurs as she looks at the oozing bloodstain on the wall behind Alan's head.

The man says calmly, "You're absolutely right, Mac, we really didn't need him anymore." He picks us the phone and dials a number. "Cleanup on aisle nine," he says lightly. He chuckles in response to something he hears on the other end. "Yeah, Sheffield. Stupid cocksucker stickin' his nose where it doesn't belong....We'll be out of here in an hour." He hangs up and turns to Mac. "You gonna take these pills or what?"

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**A False Sense of Security**  
Veronica, Logan, and Keith find where Hannah  
was living; followup questions for Mrs. Griffith;  
the security precautions hit a snag.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
Evelyn Blake: Lynn Cohen Mrs. Griffith:  
Jennifer Westfeldt. Kavner: Eric Bana.  
Harris: Steve Harris.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-EIGHT: "A FALSE SENSE OF SECURITY"

Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Residential area, Rio Linda, CA

Logan pilots the car down a street about ten minutes away from the sheriff's department. The houses are small and rundown; they see several rusted out cars propped up on concrete blocks in the yards. At one house, an old refrigerator, avocado-colored, sits with its door hanging open on the sagging front porch. Veronica stares at it as they drive past; Keith glances at her, certain what she's remembering. Most of the homes have wrought-iron bars over the windows and doors, and several have large dogs chained prominently in the yard.

Logan slows down as they approach the number they're looking for. They see people hanging out, not doing anything; they stare curiously at the car as it passes. A man is working on a junker car halfway down the block. As Logan parks, he stops what he's doing to look at them suspiciously. Logan unlocks the glove compartment and hands Keith his gun before putting his own back in the holster under his light jacket. Veronica frowns, unhappy about the weapon. Before he exits the car, Logan leans over and kisses her forehead. He whispers, "Don't worry, you'll be the man in this relationship again soon enough." She makes a face, and he taps her nose softly with his forefinger. "Stand down, Starbuck," he says lightly.

She scoffs. "Frak me."

"Come on, let's go."

They walk up to the house. The porch is littered with advertising circulars and trash. Keith rings the bell as Veronica tries to look in the window. She uses a tissue to wipe off some of the dirt and grime on the glass. She comments, "I think the house is empty."

Keith knocks loudly, in case the doorbell isn't functioning. The man working on the car down the street has stopped pretending to do anything other than stare at them balefully. Keith says, "Wait here." He walks toward the man, who crosses his arms and makes no move to meet him halfway. Logan and Veronica watch as Keith extends a hand. The man looks at it without uncrossing his arms, and Keith drops it and asks a question. The man shakes his head, offering what looks like one-word answers. Keith nods a thank you and turns back. He rejoins them on the porch.

"Anything?" Veronica asks.

"He claims he doesn't know anything about the people who used to live here and refused to look at the photos of Hannah." Keith sighs. "From the smell and the bloodshot eyes, I'd say he started smoking up early this morning."

Logan asks, "Are we going to try to get into the house?" He glances around nervously. At the far end of block, the men hanging out on a porch seem to be looking their way.

Keith shakes his head. "There's too many people watching right now. We don't need any more methheads coming after us. When we talk to the landlord, we'll ask if he'll let us look around. We'll break in as a last resort; I can pretend to be a telephone company worker on a repair call." He surveys the neighborhood. "Let's try the neighbors...see if anybody knew Hannah or Katey Shaffer."

No one is at home on the right, but the house appears to be occupied. Keith leaves a note on his business card without much hope of a response. On the left, a man opens the door a crack and slams it shut when he sees them.

"Friendly people hereabouts," Veronica comments. "We're not going to get anything out of these people."

"We came a long way. Let's try some of the other neighbors before we leave," Keith suggests. They garner the same lack of response from three more houses. Two doors down, they approach a house without any trash in the yard. All the windows have wrought-iron bars on the windows, and the front door is protected by a heavy iron grate.

Veronica sees a curtain twitch behind the iron bars; she watches carefully and thinks she sees an elderly woman watching them. "Dad...let me try this one alone."

"Veronica—"

"I think it's an older woman. She'll be too frightened of all of us. You're right here; I'll be all right. Look at the house; it's the only one on the block that's been painted in the last ten years," Veronica notes persuasively.

Keith sighs. "All right. Be careful. If anything's wrong—"

"I know. Give me the photos," she requests, and he hands her the packet.

Keith and Logan watch nervously from the sidewalk as Veronica walks up the steps onto the porch and rings the bell. She takes out her private investigator ID. She calls out, "Hello, my name is Veronica Mars. I'm a private investigator from Neptune, California. I'm putting my ID where you can see it through the window. I have some questions about a young girl who lived in the brown house across the street until a few months ago."

She holds the ID up to a small window high up on the door. After a minute, she hears several locks being turned, and the door is opened. The woman says, "Let me see that." Veronica gives her the ID, and the woman stares at it for a long time before returning it.

Veronica points to her dad and Logan on the sidewalk. "That's my father and my friend. We're working for the girl's mother. She was killed in Los Angeles in January, and the mother would like to know more about her life here in Rio Linda." _And especially who killed her._

"She was killed?" the woman replies, shocked.

Veronica hands her a copy of the press clippings about Hannah's death. The woman reads silently, getting increasingly upset. Veronica asks, "Did you know her?"

"She said her name was Meredith. She helped me with my groceries one day when I wasn't feeling well. There's no one else decent left around here," the woman says bitterly. "Not like thirty years ago, when this was all nice working class families. And I can't sell. Houses ain't worth a tinker's dam in this neighborhood now. Look at the trash in front of that house," she exclaims, pursing her lips in annoyance at the adjacent house.

"Meredith. Did you know her last name?" Veronica asks. "It would help us a lot if we knew the name she was using."

"She never said. She didn't look like this. Her hair was different."

Veronica slides the photos out of a manila envelope. "Did she look like any of these, Mrs., uh?"

"Evelyn Blake." The woman adjusts her glasses and peruses the different Photoshopped versions of Hannah. "Like this one, I guess, but a little bit shorter. Maybe a little darker too," she finally decides, pointing to a picture with shoulder length dark brown hair.

Veronica thinks about her own recent makeover and how long she had had to sit in the beauty salon the day before while they recreated her original hair color. _They went to the trouble of dyeing her hair back to its original color before they killed her. They wanted Hannah to be identified._ She tries to think if any of the press coverage or the autopsy reports had mentioned whether Hannah's hair had recently been dyed. _They might not have paid much attention because they were assuming she was a prostitute._

Mrs. Blake seems to read her mind. "The article said she was working as a prostitute. That doesn't sound like Meredith. She was a nice girl."

"Was she working here in Rio Linda?"

"She didn't say. But I saw her waiting at the bus stop at the end of the street most days at 3:30." The woman points, and Veronica sees a sign with a bus icon.

"The phone records indicate that the phone was disconnected in mid-November."

Mrs. Blake thinks before replying, "That sounds about right. I think that was the last time I saw them."

"Do you know her new address?" Veronica asks. "We're hoping to speak with the woman she was living with."

Mrs. Blake regretfully shakes her head 'no'.

"Do you know why they moved?"

The woman laughs without mirth. "No, but I can guess. Too many meth dealers."

"Methamphetamine?" Veronica presses.

"It's like a plague here in Rio Linda. People start using, and then they start dealing to buy more, and then...." She shrugs. "House blew up over on Arroyo Seco 'bout a year ago. Newspaper said they were 'cooking' meth."

"Is that why no one will talk to us?"

She snorts. "They won't talk to you because they figure you're probably cops or feds. The brown house has been vacant since they left. Not too many people want to live around here anymore. And you can see, the landlord doesn't do much to keep the property nice."

Veronica withdraws some more photos from the envelope. "Mrs. Blake, have you ever seen any of these men around here?" She shows the woman pictures of Liam Fitzpatrick and his brothers, Daniel Mulvaney, Gerry Black, and Dr. Griffith. The woman shakes her head at each photo. "How about these, if you don't mind?" Veronica hands her a sheet with photos of the entire Neptune Sheriff's Department. Without access to the FBI databases, they weren't able to locate photos of the agents on Mike's list, but Keith had thought it was worth eliminating the possibility of a crooked cop in Neptune as well.

The woman notes the uniforms and looks up at Veronica quizzically. "Aren't these policemen?"

"Yes. There's been some concern that a law enforcement official was involved in Meredith's murder."

Mrs. Blake regards Veronica shrewdly. "Pretty dangerous investigation you're running, miss. I see you've already managed to get hurt," she notes, nodding at Veronica's sling.

Veronica flushes. She motions at the sheet. "Do you recognize any of these people?"

Mrs. Blake turns back to the sheet of photos. She looks at each picture and returns the photos to Veronica. "I don't believe so. But then again, I haven't seen Meredith since November. She was killed in...."

"January," Veronica says helpfully.

"I'm sorry. If I saw any of these people, I've forgotten their faces by now."

"Can you think of anything else?" Veronica asks persuasively. "There was a terrible misunderstanding between Han— Meredith and her mother, and her mother was devastated when Meredith was killed."

The woman shakes her head regretfully. "I just spoke to her that one time. She seemed like a nice girl, very quiet. She kept to herself and didn't bother anyone. So did the other woman, the one she was living with. She'd lived here for five years, and I never spoke to her. I have to say, they're about the only ones on the block that never had to call the police to break up a fight or arrest someone."

Veronica hands her a business card. "Thank you so much for speaking with me. This is my dad's agency, Mars Investigations. Can you give us a call if you think of anything else? And...if we have more questions, can we call you?"

"Of course. I'm here, everyday. I'm in the book. Be careful, young lady." Mrs. Blake closes the door and engages all the locks.

Veronica rushes back to Logan and her dad. "Hannah was using the name 'Meredith'. She had dyed her hair dark brown, maybe shoulder length or a little shorter. The woman said she didn't know where Hannah moved to or the last name she was using, but Hannah used to take the bus to work every day, around 3:30." She points toward the bus stop. "There can't be too many businesses with those kinds of hours on this route."

"Sounds like a restaurant job, maybe a grocery store. Good job, honey," Keith says, nodding. "Let's look up that bus route and see if we can find any restaurants along the way."

Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Griffith Residence, Neptune, CA

Mrs. Griffith flings open the front door and stares stonily at Sheriff D'Amato. "Sheriff," she says coldly.

"Mrs. Griffith, may I come in? I have a few follow-up questions," Leo asks in a neutral voice.

Without responding, she opens the door wider to allow him entrance. They sit down in the living room. Leo says, "Have you heard from your husband?"

She shakes her head 'no'. "Of course not. Wouldn't your deputy have told you?" she adds sarcastically, pointedly inclining her head toward the squad car parked out front.

Leo takes out his notes. "Mrs. Griffith, your husband's checking account transactions indicate that he hired A-One Security for something back in September. There's no record of an incident report. I'm wondering what happened."

"There was a break-in. I was nine months pregnant at the time; I came home from the doctor's, and Tom was boarding up a broken window. He was pretty upset with me about to go into labor at any moment and got an alarm system installed the next day. He had a bodyguard watching me for about six weeks."

"A bodyguard? For a break-in?" Leo asks, surprised. _Pretty extreme reaction to a break-in._

"He said they were looking for narcotics. Apparently he surprised them rifling through his papers trying to find his prescription pads and scared them off. He said he was worried about me and the baby."

"Did he say anything about not filing a police report?" Leo queries.

"I guess I didn't think to ask," Mrs. Griffith replies reluctantly.

"And he had a bodyguard watching you for about six weeks? Why did that stop?"

"One day he came home and said we didn't need the extra security any more, and he was canceling the bodyguard. We kept the alarm, of course," she says, pointing at the keypad mounted by the front door.

_Sounds more like someone was threatening Griffith_, Leo thinks. "Has anyone harassed you? Or maybe followed you?"

"No! What are you saying?" Mrs. Griffith answers nervously.

"What exactly did your husband say when he canceled the bodyguard?" Leo presses.

"I told you, he just said we didn't need the extra protection any longer. I was busy with the baby, and I was just relieved that he didn't seem so stressed."

Leo ponders the new information. "So your husband was very stressed, oh let's say, September through...."

"Through early November."

"And then he calmed down," Leo says leadingly.

Mrs. Griffith says evasively, "Um, yeah."

"Did something else happen? Mrs. Griffith...it sounds to me like your husband was playing a dangerous game of chicken with the Fitzpatricks. Did anything else happen?"

She sighs loudly. "It's not going to matter, is it. Our life is ruined already."

Leo raises his voice. "What is it? Tell me."

"Tom was a nervous wreck the first couple weeks in January. I've never seen him so wound up. I'd wake up in the middle of the night and find him sitting in the kitchen drinking. I told him that I was going to go to a lawyer if he didn't start working on the marriage. That's why we went away for Martin Luther King Day. The Los Angeles police tracked us down in Cabo San Lucas with the news that Hannah had been killed."

_So the doctor was already a nervous wreck before Hannah was murdered._ "Thank you, Mrs. Griffith. If you think of anything else, I appreciate it if you'd give me a call." He stands up to leave.

Mrs. Griffith says nervously, "You think he did it, don't you. You think he was working with the Fitzpatricks and was involved with that woman's murder."

"We're working under the assumption that he performed her plastic surgery. I don't know what his connection is with her murder, but it doesn't help that he ran. If you hear from him, or if you think of a way to contact him, urge him to turn himself in."

Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Residential area, Rio Linda, CA

Kavner is following the Saturn at a discreet distance when a dirty white paneled van suddenly pulls out in front of him. He hits the brakes to avoid hitting the van, which slows down and blocks him from passing. He asks the other guard, "Hey, Harris, can you see...is Keith still up ahead?"

Harris cranes his neck out the window. "Yeah. I see him. What's with this guy?"

The truck puts on its left turn signal and slows to a stop, then turns off the signal and proceeds slowly, applying the brakes every few houses. Kavner says, "I guess he's lost. Call Keith, tell him what's going on." He swerves a little, trying to see ahead of the van.

Harris places the call. "Yeah, some guy's between us....I don't think so. I think it's just a local yahoo...Okay, I got it." He hangs up and tells Kavner, "They're following a bus route. They're going to keep heading west on O Street, then a right on Front Street, and a left on Q Street."

Kavner repeats, "Right on Front, left on Q. Write down this guy's plate, just in case."

Finally the van stops and, after waiting for oncoming traffic, makes a left turn into a driveway. Kavner hits the gas and tries to catch up to Keith.

A half-mile further down the road, with the Saturn still out of sight, he sees flashing lights in his rear view mirror. He slows the car and asks the other guard, "Was I speeding?"

"Maybe. Better pull over."

Kavner says, "Call Keith." He pulls over to the side of the road and shuts off the car. As Harris hits redial on the cell phone, Kavner reaches into the glove compartment for the registration and insurance cards and puts them on the seat ready to hand over. He triggers the switch to lower the window.

They hear a loud whoop and a voice over a loudspeaker. "Put the phone down, and keep your hands where we can see them." Kavner watches in the mirror; two cops approach the car quickly, unsnapping their holsters and putting their hands on their weapons. He glances at his partner, who sets down the phone; they both put their hands up and wait.

The two cops take a position on either side of the car. "Sir. Open the car door and step out of the vehicle."

"Officer, I'm armed," Kavner replies. "Shoulder holster. I have a concealed weapon permit in my wallet."

The officer draws his weapon and trains it on Kavner. "Slowly take out your weapon with two fingers and hand it to me butt-first. No sudden movements," the officer instructs, holding his left palm out while keeping his revolver steadily pointed at Kavner's head. "Your friend armed too?"

"Yes, sir," Harris replies. He and Kavner carefully hand their guns to the officers.

The two cops open the car doors. The first officer instructs them, "Please exit the vehicle. Keep your hands where we can see them and your mouths shut." They are thrown against the car and thoroughly searched; both men have worked in private security long enough to know better than to protest. The cop says, "Lay down on the ground, face down, hands laced behind your head." Kavner and Harris comply; the two cops pull their hands down, cuffing their wrists behind their back, and haul them up to their feet.

"Officer," Kavner says. "What's the charge?"

"Vehicular homicide and leaving the scene of an accident with injuries. You killed three kids when you ran that red light last night, you fuck."

As they are escorted to the police cruiser, Kavner protests, "Officer, we were in Los Angeles until this morning. This is a mistake. We can prove it."

"Tell it to the judge. The eyewitness told us the make, model, and license plate of your car and described you perfectly." The officer opens the back door of the police car and pushes Kavner into the backseat. "Watch your head."

"I need to call my boss. We're working private security. Check our ID. You'll see that we're employed by the Nick Harris Agency in San Diego."

"You'll get your phone call down at the station," the cop advises. He slams the door and gets into the front seat.

His partner joins them with a bag containing their personal belongings from the car. The second cop asks, "Dispatch called for a tow truck?" and the first cop nods in response.

Kavner protests, "Look at the car. It hasn't been in an accident."

The cop ignores him. He begins to Mirandize the two men. "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney present during questioning. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you. Do you understand these rights?"

Kavner exchanges a glance with the other guard. _This is very bad._

The first cop takes the radio handset and triggers it. "This is Unit 10. Suspects are in custody. Do you have an ETA on the— Hold on." A tow truck pulls up, and the cop continues, "Never mind. Tow truck's here. We'll head down to the station."

The tow truck driver leans out the window. "Dispatcher said you had a car going to the impound lot?"

The officer replies, "Yeah. That was fast."

"Oh, we were in the neighborhood." He hops out of the cab and passes a clipboard to the officer. "Sign here, and here."

After the patrol car leaves, the tow truck driver turns to the man in the passenger seat, who gives him a thousand dollars cash and jumps out to take possession of the car.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Momentum**  
Veronica, Logan, and Keith finds Hannah's  
employer; a break in the Slasher case;  
Clemmons tries to jog his memory.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Eli: Francis Capra.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Clemmons: Duane  
Daniels. Mel: George Gerdes. Police Chief:  
Denis Arndt. DA Denning: Gregory Itzin.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-NINE: "MOMENTUM"

Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Commercial area, Rio Linda, CA

On Q Street, they find an area with a few stores. Keith directs Logan to pull over and park. They show the picture Mrs. Blake had picked out to a few disinterested shopkeepers who deny ever having seen Hannah. They get back in the car and in a few blocks find a diner, 'Mel's: Good Food Fast'. "Looks promising," Keith comments. They walk into the diner and take seats at the counter. The only other customers are a man finishing a piece of pie at the end of the counter and a woman seated by herself in a booth eating a hamburger.

A man wearing an apron emerges through a swinging door leading to the kitchen. He wipes the counter and hands them three menus. "What can I do you for? Coffee all around?"

"Sounds good," Keith replies.

"Just passing through?" the man asks as he sets up three cups and saucers and begins pouring.

"We're looking for someone. We're wondering if you've seen her." Keith pushes the photo of Hannah with dark brown hair across the counter.

The man looks startled. Evasively, he asks, "What business is it of yours?"

"We're private detectives from Neptune, California. So you know this young woman? I believe she was using the name Meredith here in Rio Linda," Keith replies.

"I don't want any trouble," the man says, his face pale and nervous.

Veronica chimes in, "We're not going to cause you any trouble. We're just looking for information."

Suddenly suspicious, the man asks, "Do you have identification? How do I know who you are?"

Keith and Veronica take out their wallets and show him their PI licenses. The man stares at them for a long minute. He nods toward Logan. "Who's he? He looks familiar."

"A friend, helping us out," Veronica replies. "We're not here to make trouble for you." She hands him a copy of the news report on Hannah's death. "Meredith's real name was Hannah Griffith, and she was killed in Los Angeles on January 17."

"I don't know anything about that," the man protests, looking at the garish headline, 'Serial Killer Strikes Again'.

"I'm guessing Meredith was working here," Keith surmises. "Probably under the table, from the way you're reacting."

The man flushes. "I told you, I don't know anything. I think you should leave."

"Are you Mel?" Keith asks, pointing at the diner's logo posted above the coffee maker. "Mel, if I have to, I'll get in touch with the Labor Department and the IRS." He cranes his neck and looks toward the kitchen, from which the sound of clattering dishes and running water can be heard. "I'm wondering if your dishwasher has all the documents the INS requires."

"All right, all right," he answers quickly. "Yeah, my name's Mel. I was trying to help her out."

"Okay, you were trying to help Meredith," Keith says leadingly. "What last name was she using?"

"Grey. Meredith Grey. I'm sure it was a fake name. She had a driver's license, but a child could see it was fake. I told you, I was trying to help her out. She seemed like she was in trouble."

Keith says soothingly, "I'm sure you had only good intentions."

"My friend Katey brought her by and said her niece was staying with her for a while and needed a job. That was about two years ago. I needed counter help, and she seemed like an okay kid, so I tried her out. She did a good job, and I kept her on."

Veronica can't help saying, "You realize that at the time she was only sixteen? Do you have a work permit on file for a minor?"

"She told me she was eighteen," Mel replies indignantly, glaring at her.

"Of course, of course. You can't be responsible if she misled you." Keith glances sternly at Veronica, who mutters _'sorry'_ under her breath. "I'm sure Meredith was very grateful to have a job."

"You're damn right she was."

Logan clears his throat. "Meredith's, uh, mom is the one who hired us. I know she wants to know what Meredith's life was like while she was living here."

"She didn't talk much. Sometimes you'd catch her staring into space and have to wake her up."

Logan presses, "Did she have friends, boyfriends?"

"No," Mel answers, shaking his head. "She kept to herself, didn't talk about herself at all." He sighs and looks away morosely. He turns back and admits, "I was pretty sure she was a runaway. I figured it must have been pretty bad where she came from."

"It was," Veronica replies.

"You know, she did seem happier around the middle of December. I asked her about it, and she said 'my birthday's coming up' and smiled."

"She probably turned eighteen," Veronica remarks. "The school couldn't take her after that."

"What? What school?" Mel asks.

"She'd been sent to a disciplinary school—it was an abusive situation—and she ran away," Keith explains. "The school is ruthless about pursuing runaways as long as they're minors. What about the woman who claimed to be her aunt, Katey Shaffer? Do you know where she is?"

"They moved in November because there were too many drug dealers in the neighborhood where they'd been living, and Meredith never told me her new address. I got the impression it was an apartment; might have been off Elverta Road—there's some apartments over there. She might have complained a couple times about having to take two buses to get here, so maybe you could find it that way? There's not too many apartment buildings here in Rio Linda. And I haven't seen Katey since..." Mel thinks. "I guess I haven't seen her since last summer. My wife used to drag me to these crystal meditations, some nonsense like that, and that's where we met Katey. Now my wife went back to the church," he rolls his eyes, "and she don't go for that stuff anymore."

"You didn't even have a phone number for Meredith?" Keith asks.

"Sure, she had a cell phone. I can give the number to you. It's in the back," Mel says, pointing with his thumb. "I'll get it for you."

He disappears through the swinging door. Veronica turns to her dad. "You believe him?"

"Yeah, it's what we figured. A cash job, with an employer too lazy to bother with ID or permits who probably saved a little money by paying her less than the minimum wage."

"What a sleazeball," Veronica comments.

"The alternative to a sleazeball employer probably would have been a trip back to Briar Hill," Keith points out.

"I know. But waitressing is a hard job if you're not even making minimum wage."

Mel returns with a slip of paper. "I don't think it's in service anymore. When she didn't show up for work, I called and the message said the call could not be completed as dialed."

"When was this?"

"It was a Sunday, early in January. She'd worked the day before and didn't say anything about not coming in. I tried calling all week and finally gave up after four or five days...I guess I figured something spooked her, and she ran again."

"Can you try to remember which Sunday specifically?" Keith asks. "She was killed on the seventeenth, so that would have been...let's see...the fourth or the eleventh that she didn't show up."

Mel turns to a calendar on the wall and flips back to January. He ponders for a minute before turning back. "Had to have been the eleventh, the day that she didn't show. Yeah, that seems right."

"Anything happen just before that?" Keith queries. "Was she upset? Any mysterious phone calls...anything out of the ordinary?"

"Now that you mention it...there was a guy the night before. He asked me what her name was and if she had a boyfriend. I told him he was barking up the wrong tree. Customers used to hit on her—she was cute, a little too skinny for me, but some like 'em that way—but she would just smile, turn 'em down flat, and get back to work."

"I don't suppose you remember what this guy looked like," Veronica says.

"Geez. Two months ago." Mel ponders. "I don't know, maybe dark brown hair, starting to go bald, just a little thin on top. Mid-forties. Average lookin'."

"How tall?" Keith asks, writing the description down.

"'Bout like him, I guess," Mel says, nodding at Logan.

"Six foot," Logan notes.

Mel protests, "You know, it was just a guy checking out a pretty girl. I'm sure he didn't have anything—" He sees their expressions and clamps his mouth shut.

Veronica says, "Take a look at these photos; see if any of them are him." She hands him the photos of the Fitzpatricks and their cronies and the Neptune Sheriff's Department, even though the description doesn't particularly match any of their suspects.

"No...no..." Mel mumbles as he looks. At the end, he says, "None of these guys."

"Any chance he paid with a credit card?" Keith asks.

Mel points at the sign above the cash register. 'No checks, no credit cards.' "Sorry. People are always trying to rip you off. Cash is a lot safer."

"I bet," Veronica comments. _No sales tax, no employee benefits or payroll taxes, no bothersome INS or OSHA visits._

Nervously, Mel asks, "You're not going to tell the police, are you?"

"You might want to make sure all your current employees are documented, Mel," Keith advises. "I think it's possible that the FBI might want to talk to you about the man you saw on January 10. In the meantime, I think you shouldn't talk to anyone about this. If you think of anything else, I'd like you to give me a call." He hands Mel a business card, and they get up to leave.

They pass by a blackboard advertising the daily specials. In pink and green chalk, today's lunch special is listed as 'Roast Beef Sandwich, piled high, with horseradish and mayo on a toasted whole wheat bun with lettuce and tomato. More roast beef than you can handle in a single meal.' Veronica stops short and rereads the board. She grasps Keith's sleeve. "What was that email address? The one that Father Patrick contacted when Liam was arrested. 'Roastbeefman' at yahoo, right?"

Keith nods. "What is it, Veronica?"

"I'm an idiot, that's what. There was a joke at Quantico about an agent who always flashed his badge and asked for 'more roast beef' at a New York deli. If you flashed your credentials at someone, an agent would say 'I roast beefed 'em.' Buspeak, you know...bureau lingo." Veronica's face is flushed with excitement.

Keith replies, "It's more confirmation that it's an FBI agent working with the Fitzpatricks."

They walk out of the diner. Logan turns to her with a worried expression and says, "Veronica, this whole town gives me the creeps. I think we should go back to Neptune and dump all this in Leo's lap. Let him find the FBI agent who's working with the Fitzpatricks."

"You trust _Leo_ now?" Veronica asks incredulously.

Logan shrugs. "What choice do we have? He's already trying to round up the Fitzpatricks. He's leaving us alone at least."

Veronica says intensely, "I think we should tell Mike about the email address. Maybe he can trace it."

"You know he's still suspended," Keith comments.

"He said his buddies were helping him. Dad, I think we should try to get Mike to come interview Mel as soon as possible. He can put Mel in protective custody. Mel's our only real witness."

They get in the car and sit silently, all of them reviewing what they learned from Mel and nervously assessing their next step.

"We've accomplished a lot. Maybe it's enough," Keith offers. "We have a witness; we have confirmation that Hannah was living here in Rio Linda. We know the name she was using. We can prove that Hannah wasn't a prostitute in Los Angeles. That's probably enough to get the media interested; let them push to reopen the case."

"Let's talk to Katey Shaffer's old landlord, and then hit those apartments that Mel mentioned on Elverta Road. We can show Hannah's picture around and see if anyone recognizes her," Veronica suggests. "And we still don't know what happened to Katey Shaffer."

"All right. Call Mike; tell him about the email address and see if he'll get someone he trusts to come interview Mel. Give him Hannah's cell phone number; he can pull up her records. Check in with Kavner too," Keith says.

She calls Mike and fills him in on their progress. Mike promises to get back to her after making a few phone calls. Then she dials Kavner. "Must be a bad signal. Only two bars," she comments, scowling at the screen. "It's not going through."

"Try again in a few minutes." Keith adjusts the rear view mirror. "I can't see them behind us." He watches nervously; a short while later, he recognizes the gray Ford Focus a fair distance behind them and relaxes.

Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Los Angeles Police Department Media Room, Los Angeles, CA

The Los Angeles Chief of Police steps up to the microphone at the lectern in the front of the room. Flashbulbs pop and shutters click as the chief adjusts the microphone, causing a sharp whine of feedback. Reporters murmur among themselves.

"Good afternoon. With me today is Mitchell Panevic, Assistant Director in Charge of the Los Angeles Bureau of the FBI, Special Agent Morris of the Serial Killer Task Force, and District Attorney Paul Denning. I will make a brief statement, and District Attorney Denning will provide some additional information, and then we'll take your questions. This morning, acting on a tip provided by an eyewitness, the Los Angeles Police Department arrested Andrew Shekar, age 36, a resident of the Altadena section of Los Angeles. Mr. Shekar has been charged with the murders of Catherine Kerr, Theresa Drummond, Lysa Dean, Evangeline Bellemer, Gloria Doyle, Elizabeth Kapp, Mary Alice McDermit, and Linda Lewellen. He remains a suspect in the murder of Hannah Griffith. Our thoughts and prayers remain with the families of the victims. I'm very proud of the diligent efforts of the major crimes unit of the LAPD in cooperation with the FBI to bring this man to justice. District Attorney Denning has a short statement before we take your questions."

The man says firmly, "The District Attorney's office is confident that the evidence against Mr. Shekar will lead to a conviction. Mr. Shekar has a long history of assault and battery, harassment, and stalking charges on his record. He served a one year sentence for attempted kidnapping in 2001. I'll take your questions at this time."

Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Neptune High School, Neptune, CA

Clemmons unlocks the front door and leads them down the darkened hallways of Neptune High School. "Weird to be back, right?" Wallace whispers to Weevil.

"Best years of our life, my ass," he replies. "I couldn't wait to get out of here."

"Excuse me, Mr. Navarro?" Clemmons asks.

Wallace quickly says, "Lots of good memories here, Principal Clemmons. Eli especially truly made me feel welcome when I transferred here."

Weevil smothers a laugh. "Yeah, that was the year I volunteered for the spirit committee, too. Go Pirates," he adds. He punctuates his remark by punching Wallace in the arm, just a little too hard.

"Yeah, that was what you were known for, your school spirit," Wallace retorts.

"I thought it was my keen fashion sense," Weevil replies, tugging on his leather jacket.

Clemmons unlocks a door at the end of a long hallway. The room is filled with boxes. "I believe these boxes are what we're looking for," he says, indicates a stack of file storage boxes marked 'Inactive'.

"It would have been between fall 2002 and spring 2006 if Veronica knew this guy," Wallace muses. He pulls the lid off the top box and pulls the first file out. "Hershlag, Natalie."

Clemmons frowns. "Those files are supposed to be in alphabetical order, separated by year." He looks over Wallace's shoulder.

Wallace muses, "1999, Estevez, Carlos Irwin. 1997, Patrick, Tara Leigh. 2004, Bishop, Eric. 2002, Guynes, Demetria. I don't think they're in any order."

Clemmons comments with annoyance, "I assigned Ms. Mars to refile these folders after their contents were jumbled in an accident. Apparently she just put folders in boxes in random order."

Wallace's eyebrows raise high. "Yeah, I think she mentioned that you gave her that assignment to manipulate her into investigating an old incident involving her mother, so that you could secure that promotion you were looking for." When Clemmons glares at him, Wallace rushes to add with a fake smile, "But you know we were all happy that you succeeded Principal Moorehead."

"Whatever. Let's get this show on the road," Weevil says impatiently. He takes another box and opens the lid. "What are we looking for?"

"KC," Wallace muses. "Anybody with the last name starting with 'C' or 'K', between 2002 and 2005. And first initial 'K', I guess. It could be first and middle initials."

About half the files, the ones pertaining to female students, are eliminated quickly. As Weevil and Wallace pull folders that seem even remotely possible, they hand them to Clemmons. After a few minutes, they have gathered a small pile; Clemmons is reading each file carefully. While looking at the second folder, he chuckles, "I remember this student. A real character. I recall one time when he—"

"Oh come the fuck on!" Weevil interrupts impatiently. "Is it the guy?"

Clemmons drops the file onto a nearby cabinet. Coldly, he replies, "Mr. Navarro. I don't appreciate the rough language. This is my day off, and I'm doing you a favor. I was really looking forward to working in my garden today."

"Perhaps you should just read a little faster," Weevil suggests, exasperated. "Then we can get busy spreading some manure for you."

"Shh," Wallace says hastily to Weevil. "Principal Clemmons, we're just nervous about Veronica." He gives Weevil a withering look and pokes him in the side.

"Sorry," Weevil mutters. Under his breath, he tells Wallace, "You touch my ribs again, and I'm going to have to hurt you." To Clemmons, he adds, "Sorry, sir."

Clemmons intones, "If this is so urgent, perhaps the police should be involved."

"Please, Mr. Clemmons. By the time we convince the sheriff to look at these files..." Wallace shrugs suggestively. "Could you live with yourself if Veronica got hurt because you didn't want to look at a few files?"

"All right, Mr. Fennel. I'll continue, but this seems like a wild goose chase. I'm not seeing how this mythical student 'KC' relates to the Fitzpatricks."

"Neither are we. But I've learned to trust Veronica's instincts. I think you have, too," Wallace replies pointedly.

Clemmons nods thoughtfully. "Hand me the next folder."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Turn of the Screw**  
Complications in Rio Linda; KC is identified.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Eli: Francis Capra.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Clemmons: Duane  
Daniels. Brian: Scott Elrod. Frank: Stephen  
Dorff. Joe: Todd Stashwick.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED THIRTY: "TURN OF THE SCREW"

Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Residential area, Rio Linda, CA

Keith knocks on the door of a modest ranch home. He notes out of the corner of his eye that Kavner pulls up and parks the Ford Focus a short distance down the block. A young man with long dark hair, wearing an open shirt over a dirty white T-shirt, open the door. "Yeah? How can I help you?"

"Kenneth Sanford? I'm Keith Mars. I left a message earlier today," Keith replies.

"Oh yeah. You're that private investigator who called about the old tenants at my house over on Dorado. You wanted the forwarding address, right? Come on in, I wrote it down for you. I'll get it." Kenneth steps aside and leads them into the house.

Veronica frowns. _Why is my spidey-sense tingling? This is too easy._

As they walk into the living room, Keith inquires, "Is it possible we could get into the Dorado house? We think it might be important to help us locate the girl who was living there."

The door slams shut behind them. Veronica whirls around; directly behind her, she sees a man training a gun on them. He says, "Welcome to Rio Linda. Put your hands up."

Keith tries to go for his gun, and the man holding the gun knocks him hard on the head. Keith crumples to the ground as Veronica screams. Logan reacts more slowly and struggles to get his gun out of the holster. Veronica yells, "Logan, no!"

'Kenneth' pulls a gun from his belt and strides over to Logan, putting the barrel of the gun onto Logan's forehead. "Bad idea, dumbfuck." Logan stops moving, with his hand still under his jacket holding the butt of his gun. 'Kenneth' bats Logan's hand away and takes his weapon, putting it into the waistband of his jeans. He says to the other man, "Get the old guy's gun." To Logan, he sneers, "Go ahead, make my day. Give me a reason to shoot you." Logan puts his hands in the air slowly; his face is flushed with anger, and he breathes heavily.

"Just do what they say, Logan," Veronica says quietly. _Damn it. Damn it!_ As she tries to think furiously, she protests, "You don't have to hurt us. We'll cooperate."

'Kenneth' stoops to the floor and disarms Keith, who is lying unconscious on the floor. He stands up and kicks Keith's leg; Keith doesn't react, and 'Kenneth' looks satisfied. He says, "Frank, check the girl. Make sure that's really a sling on her arm. I heard she's tricky. Thinks she's smart." In a singsong tone, he chants, "Veronica Ma-ars. Girl detective." He cackles loudly at his joke.

Frank moves to Veronica, who is trying her best to look nonthreatening. Frank steps behind her and puts his gun to her head. "Don't move an inch, girlie." He roughly pulls the sling off her shoulder and discards it; Veronica tries not to react, but she winces in pain when Frank pokes her in shoulder.

"Stop it, you're hurting her," Logan snaps.

'Kenneth' pushes the gun hard into his forehead, forcing Logan's head backward. "Shut up."

"Please don't hurt her," Logan says quietly, breathing hard with the effort not to react physically.

Frank ignores him. "Yo, Brian. Where's the duct tape?"

Brian, also known as 'Kenneth', nods toward the counter dividing the dining room from the kitchen. Frank grabs Veronica left shoulder and propels her into the dining room in front of him.

They hear a knock on the front door. Brian calls out, "Joe?"

"Yeah."

"Get in here."

Joe walks in and shuts the door carefully behind him. "Situation's under control?"

Brian replies, "Yeah. Call the tow truck; get the security guards' car back to the impound lot right away before the cops realize it's missing."

Veronica asks recklessly, "What did you do to Kavner and Harris?"

"Shut up," Frank says, shoving her hard toward the counter. She stumbles and catches herself on a chair; the pain shoots down her right arm, and it feels like her shoulder is on fire. She pulls her right arm tight into her torso to try to calm the throbbing in her shoulder.

Brian is still talking. "Take their Saturn, dump it out by the airfield. You know where I'm talking about. We've got to get out of here right away, before Sanford comes home. We'll be in touch."

The man nods and says, "You got it," as he walks out the front door.

Frank says to Veronica, "Put your hands behind your back."

She turns white, knowing what that will do to her shoulder. The pain has ratcheted up with every second of their rough treatment. "I can't. Please."

Logan interjects, "She can't put her arm behind her back. Please don't make her do that. Please don't!"

Brian knees him in the groin, and Logan bends over in agony. "I told you to shut up." To Frank, he says, "I wish we didn't have to keep these assholes alive."

"It's only temporary," Frank observes. He tears loose a long strip of duct tape. Frank pulls Veronica's arm viciously behind her back, and she passes out from the pain, collapsing onto the floor in a heap.

Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Neptune High School, Neptune, CA

Wallace opens another file box; the first file he looks at makes him gasp aloud.

Weevil asks, "What?"

Wallace walks over to Clemmons and pushes the file into his hands. "Is this the guy?"

Mr. Clemmons says with irritation, "Mr. Fennel...patience is a virtue—" He looks at Wallace's face and stops talking. He reads silently for a few seconds. "Yes, I believe this is the boy I was thinking of. He withdrew from the school because he was sentenced to a juvenile facility his sophomore year for car theft. After he was released nine months later, he applied for the automotive mechanics program, and I authorized it."

"What's the name?" Weevil asks impatiently.

"Kevin Carney," Wallace answers. "He voted for Wanda Varner in the student council election; I remember Veronica looked for him to ask him about his vote. So that's how she knew him."

Mr. Clemmons frowns. "It looks like Kevin dropped out of the automotive program the day he turned eighteen, and he never got his diploma. It's such a shame."

"What??" Wallace asks, already thinking about calling Veronica with the news. "What's a shame?"

"Well, his uncle tried to take Kevin under his wing. The uncle turned his own life around after a very shaky start...really made something of himself. I remember him well; he was a student here when I first started teaching, and I think he spent most of his senior year in the principal's office. But he managed to finish college, worked hard and got an advanced degree, and now he's an FBI agent," Mr. Clemmons continues. "I believe the uncle was trying to intervene on his nephew's behalf, offering to take custody even."

"I got to call Veronica," Wallace says quickly. He pulls out his cell phone and walks to a corner of the storage room. He paces nervously with the phone pressed to his ear.

"What about this mess?" Clemmons asks.

"I got it," Weevil replies. He begins to pack up the files without paying attention to alphabetizing.

"Can you at least make an effort to put them back in order?" Clemmons says sternly.

"They're already completely out of order," Weevil protests. "We'd be here all day." He continues without changing his modus operandi, and Clemmons purses his lips in irritation.

Wallace walks back over, saying, "I don't like it. She's not picking up. She said they wouldn't turn the phone off."

"What's going on?" Clemmons asks.

"I left a message, told her to call me right away," Wallace replies, distractedly. "Mr. Clemmons, I'm sorry to do this to you. I think we're going to have to owe you one for this. Come on, Weevil. I want to take this to the sheriff." He picks up Carney's folder. "Can we take this? We'll bring it back after the sheriff makes copies."

"You're going to take this to D'Amato? I thought he was—" Weevil breaks off suddenly and looks at Clemmons.

Wallace answers, "We don't have a choice. We're going to have to trust him." He pitches in to help Weevil finish putting away the rest of the folders as quickly as possible. Clemmons is about to protest, but something in Wallace's expression makes him keep quiet. They finish clearing up, and Wallace and Weevil hurry out of the school.

Clemmons, more leisurely, follows them out and locks the front door. As the two young men get into their car, he calls out, "Good luck, gentlemen."

Wallace starts up the car before Weevil is completely seated in the passenger side and peels out of the parking lot with the tires screeching.

Sat. 3/21/09 afternoon: Somewhere in the United States

VERONICA

She remembers scrabbling frantically at the smooth plastic, seeking purchase on something, anything, that would make it give way. Her nail snagged on something, and she had desperately worked at it until that nail ripped off. She remembers being surprised that it didn't hurt at the time; but even more clearly she recalls imagining that the air was disappearing with every breath and what was a fingernail, after all, compared with suffocation. She had pounded ineffectually on the door—_why won't it budge??_ While she struggled and pushed against the immovable slippery surfaces, he had been taunting her: 'Veronicaaah...where are the tapes? Where are the tapes?! Veronicaaah.' _Tell him what he wants, tell him where you put the tapes, he'll...no. He won't._

All of a sudden she had smelled the pungent, fierce odor of gasoline and she _knew_ what he had done. She heard the struggle but didn't know what was happening—it seemed to go on forever, and she imagined that every breath was the last bit of remaining oxygen—then her straining ears heard the soft metallic click, a scuttling sound, and a sudden whoosh. And then..._heat._

She had imagined the freezer heating to an unbearable degree and then her body melting into the plastic as she screamed, trying frantically to lift herself from the inexorably heating and disintegrating wall of the freezer that was threatening to burn into her skin. She had sensed with an irrational conviction that the toxic chemicals in the freezer were certainly burning and releasing noxious gases, and she remembered praying that whatever fumes there were would have the good grace to render her unconscious before she could feel the pain of the flames. And she pictured Aaron watching implacably as she was immolated....

She remembers the gravel of the rooftop digging into her flesh as she scrambled away from Beav- Cassidy. Her nerve endings were tingling with the aftershocks of the taser wielded so callously by her tormenter, and her thoughts were jumbled together in chaos: _can't think, hurts, can't move, get away from him now, HURTS, I still can't believe it's Beaver...Beaver?!_ She fell forward, hard, onto the roof, wondering how she could have been so wrong about everything.

She had looked toward the edge as he urged her to jump. She had pictured herself teetering helplessly, the ground so dizzyingly far down, with nothing to stop her descent except the cold hard pavement far below, and then grasping futilely at a terrace as it screamed by her head. Her head swam with the frantic calculations and recalculations of the probability of surviving a gunshot versus the certainty of ending up a shapeless bag of roadkill on the sidewalk. And then, the cold metal feel of the gun when she got hold of it—not the first gun she had ever held, but the first time she had held one as an instrument of death, almost...almost the instrument of her own death. It felt like _evil_—alive and seductive. Just point the gun at him and pull....

She remembers lying in the bed, in the girl's pink quilted jacket, trying not to tremble as Mercer talked. Then she was fighting with him, the hard floor coming up to meet her head, and the sound of it echoing in her skull, her nose suddenly oozing blood and a sharp pain aching above her eye. She remembers fighting him for her life, scratching his face—trying to rip it right off his skull if it were possible—and then the sickening, sticky feel of bloody, gouged tissue under her fingernails as Mercer's fist hit her face, full force. She had managed to get away and she ran, _I'm not fast enough, he's going to.... _The blood and snot blotted her vision as she scrambled up the stairs, almost slipping, and pounded so hard on Wallace's door that the bruises on her hands took weeks to heal.

Then, in Moe's room, she had felt the effects of the adulterated tea, _so stupid, so stupid:_ she had looked around frantically and hid pathetically in the closet, calling her dad for help, _pick up, pick up, pick up_. Everything was so fuzzy—her brain completely refusing to work—but she knew they'd hold her down and rape her before....

She can't believe it's possible to hurt this much without passing out. Her wrists, bound with duct tape behind her back, are pulling and tearing that fragile connection in her shoulder that was already stretched beyond the breaking point. Klein's face floats, disembodied, above her, bellowing, _'We don't do anything when we're drunk that we don't wish we could do when we're sober...Maybe you thought it would feel even better if you had sex with someone...You don't want to admit that you're a slut...Once again, you're refusing to take responsibility for your actions.'_ He grabs her face and brandishes a lipstick as she pulls away and shakes her head, 'no.' _A lipstick...Klein had a lipstick?...what is he doing...what?_ And then she thinks she remembers seeing Logan's appalled face, but she's not sure it was really him, because more than anything she had thought she'd gone insane, and he was furious with her anyways. Beaver and Aaron and Mercer were there laughing at her—it couldn't be true, but they were there—cackling as she protested and fought against Klein and the fucking bitches at the school, and above all she knew she deserved to be there: somehow they'd all found out that she was a raging black hole and no one loved her....

Her eyes are leaking, with the tears running down her face onto the duct tape plastered over her lips; she is shaking with fear and pain, her breath snorting and irregular. When the van hits a pothole, she screams in agony into the duct tape gag as she helplessly rolls onto her shoulder. She knows it's really over this time, and because she fucked up, her dad and Logan are going to die too. There's no cavalry to come, this time. There's no rape whistle, no cell phone to dial, no one expecting her arrival to jump in their car and come find her. Kavner and the other guard are probably already dead because of her.

The only question is...why are they still alive?

She feels a movement beside her; and then...fingers tentatively grasping and fumbling against her back. She sucks in a breath as Logan's fingers find hers, the contact hesitant and then more assured. He grips her hand with thumb and forefinger: _you're not insane, Logan is here, Dad is here. You're not dead yet._

_Use the pain. Use the fear. Turn it into something else...fuel._

_Fuck you...I'm not going to be a pretty corpse. You're going to have to fight me._

He fumbles at her wrists, and suddenly she realizes. He is trying desperately to work the duct tape loose. It hurts like hell, but she pulls her arms as far out as possible to try to help him. He picks at the tape relentlessly while she struggles to hold the position despite her throbbing shoulder.

_I have to rest,_ she thinks, as the emotions and the physical sensations threaten to overwhelm her again. She relaxes her arms for a few seconds. She feels him stop suddenly, and she tries to grab his fingers to reassure him. Veronica takes a deep breath through her nose and tries to hold her arms out again.

She loses track of time; it feels like he's been picking at the tape for hours, but she knows it has probably just been a few minutes...or has it? At one point, she dozes off in exhaustion and wakes up with a start, wondering how long she slept. Without warning, she is jostled heavily, and she whimpers into the duct tape gag. But...she realizes Logan's movements have changed, pulling now rather than scraping his fingernails. She concentrates hard and thinks he's worked a corner of the duct tape loose.

She tries to pull in the opposite direction from his movements, and they are rewarded: she faintly hears the soft rrripp of the tape being pulled off. From the front of the van, the men's voices can be heard, laughing coarsely as they listen to heavy metal on the van's radio. She smiles grimly: it was a mistake to leave them alone in the back.

Logan is persistent; his movements are frenzied now that he's made some real progress. She ignores the screaming pain of her shoulder and helps as much as possible. All of a sudden her hands are free; she allows her arms to relax forward, and she just breathes for a moment at the abrupt reduction in her overall pain.

Then the van slows down. She pays attention; they lurch from side-to-side as the van makes a turn. She hears the two men, Brian and Frank, talking; it sounds like they are discussing the route.

Logan kicks her hard to get her attention, and she struggles to roll over. In the darkened van, she can just barely make out his face. He motions repetitively with his jaw, and she understands. With her left hand, she pulls a corner of the duct tape loose from his mouth.

He leans into her ear and whispers, "I have to put the tape back on your wrists. We're stopping. We don't have time to get loose."

She knows he's right, but still she shakes her head furiously, _no, no, I can't, don't make me_. She can't bear the thought of drawing her arms back into that position again, and she begins to cry again, her whole body quaking at the thought of resuming that position.

"Veronica, you have to. You can do this. I'm going to try to do it so you can get out again when there's an opportunity. You can do this, Veronica. You gotta make them believe that you're not a threat; make them think you're hurt and beaten, and then...when you have a chance, you're going to take it and save us. Turn back over and put your arms behind your back, Veronica. Please. I know you can do this. Put my gag back on and turn over."

Veronica pushes the duct tape onto his mouth again. She can see his eyes burning with determination. She turns back over, trembling, and pulls her arms behind her. He rolls over and positions his hands at hers; he fumbles with her wrists as the van turns two more times. There's no way that the duct tape is as tight as it was before, but her shoulder still hurts like hell. The van slows to a stop; the driver puts the van into 'park' with a lurch, and the two men walk around to the back of the van just as Logan finishes smoothing the duct tape over her wrists. She runs her fingers over the tape; she has no idea what it looks like, but it feels like the tape only wraps around once. She tugs experimentally on the tape, and she decides..._maybe._ She has to make sure they don't have a reason to look at her bonds.

_Sell it, Veronica. Make them think they've beaten you._

_And then...take them down. And make them pay._


	38. Chapters 131 to 137

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. The name of the town discussed in this section is a real town, but my wild ravings have nothing to do with the real town or its inhabitants. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall, Zaftig-Darling, and Kazy. Any remaining errors are my responsibility. Sorry for the delay in updating.

* * *

**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from chapters 126-130:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/112273•html )

THIS SUMMARY REFERS TO THE UPDATE POSTED 3/21/09; GO BACK AND READ THE LAST CHAPTER IF YOU MISSED IT.

**[ I apologize profusely for the delay in updating. ]**

_Veronica tells her dad that she and Logan have been trying to talk, finally, about the night she was raped. Keith suggests that they should drop out of the case against Briar Hill, but Veronica refuses. She insists on continuing to investigate Hannah's murder._

_In Rio Linda, Keith, Veronica, and Logan check in with the local sheriff, who is dubious that Hannah would have been hiding in Rio Linda. Keith notes that the sheriff is working on several methamphetamine cases. They locate the house where Hannah was living; one neighbor tells them she was using the name Meredith and reports that 'Meredith' took a bus every day around 3:30. They follow the bus route and locate a diner where Hannah was working under the name 'Meredith Grey'. The diner owner, Mel, tells them a little about Hannah's life in Rio Linda and suggests that a man was asking questions about her the night before she disappeared. The last time he saw Hannah was January 10, and he hasn't seen Katey Shaffer, the woman with whom Hannah was living, since the summer before. He had a cell phone number but no address for 'Meredith', who was working for cash, 'under the table'._

_Meanwhile, Kavner and Harris, the two security guards, are separated from Keith, Veronica, and Logan by a white paneled van. They are then pulled over by a policeman and arrested on a false charge. Their car is taken, and it resumes following the Marses and Logan._

_Leo questions Padraig Fitzpatrick. A hair presumed to be Kendall's was found on a car seat from the Crawford's SUV in his junkyard/chop shop. Padraig appears to be surprised when Leo informs him that Liam took a trip to the Cayman Islands in September and that Kendall's plastic surgery was apparently done by Dr. Griffith. He refuses to answer any of more questions other than reiterating that he had been under arrest at the Neptune Sheriff's Department the night of Kendall's murder._

_Leo reinterviews Mrs. Griffith. After a breakin in September, Dr. Griffith was very nervous and hired a bodyguard and installed a security system. About six weeks later, he dismissed the bodyguard and appeared to relax until the beginning of January, when he again was very nervous. His wife insisted on a getaway, and they were vacationing in Cabo San Lucas when Hannah was murdered._

_A man, Andrew Shekar, is arrested in the serial murder case and charged in the murders of all the victims except Hannah Griffith._

_Mac's captors communicate with a man in Rio Linda, who tells them that Keith and Logan are both armed, and they are being followed by security guards. The man in Rio Linda is ordered to improvise a solution. Mac's captors kill Alan Sheffield and announce that Mac is to take two prescription pills so they can get out of there. Mac is horrified by Alan's cold-blooded murder and complies._

_Wallace and Weevil approach Principal Clemmons about the unidentified young man thought to be involved with the Fitzpatricks. Clemmons remembers the face and agrees that the student was probably in an alternative education program; they search through the files at Neptune High and identify the boy as Kevin Carney. Principal Clemmons tells them that Kevin's uncle is an FBI agent._

_After they leave the diner, Veronica, Keith, and Logan debate their next step. They decide to tell Mike what they've learned and interview Hannah's former landlord. They head to the landlord's house, where they are taken by two men. Keith is knocked unconscious, and Veronica's shoulder is stressed again, causing her to pass out from the pain. They are bound with duct tape and transported in a van. Veronica at first is desolate and at the point of giving up but begins to find some inner strenght, vowing to fight against their captors._

_Logan manages to get the duct tape off Veronica's wrists just as the van appears to be stopping, With no time for her to free all of them, he desperately puts the duct tape back, making sure to leave it so she can get free again. Veronica will have to pretend to be 'beaten' and then somehow take advantage of an opportunity to get them all free.  
_

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**The Soul Uneasy and Confin'd From Home  
**Wallace and Weevil take their suspicions to  
Leo; Mike follows a hunch; the van arrives.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Wallace: Percy Daggs III.  
Eli: Francis Capra. Mike Fields: Michael Trucco.  
Sacks: Brandon Hillock. Brian: Scott Elrod.  
Frank: Stephen Dorff. Man: Peter Greene.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-ONE: "THE SOUL UNEASY AND CONFIN'D FROM HOME"

Sat. 3/21/09 late afternoon: Neptune Sheriff's Department

Wallace strides into the sheriff's department with Weevil following close behind. "Deputy Sacks, we need to see the sheriff right away."

Sacks replies, "He's on his way back to the station. Take a seat; I expect him in about ten minutes."

Weevil says, "Not good enough."

"Excuse me?" Sacks says.

Wallace adds quickly, "We have some important information about the Fitzpatrick case. And...we haven't been able to get in touch with Veronica and her dad. They're up in Northern California, checking out a few leads, and they're not answering their phone. We're worried something happened to them."

"Maybe they're in a bad cell area," Sacks offers. "How long since you spoke to them?"

"I talked to them this morning. I don't think they're in a bad cell area. Something's wrong! They have security guards following them, and I can't get in touch with them either."

Weevil interjects, "We need to do something now."

"What do you want me to do?" Sacks asks.

"Call the Rio Linda police, put out an APB...whatever," Wallace suggests.

"Because you can't reach them by phone for..." Sacks checks his watch. "Approximately six hours? The Rio Linda Sheriff's Department is going to laugh in my face. Just have a seat, the sheriff will be back soon and you can talk to him."

They turn around and go into the hallway to wait impatiently. Weevil pulls out a pack of cigarettes and nervously taps it against his palm. Wallace asks curiously, "Since when do you smoke?"

"I quit a long time ago." Weevil looks embarrassed and puts the cigarettes away.

"So?"

Weevil scowls. "I'm stressed, okay? It started when I upset Veronica the other night. And then—" He stops short.

"What happened with you and Oswaldo last night?" Wallace presses.

"Shh," Weevil says quickly, looking around. "Let's not talk about it, okay?"

"What did you do?" Wallace whispers.

"You don't want to know," Weevil blurts. "Leave it alone."

Wallace stares at him. "It's not going to help Veronica if you get into trouble."

"I know, all right? Shut the fuck up, will you?"

Wallace pulls out his cell phone and tries Veronica again with no success. He checks the voicemail at Mars Investigations as well. There's a message from Dick, trying to get in touch with Veronica.

Leo strides into the department, ignoring the two boys seated in the waiting area.

"Sheriff," Wallace begins.

"What is it? I'm busy," Leo says distractedly.

"I'm Wallace Fennel, I work with Keith Mars. We have some information about the Fitzpatricks and—"

"Right, Wallace. I remember you. Come into my office," Leo barks as he leads the way. "Sacks, get some coffee in here."

Wallace mutters to Weevil, "Let me do the talking okay?"

"All right," Weevil agrees.

They sit down and wait while Leo writes a few notes before looking up at them. His eyes light on Weevil, who is still wearing his leather jacket, and Leo's eyebrow raise questioningly. Wallace hurries to introduce him as Eli Navarro.

Leo says thoughtfully, "Right. They call you Weevil, right? I remember arresting you a few years ago—you broke into Lilly Kane's bedroom. And for some unknown reason, Celeste Kane dropped the charges."

"She knew I didn't take anything," Weevil lies smoothly.

"Yeah, I also remember you were head of the PCHers."

"Ancient history," Weevil replies. "I work at Hearst College now."

"We caught one of the PCHers with a large quantity of heroin last night. Guy named Oswaldo Cortez. Coincidence?"

Wallace flinches slightly at this revelation, and Weevil unobtrusively kicks him in the leg. Weevil says calmly, "I don't think Oswaldo was ever in the PCHers. His cousin Hector took over for me after I left, but Oswaldo was never in the gang. And the PCHers don't sell drugs...at least we never did when I was in charge. That sounds more like the Fitzpatricks, if you ask me."

Wallace is suddenly thinking that Weevil should have just stayed in the car. _Shut up, Weevil._

Leo replies, "Could be. He's lawyered up. It's kind of a coincidence; he's also the one who told me about Logan's affair with Kendall Casablancas. Lots of coincidences lately." Leo assesses Weevil for a long moment before turning his attention back to Wallace. "What is it you wanted to tell me about the Fitzpatricks?"

"You know Mr. Mars was looking for a connection between the FBI and the Fitzpatricks. Well, we found it." Wallace pushes the photo of Kevin Carney talking with Liam Fitzpatrick across Leo's desk.

"This is one of the photos that Keith gave me," Leo notes. "You found out who this kid is?"

"His name is Kevin Carney; he works as a delivery boy for the Fitzpatricks. His uncle is an FBI agent."

"Carney?" Leo frowns. He picks up a pencil and taps it on the desk. "That sounds familiar. Sacks!"

Sacks brings a cup of coffee into the office and places it on Leo's desk. "Sorry it took me so long, Sheriff."

"Never mind. Do you remember an Agent Carney from the FBI?"

Sacks thinks a minute. "Yeah, he was from the serial killer task force. The Behavioral Sciences Unit. He was interviewing people who knew Hannah Griffith back in January."

"He was working the serial killer case?" Wallace asks incredulously. "Then he would have known how to make Hannah's murder look like the Slasher did it."

"They arrested the Slasher early this morning in Los Angeles," Sacks interjects. "They didn't charge the guy with Hannah Griffith's murder though; just the other eight women. I thought it was weird when I heard the news." He heads back to the outer office and shuts the door behind him.

Leo taps a few keys on his computer. "Kevin Carney has a juvenile record." He frowns and peers at the screen. "Sentenced to nine months in a county facility for car theft when he was sixteen. It looks like he's been keeping out of trouble since then." He accesses another file and announces, "His uncle applied to be named as the boy's guardian, but his mother opposed the petition, and it was denied. Of course, he's over eighteen now, so...." He sits back heavily in his chair and stares into space, thinking hard. "I have to say...I didn't put much stock in Keith's theory. But you're right—this is a pretty big coincidence, given what we know about Griffith."

"The Fitzpatricks have been running the show in this town for too long not to have friends in high places," Weevil notes.

Wallace says anxiously, "Sheriff...Veronica, Mr. Mars, and Logan Echolls went up to Rio Linda today to try to look into Hannah's murder. And we've lost touch with them."

"Rio Linda?"

"Just outside of Sacramento," Wallace explains. "They found out that's where Hannah was living after she ran away from the school. And once Duncan's hearing was, uh," he stumbles momentarily, thinking of Leo's involvement, "Uh, resolved...they headed up there to see what they could find out for Hannah's mother. You know, Ms. Denenberg is really struggling with what happened to her daughter."

Leo frowns. "Okay...they went to Rio Linda. What are you suggesting?"

"I'm worried they stumbled onto something about Hannah's murder, or somebody intercepted them. Maybe this Agent Carney realized they were investigating up there."

Leo rubs his forehead and closes his eyes in fatigue. "When's the last time you heard from them?"

"Late this morning....I know, it's only a few hours, but given the situation..." Wallace explains.

Leo turns to his computer and types a few keystrokes before picking the phone. "May I speak to the sheriff please?...Sheriff Leo D'Amato, from Neptune in Balboa County." He plays with the pencil again while he waits. "Sheriff. We may have a situation here. I have an associate of Keith Mars here in my office; Mr. Mars is a private investigator here in—" He breaks off and scribbles a few notes as he listens. "Mr. Mars' associate claims that he hasn't been able to reach Mr. Mars for over five hours. You saw them about two o'clock?...Do you have any idea where they were heading?...I see. Sheriff, I would consider it a great personal favor if you would send a patrol car to check out that address....There's been some developments that Mr. Mars is unaware of that may put him and his, uh, colleagues in danger....Thanks, I appreciate that."

He hangs up the phone and looks at Wallace and Weevil. "They checked in with the sheriff when they got to town. The sheriff remembers the address they were asking about, and he's sending a car out."

"So we know they got to Rio Linda," Wallace muses. "What about the FBI agent? Are you going to arrest him?"

"You can't just arrest an FBI agent. I can't even bring him in for questioning."

Wallace presses, "Why didn't you mention him to the Rio Linda sheriff?"

Leo sighs. "I've got to follow protocol for this. This evidence is highly circumstantial."

"Then what the fu— I mean, what can you do?" Weevil says, catching himself.

"I can talk to his bureau chief. In the meantime, I can bring in this Kevin Carney, see what he has to say for himself."

"That's it?" Weevil asks in frustration. "They could be killing Veronica right this minute."

Hearing the actual words that he's been trying to avoid thinking slams Wallace in the gut. Attempting to keep the tremble out of his voice, Wallace says, as persuasively as he can, "Mr. Mars was pretty nervous. He hired security guards to trail them and keep an eye out for trouble, and the agency hasn't been able to reach them either. I think we should really try to—"

"You know as well as I do that they could just be in a bad cell area, and if the guards are following, then they'd be in the same bad area." Leo shrugs. "The sheriff said he would call me back after they checked out the house. I'll let you know what he says. Leave your cell number with the deputy." He stands up, indicating that the discussion is over.

"Sheriff, please," Weevil pleads loudly, trying like hell to resist punching a wall or throwing a chair. "You know the Fitzpatricks don't screw around. And if they think Veronica has solid evidence against them, they won't hesitate to take her out."

Leo's voice betrays that he is frustrated as well. "What would you have me do? I promise, I'm not blowing you off, Mr. Navarro, Mr. Fennel. I'm just as concerned as you are. I'm going to call the Los Angeles Bureau Chief right now, and I'll send a car out to pick up Kevin Carney. Thanks for bringing this evidence to my attention."

Wallace looks into Leo's face; there's a slight twitch below Leo's left eye, and the man is obviously tense. _This is much more complicated than just a sheriff trying to run an investigation...there's an awful lot of emotion here._ Aloud he says, "Thanks for listening to us, Sheriff."

Wallace and Weevil leave the office; Weevil is just barely keeping himself in check. When they get into Wallace's car, Weevil slams the door too hard, and Wallace says with aggravation, "Hey. It's my mom's car. You're not helping by slamming the door."

"Sorry. I'm just...." Weevil pounds his fist on the dashboard, and Wallace flinches at his anger. Bitterly, he comments, "You know, when it was me on the hook for murder, they hauled me out of my graduation in handcuffs and asked questions later. When it's some fucking FBI agent, everyone's worried about _protocol_ and following the goddamn rules."

Wallace starts up the car. "I know. But Weevil, he didn't blow us off. He listened to us, and I think he's going to pursue it. ...Look it, we don't have to just sit around and wait for him to do something. Let's go to the office. I have a few ideas."

Weevil is still glowering, upset about Leo's attitude.

Wallace says forcefully, "We have to stay focused. Veronica's counting on us."

"Right," Weevil mutters.

Sat. 3/21/09 late afternoon: Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles, CA

Mike Fields shows his FBI identification and goes to the head of the line at the check-in counter. He holds his breath as the agent checks over the ID; if the agent calls it in, he'll quickly discover that Mike is still on suspension. However, the agent merely glances at the ID cursorily. Mike purchases a ticket and checks an overnight bag with his disassembled weapon after filling out the necessary paperwork.

He hurries to the gate, quickly passing through security with another flash of his identification. He paces nervously and tries to call Veronica again, but like the last twenty times he has tried, there is no response. Finally, the 5:30 flight to Sacramento is called for boarding. Mike takes his seat on the plane, and, after a last check of the screen to make sure Veronica hasn't called, he shuts off his phone for the duration of the flight.

Sat. 3/21/09 early evening: Somewhere in the United States

The rear doors of the van are yanked open. While pointing a gun at them, Brian orders sharply, "The girl first. Take her down to the boat while I watch the other two." Frank nods and easily hoists her over his shoulder.

The new position puts stress on Veronica's wrist bonds, and she struggles to hold her arms together to prevent the now-flimsy duct tape binding from letting go. She grits her teeth against the pain until she realizes that crying will help her look more vulnerable. Veronica gives in to the pain, letting the tears run down her cheeks as the man carries her down a wooden boardwalk. She catches a glimpse of Brian tapping her dad's face lightly, trying to make him come around, and she tries desperately to control her panic.

She resolutely focuses on the situation: she observes her surroundings as her head bobs upside down as she is carried along the boardwalk. _Definitely northern California, probably on the coast, not a lake,_ she thinks; _too cool for southern California._ She listens closely and thinks she discerns the faint sound of the ocean. She tries to figure driving times, but her sense of time is completely distorted by her panic attack in the van. _Way too dark for the afternoon,_ Veronica decides. _Early evening. 6:00, 7:00, maybe; so three or four hours from Rio Linda._ She tries to picture a map of California in her head._ How long was I freaking out before Logan started working on my wrist bindings? Was he really clawing at them for three hours? Got to focus...I can't let myself panic like that again._ Frank adjusts her on his shoulder, and she can see a little more of their surroundings. Veronica notes a small solitary tree nestled among the rocks on the rugged shoreline with the Pacific Ocean beyond. The ocean is rough this evening, with whitecaps from a stiff breeze.

Veronica cranes her neck and to her right sees a contemporary house, with floor-to-ceiling windows, overlooking the ocean. _Where the hell are we?_ She tries to look to her left, but her transporter takes a large step forward, jolting her, and she realizes they've stepped onto a private dock. A single boat, maybe 40 feet long, is tied up to the dock; Frank walks to it and steps easily onto the deck. The movement of the boat underneath them combined with her upside-down positioning makes her a little queasy. Her captor carries her to the companionway to go down below; she is jostled carelessly against the sides and helplessly moans as her shoulder makes contact with the hard surface.

Another man unfamiliar to her is already down there, seated on a banquette in the galley. "Hey. About time," he says briefly. Veronica's heart is pounding; the number of men involved in this operation and their competence is completely frightening.

Her captor, Frank, replies, "Where do you want her?"

"In the forward berth for now, with the other girl," the man replies. Upside down, Veronica watches as he unlocks a padlock securing a door and opens it for Frank.

_The other girl?? _ Veronica forgets to breathe:_ a girl...oh no...it can't be...._

"Where is he?" Frank asks, interrupting her panicked musing.

"Up in the pilothouse," the man answers.

"I'm going to need your help with the other two."

Frank walks into the cabin and dumps her roughly on the bed before exiting. She allows herself to moan behind the gag, but the man ignores her.

The darkened cabin is vee-shaped, with a bed taking up the majority of the space and very little light filtering in from the portholes high up on the walls. The door is shut, and the padlock is once again secured noisily. She hears the men conversing in low voices, and someone laughs.

Veronica rolls over to see who the girl is in the cabin with her. She immediately recognizes the dark hair with blue streaks. _Please, it can't be...oh my god, 'Ronnie'...that's why she said that._ She scuttles over on the bed, wincing against the pain, and nudges the body which is bound with duct tape as she is. Mac rolls over, her mouth gaping and her eyes closed.

Veronica tries again to wake her, and Mac protests weakly, mumbling incoherently. Her eyes flutter open, and she says faintly, "Veronica?"

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Loose Ends  
**Wallace contacts Mike Fields; Veronica  
assesses their situation.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Mike Fields: Michael  
Trucco. Brian: Scott Elrod. Frank: Stephen Dorff.  
Andy ('Man'): Peter Greene.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-TWO: "LOOSE ENDS"

Sat. 3/21/09 early evening: Sacramento International Airport, Sacramento, CA

When the commuter flight touches down in Sacramento, Mike Fields unbuckles his seat belt and stands up, in order to be the first one off the plane. The flight attendant frowns at him. "Sir, I need you to—"

Mike flashes his ID at her, and she nods 'okay'. He waits at the door and deplanes as soon as the door is open. He triggers the power button on his cell as he hustles through the jetway to the terminal. _No calls,_ he thinks despondently when he looks at the screen.

After Veronica had called him and told him about the witness in the Rio Linda diner, he had begun checking into Rio Linda and had found out that the FBI had been involved in an investigation of a suspicious plane crash there in late December. One of three men killed in the crash had been a deputy from the Rio Linda Sheriff's Department. He had immediately tried to call Veronica without success, but he didn't start worrying until he didn't hear back from her for half an hour. Mike threw a few items into a bag, including his weapon, and hurried to the airport, determined to get to Rio Linda as quickly as possible, via a commuter flight to Sacramento.

More than once during the flight, Mike had thought that he would have been really happy to have been proven wrong about this hunch. The idea that Veronica actually might be pursuing someone with access to all the FBI resources had frankly terrified him.

On the flight to Sacramento, he had reviewed some files that an agent friend had forwarded to him. The FBI had suspected that the plane that crashed in late December had been carrying drugs, but it had been completely incinerated in the accident. The high temperature fire had obliterated all the evidence, and no charges were filed. Without other evidence to the contrary, the NTSB had tentatively determined that pilot error had probably caused the crash. The NTSB investigation remained open, but it had been removed from the active FBI case list since there was no evidence of a federal crime. Mike had compared the names of the FBI agents who had been assigned to the investigation and had found several who were also able to access the Slasher case files. And it had made his blood run cold.

The crash investigation placed the FBI in Rio Linda a couple weeks before Hannah Griffith was murdered. _A big coincidence, if that's truly where she was living,_ Mike thinks. _And I don't believe in coincidences._

At baggage claim, he retrieves his bag and heads for Avis. "Agent Michael Fields. I called about a priority rental on bureau business." He flashes his ID again. _If I get busted for doing this, there won't be any turning back. Private sector, here I come._

"Yes, sir. We'll bring it right around for you while you sign the papers."

Mike checks his watch...about seven o'clock. _Thirty minute drive to Rio Linda_, he thinks as he hurriedly scribbles his signature and initials all the little boxes on the rental form. His phone rings, and he hits the 'send' button eagerly, holding the phone up to his ear with his shoulder. "Veronica?" he asks.

"No, it's Wallace Fennel."

"Wallace," Mike says in disappointment. "Have you heard from Veronica?"

"No, that's why I called you. Have you talked to her today?"

Mike sighs loudly. "Yes, but now I can't reach her."

Wallace asks excitedly, "So you know they were heading to Rio Linda?"

"Yeah. They met with me in Los Angeles yesterday. I tried to talk them out of going there, but they wouldn't listen to me."

Wallace says, "We found out they checked in with the Rio Linda sheriff at about two o'clock, but no one's seen them since then. And I haven't been able to reach her or the security guards who were supposed to be following them."

"I talked to her today around three-thirty. They found a witness, someone who saw a man who seemed to be interested in Hannah right before she disappeared. I checked into a few things and tried to call Veronica back, but I haven't been able to get a hold of her since then." The rental car pulls up; he tosses his bag in the back seat and gets in the car. He fumbles with the navigation system as he talks to Wallace, entering the address of the diner they had found in Rio Linda.

"You know the name of the witness?" Wallace presses.

"Yeah, I'm headed there right now. When I couldn't get in touch with her, I got on a plane to Sacramento. I probably jumped the gun but—" Mike hears Wallace take a deep breath and sigh, and he wonders what the hell is going on. "What is it, Wallace?"

"We think we know who the FBI agent is." Mike stops playing with the navigation and just listens. Wallace continues, "We found a connection. Agent Thomas Carney—it looks like his nephew Kevin works for the Fitzpatricks."

"Agent Carney? From the Behavioral Science unit assigned to the Slasher case?" Mike stares into space, turning this new information over in his head. He says, disbelieving, "Tom Carney's one of the most decorated agents in the bureau. Personally responsible for hundreds of busts. He transferred into the Behavioral Unit about a year ago after years of working on Organized Crime." _Carney wasn't one of the agents assigned to the Rio Linda plane crash investigation,_ he thinks.

"So we know this agent had access to the inside information on the serial killer."

"They just arrested a suspect in the Slasher killings earlier today," Mike says, thinking aloud.

"Except they didn't charge him in Hannah's murder." Wallace reads aloud from the news report. "Listen to this: 'Acting on a tip provided by an eyewitness, the Los Angeles Police Department arrested Andrew Shekar, age 36, a resident of the Altadena section of Los Angeles. Mr. Shekar has been charged with the murders of Catherine Kerr, Theresa Drummond, Lysa Dean, Evangeline Bellemer, Gloria Doyle, Elizabeth Kapp, Mary Alice McDermit, and Linda Lewellen. He remains a suspect in the murder of Hannah Griffith.'"

"'Remains a suspect'...sounds like Shekar had an unbreakable alibi for Hannah's murder, otherwise they would have charged him," Mike muses. His eyes refocus on the GPS device in the cars dash, and another thought occurs to him. "Wallace...they're in Veronica's Saturn right?"

"Yeah."

"It has On-Star." Mike hits 'enter' on the navigation panel and starts the car, pulling out into the traffic at the terminal as he keeps speaking on the phone.

Wallace asks hopefully, "Can you call the company, get them to turn on the GPS locator?"

"No...I better not." Mike clears his throat. "I'm still, um, suspended from the bureau because I was helping Veronica. What about your local sheriff? You'd have to report the car stolen and give them the owner's identification codes. Then he'll contact On-Star."

"Okay, I can do that. I'm in Keith's office; I'm sure the codes are in the files. Wait...Mike...what did you find out that you wanted to tell Veronica?"

He says grimly, "The FBI was investigating a plane crash in Rio Linda a few weeks before Hannah Griffith was found murdered in Los Angeles."

"Could Carney have been one of the agents in Rio Linda?" Wallace asks.

"Not officially," Mike admits. "But he would have know about the crash from the daily briefing sheet. There was something in the file about a discrepancy in the filed flight plan, and it sounds like drugs were involved."

Wallace notes, "And where there's drugs, there's usually Fitzpatricks."

"Exactly."

"Shit."

Mike concurs, "Yeah. Shit. I'll be in touch, Wallace. Call me if you hear anything." He terminates the call and pulls off to the side of the road. He grabs his carry-on from the back seat and assembles his weapon, grimly donning his holster and securing the gun under his arm before pulling back onto the road to Rio Linda.

Sat. 3/21/09 early evening: Somewhere in the United States

Mac finally opens her eyes and says weakly, "Veronica?"

Veronica, with her mouth gagged, can't respond, but she nods furiously. She raises her eyebrows questioningly.

"Veronica, didn't you notice that I called you Ronnie?" Mac whispers weakly.

Veronica nods, closing her eyes. She raises her eyebrows again and looks toward the doorway.

Mac says, with her voice husky from sleep and disuse, "I don't know what they want. They had someone watching you at Duncan's trial, and then they lost you. They made me call your voicemail, and then I watched them track the prepaid phone you were using. They have access to the FBI databases, Veronica. They...they killed Alan, my FBI handler. They said they would...they said they'd go after my brother Ryan if I didn't call you. They drugged me, Veronica." Her voice trembles with anxiety.

Veronica closes her eyes, realizing how scared Mac has been. _How long has she been...._ She tries to count back. _I talked to Mac on Thursday. Two days? Have they had her for two days? Oh god...Mac._

Mac whispers intensely, "What about Logan...your dad? Do you think...do you think they might find us?"

Veronica shakes her head. They hear voices, and the boat rocks in its berth. Heavy footsteps resound from the companionway, with muttered exclamations and a few loud thumps against the bulkheads. Veronica ostentatiously closes her eyes. Mac takes the hint; she rolls over and pretends to be asleep again. Veronica tries to look panicked and upset;_ it's not a hard role to play_, she thinks ruefully. The door opens, and Frank and the other man deposit Logan on the bed with them, bitching all the while about how heavy he is. As soon as the door is closed, he awkwardly rolls himself over and looks at Mac, who opens her eyes. Mac says quietly, "You...and Mr. Mars too?"

Logan nods.

Mac exhales tremulously and whispers, "What the hell are we going to do?"

Veronica nods once, staring intently at Mac, and then winks broadly. She mimes breaking down crying for a few moments before suddenly stopping and giving Mac a questioning look.

"You guys have some sort of plan?" Mac says breathlessly.

Veronica nods again.

"Veronica, why are they keeping us alive?" she asks despondently. "What do they want?"

Veronica shrugs. She thinks, _Loose ends. They want to know who else knows what we know._ She considers for a moment. _Who does know? Mike, Leo, Wallace...they all know bits and pieces. If they find Kavner and Harris' bodies, they'll contact the agency and know we hired them. The agency knows we were headed to Rio Linda, and maybe they'll call Wallace. But...we're not in Rio Linda any more. ...We stopped and got gas along the way...but we used cash...maybe someone will...._ She is flooded with a sense of hopelessness and struggles to focus on the situation.

They hear loud noises, and the door opens again. Her dad is brought in the room and dumped unceremoniously on the foot of the bed. Keith has come around a bit, although he still seems groggy. He is moving his head from side to side and moaning inaudibly.

Heavy footsteps pound up the companionway. Veronica tries to count how many men are involved. _Brian, Frank, the man in the galley...Frank asked 'Where is he?', so there's another one. Four men. _The boat's engine starts with a roar. After a few minutes, they hear raised voices arguing on the deck right above them. Veronica strains to listen over the vibrations of the boat's engines.

"You did _what_?" Even from down below, the voice's fury is unmistakable and chilling.

She thinks that it's Brian responding apologetically to the angry voice. "I told you, we had to separate them from the guys who were following them. We got in front of them and blocked them until they were out of sight. Then we watched as the cops pulled them over and arrested—"

Veronica tries to concentrate. '_The guys who were following'...'arrested'...maybe they're not dead?_

"You're a fucking moron. The guards saw the van?"

Brian protests, "Yeah, but they're not gonna—"

Veronica's heart leaps. '_They're not gonna'...they're alive. They're alive! They know where we were going._

"Fuck. FUCK!"

"It's not going to be a problem!" Brian insists. "It was better than leaving a couple more dead bodies around. You said to be careful not to raise an alarm."

"But they saw your fucking van, you idiot!"

Veronica listens closely and thinks she hears a scuffle and a grunt of pain.

"I'm sorry! I fucked up, all right? Geez," Brian protests loudly.

Another voice says with disgust, "What the fuck do you expect? I told you, you gotta do it yourself if you want it done right." The speaker lowers his voice, and Veronica strains to hear the inaudible words. _Who the hell is that?_ she wonders. _I think I've heard that voice before. _She rapidly calculates. _Shit! that makes five men._

The man who seems to be in charge says, "Frank, you and Andy get rid of the van. Take it to that chop shop down the highway and tell them it's a rush job, high priority. The license plate and every VIN number needs to be obliterated, do you understand? Pay extra if you have to. We'll have to handle them without you. I'll be in touch."

Veronica shivers. _Handle us._ She hears mumbling voices, and the boat shifts in the water slightly. There are loud footsteps on the wooden dock, and one of the men says, "I'll take the van, you follow in the Mercury." There is a muttered response that she can't quite make out.

"That was your last chance, Brian. Check on them. No more mistakes, you understand? Get down there and check on them."

She hears heavy steps going down the companionway. _Okay...Andy must be the guy in the galley...Frank and Andy are getting rid of the van, _she thinks. _Brian is still on the boat, plus at least two others. Three guys. Against the four of us._ She pulls against the duct tape experimentally and feels a sharp twinge in her shoulder.

The padlock scrapes against the door, and the door is opened again. Veronica sucks in a breath, hoping he won't be looking closely at her bonds. Brian enters the berth, rubbing a reddened spot on his cheek with the back of his hand. Veronica avoids looking at him. Brian reaches down and taps Keith's face lightly. "Hey, daddy. Who'd think an ugly old fart like you'd have a babe like her for a daughter?" He moves his hand to Veronica's leg and strokes her calf. Veronica jumps, startled. "Relax, baby. I ain't gonna hurt you. Well, not much." Brian runs his hand up the inside of her thigh, and she tries to pull away unsuccessfully as he laughs under his breath.

From on deck, they hear, "Brian, what the fuck are you doing now? Get up here so we can cast off." The boat's engine revs slightly.

"Catch you later, Ve-ron-i-ca," Brian chants as he leaves.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Insecurity  
**Kavner and Harris tell their story; one of  
the captors reveals himself.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Kavner: Eric Bana. Sheriff: William Sadler.  
Brian: Scott Elrod. Harris: Steve Harris.  
Rio Linda Deputy #1: Ryan McPartlin.  
Special guest star: ???  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-THREE: "INSECURITY"

Sat. 3/21/09 early evening: Rio Linda Sheriff's Department, Rio Linda, CA

The deputy knocks on the open door of the sheriff's office. "Uh, Sheriff?"

"What is it?"

Nervously, the deputy explains, "Those two guys we arrested for the hit-and-run...you know, the ones with the crazy story. Uh, it turns out they're telling the truth. Their employer verifies their story. They're security guards, tailing a private detective named Keith Mars. And now this Mars seems to have disappeared."

The sheriff frowns. "Keith Mars? I just got a call from the Neptune Sheriff's Department asking about this Mars guy. He checked in with us around two o'clock. I sent a unit out to the address Mars was heading to."

"They tried to call him again just now, and Mars isn't answering. The guards claim that if they got separated, the procedure was that they would check in with the agency. Sheriff, it really looks like that anonymous tip was a setup."

"Bring them in here, I want to talk to them. See if you can raise the unit I sent out," the sheriff says tersely. "And get the Neptune Sheriff on the horn again."

"Yes, sir."

Kavner and Harris are escorted into the office. The sheriff tries to apologize, but Kavner quickly interrupts. "I'm concerned about Mr. Mars and his companions. We were following them as they were trying to locate Ms. Griffith's place of employment. They spoke to a neighbor of hers who identified the bus route, and Mr. Mars was following that route, stopping in likely establishments—restaurants, small stores, somewhere where a young girl could work for cash."

Kavner continues, "We were tailing them when a white van pulled out in between our two vehicles. The van acted as if it was looking for an address, slowing and stopping, then starting up again. Finally it turned out of our way. By that time, Mr. Mars had pulled out of sight. We were just about to check in with him when we were pulled over and arrested."

"Pretty bold maneuver," the sheriff muses. "Again, I'd like to apologize—"

"There's no time for apologies, Sheriff. We need to try to find them as soon as possible. Mr. Mars was concerned about the rumored involvement of a federal agent, and I have to say, the ease with which they disposed of us makes me believe that's possible."

"A federal agent?"

Kavner nods. "Yes, sir. We do have a bit of luck: Harris here wrote down the license of the van in his notebook, if you could get his personal effects for us."

The sheriff nods at the deputy, who goes to the property room. He explains to the two guards, "I was contacted a short while ago by Neptune Sheriff's Department. Apparently someone else is concerned about Mr. Mars: a Mr. Wallace Fennel."

"Yes, he's Mr. Mars's assistant."

"I sent a patrol car out to the address where Mr. Mars said he was heading when he checked in with us."

"I don't believe you'll find anything there. The house was empty; they talked to a few neighbors. The only one who was helpful was a Mrs. Evelyn Blake. She told Mr. Mars about the bus route."

"I'll have her brought in to see if she can add anything," the sheriff comments, making a note.

The deputy brings in two plastic bags with the items that were taken from the car during the arrest. Harris quickly finds his notebook and flips through to the last page of writing. "Here it is. California license 2WC L12."

Kavner adds, "Mr. Mars was also planning on speaking to the man who owned the house where Hannah Griffith was last living. We need to check there as well. Harris, give him the address." Harris tears out a sheet from his notebook and hands it to the sheriff.

The sheriff says to the deputy, "Call unit fourteen; have them bring in the neighbor, Evelyn Blake. Send another car out to this address to look around and put out an APB on this vehicle."

Kavner adds, "Sheriff, can one of your men take us along the bus route to see if we can retrace their steps?"

"Of course. I'll go with you personally."

The deputy pokes his head back in. "Sheriff, it's D'Amato from Neptune again."

The sheriff picks up the phone. "Yes, this is the sheriff...There have been some developments here. There are two gentlemen here in my office who were assigned to act as security for Mr. Mars and the others. They were mistakenly arrested on false charges; they were released, of course, as soon as we realized the error, and I'm speaking with them now. There's quite a bit of evidence that this was a scheme to get Mr. Mars and his companions.....Yes, I'm certain. I believe it's very likely they've been harmed. I'll be issuing a missing persons advisory as soon as I hang up....On-Star? That's a lucky break. Okay, we'll wait for them to contact us with a location. In the meantime, I'll get an emergency court order to trace their cell phone. Do you know anything about a federal agent being part of this? The security guards mentioned—...I see. Agent Thomas Carney. I'll have one of my men look into that angle....Yes, we'll be in touch." He cradles the phone.

"The agent?" Kavner queries.

"Mr. Mars' associate found some evidence implicating an agent named Thomas Carney with family ties to Neptune. Sheriff D'Amato is speaking to the bureau chief in Los Angeles. In the meantime, he's sending us a photograph to show to witnesses."

"Sheriff, I think we need to get going on that trail before it gets cold."

"I agree." They hear a quiet ding from the sheriff's computer indicating an email has arrived. He swivels around and taps a few keys; the printer whirrs into action, and a sheet of paper emerges. "Apparently this is Agent Carney," the sheriff says, passing the sheet to Kavner and Harris.

They shake their head, indicating they hadn't seen him. The sheriff grabs his jacket, and the three of them leave the office. In the main area of the station, the sheriff leaves instructions that any information from On-Star is to be pursued immediately and relayed to him. He has copies of the picture of Carney reproduced and distributes it to all the officers, explaining that the man is a potential witness or suspect in a murder. "Priority one, folks," the sheriff announces somberly as they leave the station. "Let's find these people."

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Somewhere in the United States

The padlock on the door scrapes again, and Veronica unconsciously holds her breath, waiting. Brian steps into the room followed by Liam Fitzpatrick, who's holding a large gun in his hand.

_I knew I recognized that voice,_ she thinks, her heart sinking, remembering just how psychotic this guy is. She flashes on the story her dad had finally told her about Liam killing his own brother in the desert. And she realizes: _It's never felt quite so horrific to be so completely right._

Logan remembers Liam too. For just a moment, he angrily recalls what Kendall had told them about reporting back to Liam regarding their sexcapades. He imagines this prick laughing hysterically as Kendall mocked his youthful sexual efforts. But then...he completely forgets his anger and his entire body stiffens in fear, as he realizes they've been entirely too successful in discovering just what happened to Hannah. He starts to think about how many people this man is responsible for killing; resolutely he forces himself to stop obsessing and just think about getting the fuck out of there _ALIVE._ He closes his eyes momentarily, trying to send Veronica strength. _You can do it, Veronica. Watch for your opportunity. I'll have your back...somehow. Even if I get killed in the process._

Liam looks at Keith closely, tapping him lightly on the cheek to try to rouse him. Veronica holds her breath, worrying about her dad. _Why won't you wake up? What's wrong with him? Dad!_ Keith moans but doesn't open his eyes._  
_  
Brian says defensively, "I told you, the old guy is out cold."

Liam steps back, saying "Yeah. All right. Let's get 'em up on the deck. Cut their feet loose." Brian pulls out a knife and slices through the duct tape on Logan's ankles. Then he repeats the procedure on Veronica and Mac.

Liam says menacingly, "Mr. Echolls, you and Brian will carry Sheriff Mars up on deck. Veronica and the little computer nerd will follow. I got nothing to lose by shooting you so don't fuck around. Understand?" He glares at Logan. "I said, do you understand, rich boy?"

Logan nods. _If there was ever any doubt that Liam knew who I was, it's gone now._

"Sit up and turn around," Brian orders. Logan turns and presents his wrists to Brian, who cuts the tape off his wrists.

Liam says, "Brian, take his head and go first with Echolls holding the feet. Then Mac, and little Veronica right in front of me where I can keep my eyes on her."

Veronica thinks, _It's time to win that Academy Award, Veronica. Make them think they've broken you._ As Brian and Logan begin to maneuver Keith out of the cabin, Logan has a momentary chance to look at her, and he winks subtly. _You can do it, Veronica. You can do it._

"Let's go, Mackenzie," Liam orders sharply. Mac stumbles a little getting off the bed but manages to keep her balance.

Veronica tries to remember the way she felt in the van; she wants to be tearful and to appear completely helpless. So she recalls all the terror-filled events that had flashed before her eyes a few hours before, and she relives that brief time when she had utterly lost hope. She summons up her panic and hopelessness; then she thinks about never seeing Wallace or Weevil or Backup again, and that does it. She starts to cry, little sobbing sounds escaping from behind her taped lips. Veronica presses her arms together behind her back, and the pain helps her cry a little harder.

Her moans and tears are noticed by Liam, who shoves her hard, making her bump into Mac right in front of her. He puts his gun in her back and his mouth right by her ear. His voice rises gradually as he talks until he's screaming incoherently. "'Bout time I got my vengeance on the Mars family. I know your fucking dad had something to do with all of Kendall's money going missing. And then the conspiracy charges last fall...and now, you manage to RUIN THE BEST FUCKING MONEY LAUNDERING SCHEME EVER!" He prods her hard with the gun, and it doesn't take much effort for Veronica to cry even harder. "Stop your fucking bawling already," he says with disgust.

Now Brian and Logan are carrying her dad up the companionway. Mac looks at Liam nervously, wanting to wait until they clear the top step. Liam says sharply, "Go," and Mac follows, leaving just a little space behind Logan. Liam pushes Veronica again, and she goes for it. She tumbles face first, keeping her hands tightly locked behind her back. As she falls onto the narrow steps, she feels a few more threads of the tape rip slightly. Veronica lies on the steps crying and shuddering as Liam kicks her twice in the leg.

Logan turns around and stops dead; he knows she's acting, but it's killing him inside. He grunts as loudly as he can underneath the gag, making eye contact with Liam and trying to sear him with his glare. Brian mutters, "What the fuck?!"

Mac, completely terrified and not sure if Veronica's acting or not, doesn't know where to look and ends up closing her eyes. As the only one whose mouth is not gagged, Mac's moans are audible. Veronica knows she's close to a breaking point. _Hold on, Mac, hold on._

Liam grabs Veronica's arm—thankfully, her left uninjured arm—and hauls her to her feet. He leans right into her face and says in an ominous voice, "It's time you finally learned to stop sticking your nose in other people's business, you stupid bitch. Wish I'd tattooed your face when I had the chance." Some of his spittle hits her face, and she closes her eyes. Liam spins her around and pushes her forward; she bumps into Mac, who starts climbing again. Logan turns back, his shoulders overtly heaving with the effort to control himself, and begins to move up the last few steps as well.

They emerge onto the deck. Night has fallen; it would be beautiful out here in the ocean if only.... Veronica swallows, suddenly very afraid. The shore is already disappearing from sight, and the boat is traveling fast, making a lot of wake as it progresses at top speed. The boat suddenly hits a wave wrong, and they lurch sideways. The water is black, reflecting the dark sky, and it looks cold and forbidding.

Veronica watches Mac, who seems to be in shock. She has stopped moaning, but her eyes are glazed over with fear and her body trembles involuntarily. Veronica hopes that Mac will be able to help if she needs it.

Liam barks, "Put the old guy over there." He points to seats near the railing.

_Dad,_ Veronica thinks. _Wake up. PLEASE wake up and help me._ Her dad's head is lolling to the side as Logan and Brian place him on the seat. His color has improved somewhat. _Dad...I can't lose you...._ She watches closely and thinks she sees his eyes flutter open momentarily. _Is he...maybe he's coming around. Dad, I need your help! You've got to wake up! I can't bear it if.... _She tries to push the thought away and concentrates on the situation, watching and waiting for an opportunity.

Liam grabs a roll of duct tape and tosses it underhand to Brian, nodding his head toward Logan. "Tape him up again. You girls don't move a muscle." He brandishes the weapon.

Brian roughly shoves Logan. "Turn around...hands behind your back, fucker." He secures Logan's hands and then his feet.

Veronica continues to cry, her shoulders shaking and her eyes downcast. _How the hell do actors do this in the movies? It's friggin' exhausting to cry._ She tries to watch as Brian tapes up Logan, looking for a potential weakness she can exploit. With Liam's gun so close to her head, she doesn't dare try anything.

When Brian finishes with Logan, Liam motions with the gun that she and Mac should sit next to him. Brian tapes her ankles, pulling her feet close together. He pulls her forward, intending to check her wrists.

Suddenly, Logan throws himself off the seat and onto Brian, knocking him flat on his back on the deck.

Veronica is so startled that she stops crying, but she knows immediately that Logan is trying to distract Brian from checking her wrists. She braces herself, expecting Liam to blow his cool and put a bullet in Logan's head. _Do I throw myself at him if he moves the gun? Fuck...what do I do??_ As Brian tussles with Logan, whose sole advantage was surprise, she pulls her wrists slightly apart and feels another tenuous fiber come loose. But Liam doesn't move his gun, and she decides to hold off for the moment, sweating profusely as she dithers over her response. Brian easily rolls Logan over onto his back and punches him in the chin and, for good measure, in the stomach as well. Liam sighs loudly and says with disgust, "What the fuck are you doing, Brian? Get it done!!" Mac sobs quietly during the entire altercation, gasping when Brian punches Logan viciously.

Standing up, Brian pushes his long greasy brown hair back out of his eyes and glares at Logan. He mutters, "Asshole," as he hauls Logan back up onto the seat more roughly than necessary and then moves to Mac to tape her ankles. Mac sways a little, shutting her eyes and grimacing as her feet are secured. Liam appears satisfied and tucks his gun into the waist of his jeans.

_It worked,_ Veronica thinks with relief. _We've still got a chance._ She's very worried about Mac, who seems at the point of a complete collapse after her ordeal. But Logan manages to discreetly press his leg against hers, and she knows that somehow he'll help her again when she makes her move.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Currents Turn Awry  
**The investigation continues in Rio Linda;  
Kevin Carney is taken in custody; Wallace  
tries desperately to help; Liam's partner  
reveals himself.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Eli: Francis Capra.  
Dick: Ryan Hansen. Leo: Max Greenfield.  
Agent Carney: Jason Isaacs. Liam Fitzpatrick:  
Rod Rowland. Sacks: Brandon Hillock. Brian:  
Scott Elrod. Kevin Carney: Noel Fisher. Mike  
Fields: Michael Trucco. Deputy Clark: Zadran  
Wali. Cashier: Soledad St. Hilaire.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-FOUR: "CURRENTS TURN AWRY"

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Abandoned lot near the airfield, Rio Linda, CA

The deputy pulls up to a vehicle parked on the road. The Saturn VUE has had its license plates removed, but the deputy checks the VIN number through the windshield, and it matches. He dons latex gloves and tries the door, which turns out to be unlocked. He does a cursory inspection of the car, finding only several overnight bags. He triggers his radio. "Come in, Sheriff."

"Go ahead."

"I've got the victims' Saturn. It's empty."

"Dammit. Any signs of foul play?"

"Negative. I'll call the Crime Scene techs."

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Apartment, Neptune, CA

Sheriff D'Amato waits, his weapon drawn, outside the door to Kevin Carney's apartment. From inside the apartment, a television is blaring the San Diego-DePaul basketball game. Leo nods at Deputy Sacks, who knocks on the door and calls out, "Neptune Sheriff's Department, open up." They strain to hear an answer over the sound of the television. When they don't hear a response, Leo nods to the super, who quickly opens the lock and gets out of the way, running full tilt down the stairway. Leo pushes the door open cautiously and calls, "Kevin Carney?" The room is empty; on the table in front of the couch are several beer bottles, including one knocked over on its side with liquid running out. D'Amato runs to the open window and looks out onto a fire escape. They hear footsteps banging on the wrought iron, and D'Amato triggers his radio and says quietly, "Coming your way, Clark."

In the alley behind the building, Deputy Clark crouches behind a dumpster. A young man rushes down the fire escape, jumping the last few feet to the ground before hustling toward the street. Recognizing their quarry, Clark steps out and points his gun. "Kevin Carney...put your hands where I can see 'em!"

Wild-eyed, Carney tries to evade Clark, who grabs his arm and throws him down to the ground. "Lace your fingers behind your head," he instructs; Carney keeps struggling as Clark tries to get his hands cuffed. Clark's radio crackles, and he responds, "I got him, Sheriff."

Carney begins to protest. "This is bullshit...I didn't do anything!"

"Then why were you running?" Clark asks. "Got any weapons on you?"

"Fuck you," Carney spits.

Leo and Sacks hustle around the corner and help Clark subdue and search Carney. They find a knife and a handgun and escort him into the cruiser. Leo tries to read Carney his rights, but Carney keeps interrupting, saying, "I want a lawyer...and I want my phone call."

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Good Food Fast Diner, Rio Linda, CA

Mike Fields pulls into the parking lot of the Good Food Fast Diner. He checks his cell phone display again, hoping despite his fears for a call from Veronica. He walks into the diner, which has four or five customers eating late dinners. He shows his FBI identification to the cashier and asks, "I'm looking for Melvin Jones."

"Mel's popular tonight," she muses.

Mike looks at her quizzically, and she adds, "One of the sheriff's deputies was just here looking for him. Mel left for the night about, hmm, about half an hour ago."

"Really," Mike comments, thinking about the deputy who was killed in the recent plane crash. _Why the sudden interest in Mel...are there dirty cops in Rio Linda?? It didn't sound like Veronica was planning on reporting her suspicions to the authorities here._ "Were you here this afternoon? Two men and a young woman, private detectives, were here talking to Mel about one of your former employees. You knew her as Meredith Grey."

"We knew her as..." the woman repeats puzzled. "You mean...."

"That wasn't her real name," Mike explains. "Were you here this afternoon?"

"No. I just came on shift."

"So you didn't see them? I believe they were trying to find where Meredith had been living before she disappeared. Do you know her address?"

The cashier says, "No...we weren't close. Meredith really kept to herself. I tried to invite her out a couple times, and she would never join us."

Mike sighs. "I need Mel's home address, please. This is very important. I'm extremely concerned for his safety."

The cashier gulps visibly. "His safety? Mel?"

"He's an important witness in a federal case," Mike explains. "I can get his address from the federal database, but you'll save me some time, and maybe Mel won't get hurt."

The cashier looks at Mike's ID again, then, biting her lip, she writes Mel's address on an order pad. She tears off the sheet and hands it to Mike. "Take Elverta Boulevard, make a left on Ninth, and a right on Wagon Trail Road," she explains quickly.

"Did you tell the deputy Mel went home?"

She nods.

Mike asks, "Does Mel have a cell phone?"

"He never turns it on," she says, pursing her lips.

"If you get in touch with him, tell him to stay put at home until I get there. Make sure you give him my name. How long ago did he leave?"

"Half an hour ago...." She pauses. "But he was going to stop and have a quick drink at Howie's Bar."

"Did you tell that to the deputy?"

She shakes her head. Reluctantly, she says, "Mel's already got one DUI."

"What kind of car does Mel have?" Mike asks.

"It's a blue Buick. Four door. Howie's is about half a mile down Elverta Boulevard before you get to Ninth Street."

As Mike leaves, he thinks despondently, _What if other agents are working with Carney? How the hell do we keep this witness safe?_

Suddenly, he realizes that he is the only one who knows Mel's name. As he drives, he dials his old friend Thomas Lynley and fills him in on every detail..._just in case._

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Somewhere in the United States

The boat's engines throttle down, and the boat slows in the water. To Brian, Liam says tersely, "Go see what's happening."

A few minutes later, a man walks down onto the deck as the boat gets underway again.

_Agent Carney? _Veronica thinks, shocked. She trades a glance with Logan, who appears equally dumbfounded. _Of course. Carney knew how to copy the Slasher because he was on the serial killer task force; he knew the killer's M.O._ She mentally tries to replay his interview of her back in January; he had let Agent Morris do most of the talking. _It was perfect: Carney could direct the investigation so that it would appear as if Hannah was just another of the Slasher's victims. But why kill Hannah? And what's his connection to the Fitzpatricks? Carney...Carney...._ Something is nagging at her, but she can't quite figure it out.

The agent is tall, with cropped brown hair, sinewy arms, and cold blue eyes. Veronica notes that he has a pistol tucked in his waistband behind his back. Liam seems to defer to him; they huddle and speak in low tones. Veronica strains to hear their conversation.

Carney mutters, "It's being taken care of. He'll be dead within the hour."

"It should have been done a long time ago," Liam responds. "Too many loose ends."

"There wouldn't have been a problem except for—" Carney nods toward Veronica.

"She's been a thorn in my side for years. And her father...well, you remember what Keith Mars did to me and my business." Liam snorts disgustedly.

Veronica's completely overwhelmed by panic. _These men think nothing of killing. Hannah, Kendall, Candice's brother, Gustavio Toombs, Cormac—Liam's own brother, and god knows who else they've murdered over the years._

Carney turns slightly and sees Veronica's eyes on him. He walks to her and rips the tape off her mouth in one harsh motion. She cries out as her skin is abraded. "Veronica Mars," he says with eyes narrowed. "You've caused us a lot of trouble."

"Agent Carney," Veronica replies.

He stares at her, assessing her. "So you do remember me," he muses.

"I don't get questioned in a murder investigation all that often," she retorts, with bravery she doesn't feel.

Carney looks at her intently, his eyes harsh and unforgiving. "Funny, your file seems to say that you've been involved in quite a few murders."

"Not as a suspect," she says, her voice quivering slightly.

"Let's just kill her," Liam suggests. "I don't even like looking at her."

Carney shakes his head. "No...we need to know who else knows what they know."

"A lot of people know everything. The Rio Linda Sheriff, the Neptune Sheriff, a friend in the FBI—" She stops short. _Mike's our best chance at a rescue. He knew about the witness. If Carney finds him...._ Veronica keeps her voice steady. "I'm sure a lot of people are searching for us. We missed several prearranged check ins by now."

"Really," Carney replies, not bothering to keep the skepticism out of his voice. "Doesn't matter...you're far from Rio Linda now. No one will think to look for you here. And the Pacific Ocean's a big place."

He paces a little on the deck before whirling back around to her. "I want to know everything. I want to know what you've found out."

"Why should I tell you anything?" she says, her voice breaking despite her efforts.

"You and your friends can die easy or you can die hard. You can watch the three people you love the most in the world suffer excruciating pain for hours, or you can all go peacefully—drowning or a gunshot to the head. I'll even let each of you choose."

She is about to swear that she'll never make it easy for him, that she'll fight to the very end...but she remembers. _Make them think they've broken you. Tell them a line of bullshit, keep them talking, give Mike time, give Wallace time to maybe find us. And watch...watch for an opening. Four of us...three of them...and they don't know I can get my hands free._

She inhales shudderingly. It's easy to let her voice tremble. She closes her eyes and thinks again about never seeing the people she loves...all the things she wants to do in her life that she'll never get to do...and her eyes fill with tears. "Please don't do this, please...you don't need to do this. You don't have to kill us," she sobs. "What do you want to know?"

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Sheriff D'Amato pushes Kevin Carney into an interview room, telling Sacks that they'll book him later—he wants to question the suspect immediately.

Kevin says sarcastically, "You can't question me. I asked for a lawyer."

"I can question you. You just don't have to answer. But that's not very smart. You're on the hook for accessory to murder. Plus whatever you've been doing for the Fitzpatricks. You're looking at a lot of prison time...hard time, not the bullshit juvie time you've done so far. A lawyer really isn't your best option here."

"I want a lawyer," Kevin replies stubbornly.

"Where's your uncle, Kevin? I called his bureau chief, and, surprise, your uncle's already in hot water. They arrested the Slasher, and your uncle had disappeared. Pretty odd behavior for someone so high up in the Serial Killer Task Force."

"He'll turn up," Kevin mutters.

"What's so important that he doesn't show up for the press conference announcing the arrest of one of the worst serial killers ever in California? Perhaps he was busy tracking down Veronica Mars? Or cleaning up another Fitzpatrick mess?" Leo suggests.

Kevin twitches slightly at the mention of the Fitzpatricks.

Leo continues harshly, "We have photographic evidence that you were working for the Fitzpatricks."

"Like, you got a picture of me punching a timecard for the micks? I don't think so," Kevin sneers.

Leo stares at Kevin silently. Finally, he says, "I'm going about this all wrong." He stands up, hauls Kevin onto his feet, and leads him to one of the cells. Kevin, completely confused, looks behind him into Leo's stony face. Leo ignores him and calls to Sacks. "Get Ciaran Fitzpatrick's lawyer on the phone. Tell him we have a cooperative witness, and we're going to file some additional charges."

Sacks nods and reaches for the phone. "Okay to tell the lawyer who the witness is?"

Kevin swallows in fear. "No...no, you can't. I'm NOT cooperating."

"Tell that to the other prisoners when we transfer you to county," Leo says, shrugging. "I'm sure they'll believe you when we put you in solitary for your own protection. Of course, accidents have been known to happen, even in solitary. It's criminal what happens in prison."

"I'll refuse!"

"Don't think you can, Kevin. You're really kind of new at this, aren't you? I don't think the Fitzpatricks are going to be very happy with you. You might get on their bad side."

"You're bluffing," Kevin blusters. "This is bullshit. I want my lawyer."

"I got a few hours before I have to give you your phone call. Paperwork, you know. In the meantime, I got a couple confidential informants who'd be happy to spread some rumors for me in Balboa County Jail." Leo walks away, leaving Kevin to stew in his cell. "Have a nice day, Kevin."

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Wallace is running a background check on Thomas Carney while Weevil paces back and forth in the office. "Come on, there's got to be something I can do," Weevil pleads.

"Shh," Wallace replies distractedly, concentrating on the computer screen.

"I'm going out," Weevil announces, shrugging into his leather jacket.

Wallace looks up. "Wait...what are you doing?"

"I'm going to get a few PCHers, and we'll bust some Fitzpatricks' heads until I get some answers," Weevil replies. "Somebody's got to know something. I can't just sit here any more."

"You're not helping her," Wallace sighs and stands up to stretch. "Come on, I'll find something for you to do."

Weevil, not happy at all, sits down across the desk.

"Knock, knock." They turn skittishly; Weevil pokes his head out into the waiting room to see Dick Casablancas wandering in. "Yo, Wallace...Weeves," he says cheerfully, with a slight wave.

Weevil says impatiently, "We don't have time for bullshit tonight. What do you want, Casablancas?"

"Whoa, what's with the attitude? I was just wondering if Veronica had heard from Mac. She's supposed to beth coming home tomorrow. I'm planning a little welcome-home bash at the Pi Sig house...I'm calling it 'Witless Protection'. Ahh...you're invited, I guess."

Weevil looks about to explode, but Wallace jumps in first. "Veronica, her dad, and Logan are missing, Dick."

"Missing? I just talked to Veronica this morning."

Weevil asks curiously, "You talked to her? What'd you talk about?"

To both Wallace and Weevil's surprise, Dick looks abashed. "Um.... She, uh, had some questions about Beaver. Something was on her mind. You know she's been acting a little...weird lately. Veronica even had an opening the other night, and she totally let me slide. Pretty sure that's never happened before."

"More than a little weird," Weevil comments. He wonders about Dick's reaction: in his experience, it took a lot to shame Dick Casablancas.

Wallace, as one of the few people who knows the details of Veronica's rape, immediately makes the connection. _What did Dick do? In the middle of everything that's going on, Veronica called Dick. What did Veronica ask him?_ Aloud, he says, "Did she sound okay when you talked to her?"

"She was pretty upset," Dick admits reluctantly. "I don't understand....What do you mean, they're missing?"

Wallace explains, "We can't get in touch with them. They're up in Rio Linda, investigating Hannah Griffith's murder. Veronica talked to her ex-boyfriend, that FBI guy, around three-thirty, and that's the last anyone's seen or heard of them." He has a thought. He walks over the computer and begins typing.

"What is it?" Weevil asks.

"I'm checking Veronica's cell phone records. Not the prepaid phone she had with her, her regular cell phone." Wallace frowns at the screen. "Just two calls. Duncan, and a Los Angeles number. Both of them are short calls, about a minute. They probably left messages. And it looks like Veronica checked her messages this morning—there's an incoming call from the prepaid they're using."

"Can you trace the other number?"

Wallace taps a few keys and shakes his head. "No, it's probably blocked. But Sheriff D'Amato might be able to trace it." He stands up. "Let's go over to Veronica's apartment...see if the messages are still on her voicemail."

"I'll go," Weevil suggests. "You stay, keep working on the background check."

"Can I help?" Dick asks. "I was wondering if you thought a call to Governor Schwarzenegger might be a good thing. My mom's married to his business manager."

Wallace and Weevil exchange a glance. Wallace replies quickly, "Do it." He gives the keys to Veronica's apartment to Weevil.

As Weevil and Dick leave Mars Investigations, Dick comments, "So you guys are like friends now? That's awesome. It's like Veronica's personal Scooby gang, except without the whole vampire thing."

"Shut the fuck up, will you?" Weevil replies, irritated.

"I know you're all like tense and stuff, but yelling at me is not—"

"Do you not fucking understand me? I'm concentrating on finding Veronica alive."

Dick falls silent. "Sorry, dude," he mutters finally. "You really think...?"

"Yeah, we really think." Weevil sighs. "Call your mom, okay? See if the governor can help. This is bad, do you get it?"

"Yeah, I got it."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Bearing Witness  
**Carney and Liam question Veronica; Mike  
looks for the witness; a break in the case;  
Veronica's cell phone reveals a clue.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Eli: Francis Capra. Dick: Ryan Hansen.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Agent Carney: Jason  
Isaacs. Liam Fitzpatrick: Rod Rowland. Mike  
Fields: Michael Trucco. Mel: George Gerdes.  
Rio Linda Deputy #2: Victor Slezak.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-FIVE: "BEARING WITNESS"

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Somewhere in the United States

"What do you want to know?" Veronica says tremulously.

"How did you find out about Rio Linda?" Carney snaps.

"There was...Hannah sent a postcard to someone who helped her when she escaped. It was postmarked 'Rio Linda'."

"And you just decided to stumble around Rio Linda until...?" Liam asks scornfully.

_Why are they so pissed about Rio Linda?_ Veronica stares at him, frightened for real. Finally, she mumbles, "One of Hannah's friends had a relative there. It seemed like too great of a coincidence." She can't decide if she'd be putting Julie Silver in danger by telling her part of the story, so she cautiously omits it.

"Bullshit," Carney roars, turning around and screaming at her. He motions at Mac. "Your little friend here was snooping in the FBI files. She wouldn't tell me what she found."

"I didn't find anything," Mac pleads, her body trembling with fear. "I told you a hundred times. All I did was figure out who accessed the Slasher files. No one knows. You can let us go."

Veronica swallows. _There's no way they're letting us go._ "We didn't know you were involved. We never would have known if...." She gapes at him. "No one knows. You don't have to do this...please!" A sob escapes her lips.

"Then why was I transferred off the Mackenzie funeral? Huh?! Explain. Who knows?!" Carney thunders.

Veronica stares back, completely confused. "I don't know anything about Mac's funeral. I was undercover on the East Coast when the bombing happened."

Mac protests again, "Alan told you...for a while, he thought that maybe the bombing of my parents' house was because of the research I'd been doing into the Slasher killings. He was worried someone in the FBI was trying to make it look like a mafia hit. So he took the precaution of removing everybody who had had access to the case files from the FBI detail at my fake funeral."

Veronica is thinking furiously. _Alan—Mac said that was her handler—Alan thought the bombing was because of the copycat murder. So then Alan inadvertently alerted Carney that something was up by taking him off the funeral detail. When they realized Mac was my friend, and then there was all the publicity about Briar Hill...that's why they took Mac and Alan. Shit._ Carney looks at her, and she quickly stammers, "You don't need to do this. Please...you don't need to hurt us. Please let us go."

Liam says sarcastically, "You know you can't trust a word she says. Lying little bitch. You should heard the crap she told us when we caught her in the River Stix."

Carney is still thinking, staring at each of them in turn. He whirls around and goes down below, returning a few minutes later with a bottle that looks like a cleaning solution. He opens the bottle and waves it for a moment under Keith's nose; Keith's head jerks up and his eyes open.

_Ammonia,_ Veronica guesses. _Dad...._

Keith looks around blearily; he appears confused. Carney rips the tape off his face, and Keith coughs a little, still affected by the ammonia. "Hello, Mr. Mars. We've never met. I'm Agent Carney."

"FBI," Keith says warily. He tries to move his arms without success. "Why have you taken us? Where are we?"

"I'm asking the questions here. You've got a lot to answer for, Mr. Mars."

"Please let the others go. They've done nothing to you. There's no need to do this." Keith tries to keep his voice rational, as if speaking to a colleague. "There's no evidence against you.

"Not any more," Carney comments, chillingly. "The diner owner—that was definitely an oversight on my part." He checks his watch. "But I believe that little problem has gone away by now."

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Rio Linda, CA

Mike drives down Elverta Boulevard to Howie's Bar, a dingy neighborhood bar with a neon rendition of a martini glass in the window. There are only a few cars in the lot; none of them are a blue Buick, and Mike quickly pulls out of the lot and heads for Mel's house. He turns left on Ninth Street. As he rounds a curve in the road, he sees two cars pulled over to the side of the road. A police cruiser, with lights flashing is just behind a blue Buick LeSabre. A deputy is exiting the police car.

Mike slows his car to watch. The police officer unsnaps his holster and places his hand over the gun on his waist as he approaches the Buick. The occupant of the Buick appears to be rifling in the glove compartment.

Mike quickly parks the car and pulls out his own weapon, keeping it held low as he jumps out of the car. In his other hand, he holds his federal ID with the badge clearly displayed. He stands behind his open car door and calls out, "Officer! I'm a federal agent. Do you need assistance?"

The deputy whirls around and reflexively fires off a bullet as Mike quickly takes cover behind the car door. He leans out and fires a shot, taking cover again. He looks over the door cautiously and sees the deputy running to the Buick. The passenger door is open: apparently Mel has exited the car during the shooting and run into a nearby patch of woods. The police officer begins to run after Mel, firing his weapon at the fleeing man. Mike pursues, taking several shots. One shot hits the deputy in the shoulder, and he falls to the ground facedown, writhing in pain.

Mike runs to the officer; he steps on the man's wrist and takes the gun. Mel can still be heard, running panicked through the trees. Mike calls out, "Melvin! Melvin Jones, I'm from the FBI. I'm here to protect you. I'm a friend of the people you spoke to today, Veronica Mars, her father Keith, and Logan Echolls. Mr. Jones...let me help you. This man was going to kill you. You're safe now."

Mel stops running and begins to walk back toward Mike. He approaches tentatively, his chest heaving from exertion. Mike pulls out his identification again and shows it to him. Mel says breathlessly, "What the _hell_ is going on?"

The deputy tries to get up from the ground, and Mike says sternly, "Don't do it. I will shoot you again if I have to." He turns to Mel and relates grimly, "Those people you talked to today are missing. I believe they've been killed or kidnapped. And I think this man wanted to kill you because you're the only eyewitness in the Hannah Griffith murder case."

Mel's eyes widen in shock. "Killed?"

Mike nods. Keeping his weapon trained on the officer, Mike directs Mel to take the officer's handcuffs off his belt and secure his hands tightly behind his back. Mike asks brusquely, "Where's the key?"

The deputy shakes his head and refuses to answer.

"If you want me to call for medical attention, you'd better cooperate." Mike tells Mel, "Search his pockets. They often keep a spare key in their wallet as well, so look there too."

Mel gingerly searches the deputy's pockets, finally coming up with two identical handcuff keys. "Why can't we just call 9-1-1?"

"What makes you think this is the only Rio Linda policeman that wants to kill you?" Satisfied that the deputy is secure, Mike examines the bullet wound. "Just a flesh wound," he remarks. "It's already stopped bleeding. You'll live...unfortunately."

"Fuck you. You're interfering with an officer performing his duty," the deputy spits. "The sheriff will eat your ass for dinner."

"I'm already on suspension; I've got nothing to lose," Mike says sarcastically. "But someone I care about is missing and probably dead because of the people you work for." _I'm going to be shit-canned for sure...I've broken every rule in the book by now...but at least the witness is still alive._

Mike looks up a number in his cell and dials his former and hopefully future supervisor at the FBI. "Sir...it's Michael Fields. I have a situation." He explains the situation tersely, summarizing his decisions over the past few hours and mentioning Agent Carney as a possible suspect. He listens, pulling the phone away from his ear and wincing at his boss's angry words. "Here he is." Mike passes the phone to Mel, explaining, "This is my supervisor; he wants to talk to you."

Mel reviews the day's events and confirms that the deputy lying handcuffed in front of them had, in fact, been shooting at him. He passes the phone back to Mike.

"Yes, sir. I understand. I'll stay on the line." He waits for several minutes, pacing, then responds, "The Neptune Sheriff has already spoken to the L.A. ADIC? And the local sheriff?" Mike sighs in relief. "Yes, sir. Thank you, sir." He terminates the call. Mike looks up. "He's sending the nearest ranking field agent to take charge of the situation and to coordinate with local law enforcement. It looks like the Rio Linda sheriff has been working with the Neptune Sheriff's department. The sheriff is on his way here."

"But you said...."

"Too many people know what's happening now. I think you're safe, Mel." _I wish I could say the same for Veronica._

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Watsonville, CA

Two Watsonville police officers are driving down Lee Road when a white van passes them going in the other direction. "What was that APB again in that possible kidnapping?" one officer muses thoughtfully.

"California plates, 2WC L12."

"That's the van. Hit the hammer."

His partner activates the siren, and they make a U-turn. The van slows down momentarily before taking off at high speed. The police officers pursue and call for backup.

Unnoticed by the police, a car following the van turns onto a side street and drives away.

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Sunset Cliffs Apartments, Neptune, CA

In the Mars apartment, Weevil heads straight for Veronica's bedroom. He finds her cell in the charger and brings it out to the living room.

Dick asks, "Do you know Veronica's code?"

Weevil muses, "I'm pretty sure she preprogrammed it into the speed dial. I've watched her get her messages enough times. She just hits '1'. You know how she is..." He snaps his fingers twice. "She's got people to see, things to do; she can't waste time entering PIN numbers."

He hits '1', and the prompt says, "Please enter your password—" and the phone begins dialing five digits. "You have two saved voice messages. To listen to your messages, press one."

Weevil's eyes glaze over as Duncan begins to talk about his daughter Lilly. He hits '9' to save the message. The next message begins to play.

_'Hey, Ronnie. Give me a call at 323-555-7839, that's my new cell. I can't wait to hang out in Neptune tomorrow night.'_

Weevil hits '1' to rewind and listens again. "It's Mac," he tells Dick. "But it's weird...."

"What?"

"You listen." He hands the phone to Dick.

Dick listens to the message twice. "Yeah, it's Mac. But...no way...she doesn't call Veronica 'Ronnie'. She always gave me shit for doing that, said that Veronica hated it."

"Do you think she could be making a joke?" Weevil asks.

"Let's call the number, see if Mac's there," Dick suggests. He dials the number and gets a recording: 'The number you have reached, area code 323, 555-7839 is not in service'.

Weevil is thoughtful. Finally, he says, "Let's take it to the sheriff."

"Sheriff Looney Tunes, are you kidding? He was trying to arrest Logan for killing Kendall," Dick says incredulously.

"Yeah, but he's helping us now, and we can't trace this number. Something's really wrong," Weevil says, slapping the phone in his palm.

"What are you talking about? What's going on?"

"We think an FBI agent killed Hannah Griffith, and Mac was in FBI custody. Figure it out," Weevil replies.

"What the hell are you talking about? An FBI agent killed Hannah?!"

Weevil nods. "Yeah, that's what Veronica thinks. You're sure Mac would never call her Ronnie, right?"

"Never," he says, emphatically. "Not like that."

"I think Mac was trying to warn Veronica," Weevil says.

"Wait...you mean?"

"I think Mac's in trouble too."

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Somewhere in the United States

Veronica watches as Carney keeps checking his phone, obviously expecting a call. Liam asks, "Nothing?" and Carney replies, "Not yet." The boat keeps driving through the water, heading further from shore every minute. The stars are incredibly bright tonight, mocking her with their ethereal beauty, and she feels defenseless and vulnerable.

Veronica's entire consciousness is consumed by her hatred for Carney. As much as she loathes Liam Fitzpatrick, Carney is even more fearsome: intelligent as well as evil. She tries to comfort herself by thinking about Mike doggedly pursuing every lead in Rio Linda, trying to discover what happened to her. Her eyes blur with tears as she imagines Wallace begging Leo to help investigate her disappearance.

Carney walks over. He squats down and stares at her face. "Let's start at the beginning, Veronica. You've been quite diligent in your efforts against us."

She exhales softly. "It wasn't against you. I just...I was trying to clear Logan of suspicion in Hannah's murder. The press was saying horrible things about him."

"Quite the little detective, aren't you?"

She doesn't know how to respond.

Carney stands. He prods, "What made you think there was somebody from the FBI involved?"

Hesitantly, she explains. _Got to keep him talking. Got to think._ "I got copies of the case files. I didn't see anything at first except...."

"What?"

"Hannah hadn't been using drugs, but she tested positive for heroin. And she didn't have a record for solicitation. And...I couldn't imagine that she had become a prostitute and a drug addict. So I thought...maybe it was a copycat killer."

He snaps his fingers in her face, making her jump. "Answer my question...why an FBI agent? And you seemed awfully sure this wasn't the Slasher. Why?"

"When I looked at the dates...the real Slasher only killed on Saturdays with a full moon. It wasn't a full moon the night Hannah was killed." With Carney staring at her angrily, she looks away and mumbles, "But Hannah had the mark carved on her torso. So the killer knew that the victims had been marked by the Slasher. Hannah's murderer had to have had inside information."

"Fuck, a full moon," Carney comments bitterly. "Fucking psychopaths and their crazy obsessions. Who else knows about this full moon business?" When she doesn't answer right away, he repeats angrily, "WHO KNOWS?!"

"A lot of people," she whispers. "I've known for weeks. But...a lot of people accessed the files who could have known the killer's M.O. And they could have gossiped about it. You don't need to do this! No one knows it's _you_. _I_ didn't know it was you until...." She stumbles on the words. "Until you took us. You _don't_ need to do this."

"You're not that stupid," he says chillingly. "Of course we need to do this. I want a list...everyone who knows."

Keith interrupts, "Are you really going to kill everyone Veronica told? And everyone they told? When does it stop?"

"Shut the fuck up, I'm trying to think," Carney yells. "Who did you tell, Veronica?"

Veronica tries to stall, staring at him nervously as she tries to think what to say to him.

Liam snorts. "She needs some motivation." He walks over to Logan and rips off the tape on his mouth. "I think this guy screaming might make her a little more cooperative. Stupid fuck," he says contemptuously, and he punches Logan hard in the nose.

Logan is rocked by the blow; his nose streams bright red blood, and he shakes his head trying to clear it so he can breathe. "Ah!!...Shit!...why the fuck do you hate me so much anyways?" Logan asks bitterly, his voice ragged and strained. He takes a snuffling breath and says rashly, "Why the _hell_ did you set me up for Felix's murder? Why didn't you just let the case die? No one would have ever cared about a Mexican gang member killed in a knife fight, and the sheriff wasn't looking into it. What did I ever do to you anyways?"

"Not you...your bastard father."

"Aaron?" Veronica can't help asking. "What did Aaron do to you?"

Liam sneers, "About twenty-five years ago, I delivered some drugs to a wild party up the PCH...it was just after he filmed 'The Long Haul': Echolls was throwing a party, with all sorts of Hollywood types and a couple young girls—fourteen years old, sweet young things. One of them had really nice tits, a cute ass, and a heavy buzz on even before I got there. I remember the dirty fuck had her on his lap; he was holding a joint to her lips and teaching her how to inhale...with his hand halfway up her skirt. I guess Echolls forced her to have sex with him later that night. The next day, the girl accused him of rape."

Veronica glances at Logan. He's shell-shocked: even knowing intimately and explicitly just how evil Aaron was, the details still have the capacity to rock him to his core.

Liam whoops at Logan's dumbfounded expression. "You didn't think _Lilly Kane_ was the first young girl he fucked, did you? I thought I was gonna bust a gut laughing when he finally got nailed for that one." He throws his head back and sniggers at Logan, enjoying the boy's fury. Finally, he continues, "So...when this girl started crying rape the next day, Echolls immediately tried to blame me...he said the girl was drunk, and he claimed he saw me take her into a bedroom. I had a record, only bullshit stuff, but it didn't matter...he was the big star, and I was the low-life mick drug dealer with a couple misdemeanor convictions. He must have paid off the girl, because she changed her story and said it was me. Five years in Chino because that _cocksucker_ couldn't keep his dick in his pants." He laughs harshly. "Yeah, your dad was a _hell_ of an actor."

Logan says intensely, "Don't you know I hate him too?"

"I don't give a fuck! I swore I'd make him pay, someday. Then you were stupid enough to be on the Coronado that night when Thumper took out Felix...." Liam shrugs. "I really enjoyed watching you squirm that year. My girl Kendall gave me all the details...while she was making you think you were God's gift to women. Hah!" Liam shakes his head incredulously. "As if you could satisfy a woman like Kendall."

Veronica says bitterly, "Your _girl_ Kendall? You mean the girl you _murdered_. Nice way to treat a girl...but I guess murder's what you should expect if you get involved with the Fitzpatricks."

"I didn't kill Kendall," Liam replies. "I don't know who did, but they did me a huge favor."

Logan says, "Bullshit."

"Nope...didn't kill her. Wish I had...I really wanted to kick her ass after that crap she pulled on me with the Phoenix Land Trust. Stupid bitch, didn't know when she had it good," he muses. "Yeah...somebody did me a big favor killing Kendall. Why do you think we killed Hannah Griffith?"

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Bound and Determined  
**Wallace stumbles on a clue; the conspiracy  
starts to fall apart; Liam and Carney confront  
Veronica; Kevin Carney makes a deal.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Eli: Francis Capra.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Dick: Ryan Hansen.  
Agent Carney: Jason Isaacs. Liam Fitzpatrick:  
Rod Rowland. Cliff: Daran Norris. Mike Fields:  
Michael Trucco. Sacks: Brandon Hillock. Kevin  
Carney: Noel Fisher. Sheriff: William Sadler.  
Rio Linda Deputy #1: Ryan McPartlin. Frank:  
Stephen Dorff. Mel: George Gerdes.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-SIX: "BOUND AND DETERMINED"

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Wallace tries to ignore the panic he feels as each minute goes by without word from Veronica. He keeps looking at his cell and willing it to ring before tearing his attention back to the computer screen. Using all the tricks that Veronica has shown him in the past, he's obtained Carney's social security number and run a credit check. The report from Experian is pristine: too pristine, Wallace thinks. _Nobody has a flawless credit report these days._ Carney's finances reflect a high-level bureau level employee with slightly above average, but not ostentatious, spending. He has a very normal mortgage on a modest home in Los Angeles and has cosigned a car loan for his nephew. All his payments are made on time, for the exact amount owed.

The only blot on Carney's record is a lawsuit from ten years ago, settled in Carney's favor. Wallace looks up the case; it's apparently a personal injury claim filed against Carney, dismissed with prejudice against the party who filed it. Wallace notes the name of the attorney of record for the case and, almost by habit, runs the lawyer's name through several databases. He frowns: the attorney went to the same college as Carney, Santa Clara University near San Jose. It takes some work, but he discovers that both Carney and the attorney were in the same fraternity, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, and graduated one year apart. Wallace calls a friend of Keith's at AT he explains the situation, and Keith's friend emails him Carney's telephone records. There are numerous phone calls to the attorney's San Francisco office.

Wishing that Veronica was there to help him, Wallace tries to research the attorney, wondering about a possible connection with Carney. The attorney is listed as a statutory agent for several offshore corporations whose principal stockholders are obscured. A search on the filings prepared by the attorney reveals that he seems to be a specialist in real estate trusts and holding corporations. _Real estate trusts with hidden corporate officers, based in foreign countries, _Wallace thinks. _Perfect place to stash the proceeds of money laundering._

Wallace keeps digging, and after an hour of hard work, comes up with a list of assets owned by the corporations, including extensive real estate holdings in California. He prints out a list of the properties and heads over to the sheriff's department.

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Watsonville, CA

Frank nervously places a call. There's no answer, and he leaves a message. "Yo, it's me. Andy's been intercepted by our friends in blue. And there's a fucking Amber Alert for these people. What the fuck did you get me involved in? I'm out of it."

He terminates the call and throws the phone off the next overpass. Several miles ahead, he passes another roadway sign proclaiming 'Amber Alert', and he grimly speeds up, trying to put as much distance as possible between him and Thomas Carney.

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Sheriff's Department, Rio Linda, CA

Everyone is talking at once, and the Rio Linda Sheriff's Department is buzzing with activity. The sheriff is trying to get Mike and Mel's story, but they are constantly interrupted. The deputy walks into the sheriff's office and announces, "They've located the van, in Watsonville. And someone with connections called the Governor, and he's employing the Amber Alert system." He puts a stack of photos on the sheriff's desk and walks out.

The sheriff exhales. "That's a lot of juice. Mr. Jones, we have some photos for you to look at. Have you ever seen any of these people?"

Mel Jones looks at all the photos carefully. "Yeah, this guy," he says, pointing at the picture of Thomas Carney. "He came in my diner last January. He was asking questions about Meredith...you know, that girl those people said was really...what was the name again?"

"Hannah Griffith," Mike supplies helpfully.

"Right, Hannah. Yeah, this is definitely the guy."

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Somewhere in the United States

Liam says scornfully, "Yeah...somebody did me a big favor killing Kendall. Why do you think we killed Hannah Griffith?"

"I don't understand," Veronica says, genuinely confused.

"Yeah, I needed Kendall dead. We had a bank account together in the Caymans: all the money we took from Casablancas...fucking millions, and I couldn't get it out. It was her stupid idea—a way to make sure we didn't screw each other over. It needed both of our signatures to get the money...or else a death certificate. So that money's been sitting there since she disappeared in the desert."

Once Liam begins talking, he seems unable to stop. "Last September one of my spies down in the Caymans told me a blonde woman was nosing around at the bank, trying to figure out how to get into that account. Yeah, a blonde bitch with big tits and an attitude...I knew it was fucking Kendall right away and figured that asshole Griffith did the work on her. Griffith was acting all squirrelly after I got back from the desert—real uptight, avoiding me. I thought it was 'cause he was nervous about the money laundering."

"But why did you kill Hannah?" Veronica asks, puzzled.

"I told Griffith I'd kill his family one by one if he didn't give me a picture of Kendall's new face. He tried to bullshit me for a couple months...I think he was afraid I would kill him anyway after I got a hold of Kendall's new face. Griffith told me he'd go to the feds with our money-laundering scheme if I didn't leave him alone. So...when Tom here stumbled on Hannah in Rio Linda, we upped the ante, showed him we meant it. The little fucker gave me Kendall's picture the next day...and he stopped talking about going to the feds."

"But _you_ didn't kill Kendall. Of course not," Veronica says sarcastically. "So how did you stumble on Hannah?"

Carney says angrily, "Stop telling her this shit."

"Don't tell me what to do, dickhead. It's not like she's going to be able to tell anyone." Liam leans into Logan's face. "You know, one thing about Kendall...she was _really_ good at fucking with your head. I bet you didn't know which way was up after she screwed you into the ground. She had a lot of talent in the bedroom." He breathes in, obviously remembering.

Suddenly Liam laughs brusquely. "Yeah, I hated your fucking father, Echolls. I was hoping you'd get your soft white ass tapped in prison the way mine was." He slaps Logan's cheek lightly with a sick smile on his face. "Pretty boy," he jeers. "Think the joint would have been tough on you. I was looking forward to telling your daddy how I fucked you over. Too bad he got himself killed."

"Go fuck yourself!" Logan whispers intensely. Suddenly he leans forward and bites Liam on the wrist hard, drawing blood, and falling off the seat in the process. Liam shakes his arm, trying to get Logan to let go. He pushes against Logan's head, screaming in pain. Logan kicks hard with his bound ankles and manages to topple Liam to the deck. Carney steps in and tries to separate them.

Veronica lets out a startled cry, "Logan, no!" But as Logan fights against Liam, she pulls her wrists apart, with her shoulder screaming in protest, and she unobtrusively starts to pick at the duct tape on her ankles. She watches closely, making sure that Carney's not looking in her direction.

Out of the corner of his eye, Keith notices what she's doing and immediately kicks out with his legs, knocking Carney flat to the deck. "Fucking asshole!" Carney yells. He struggles with Keith, and the four men tussle on the deck for several minutes before Carney grabs his gun and jams it into Keith's temple. Logan headbutts Liam one final time before Keith says in a stressed voice, "Logan, stop. Logan...stop, now."

During the fight, Veronica frantically gets the tape on her ankles loose; it's almost all the way off, and she's desperately trying to decide what to do next when Carney pulls his gun on her dad, and the fighting suddenly stops. She quickly pats it back into place and resumes her position with her hands behind her back just before Liam pushes Logan onto the seat next to her.

Liam is shaking his bleeding wrist. "You fucker! YOU FUCKER! You're going to pay for that." With his uninjured arm, he grabs Logan's hair and bends his head viciously back, spitting into his face, "I'm going to cut your cock off and shove it down your throat before I feed you to the sharks, motherfucker."

Veronica is completely petrified that they'll notice that the duct tape around her ankles isn't quite the same; she didn't have time to look at it when she had to abandon her task. She shakes with terror, completely frightened that all their lives depend solely on _her_. Her legs are trembling with the stress, and the tears run down her cheeks again..._I can't do this, I'm not strong enough. Please don't look at the tape._

Suddenly Veronica realizes, horrified, that the piece of tape that had been on her wrists has fallen to the deck near Mac's feet. She looks toward Mac, trying to get her attention subtly, but Mac is oblivious. She tries to send the message: _move your foot, put your foot on it, hide it..._. Mac is keening and rocking back and forth in distress. Veronica's panic level is rising exponentially..._think...think._ She tries to press her leg against Mac's to no avail. Veronica doesn't dare speak for fear of attracting Carney's or Liam's attention. It's obvious now...there's no turning back. She needs to make her move _soon_.

Liam, holding his bleeding wrist tight against his torso, stomps down below into the galley, muttering to himself. Carney stares at her face thoughtfully, and she gazes back, frozen in terror. _Keep focused on his eyes...keep him looking up._ He taps the barrel of his gun on the palm of his other hand, almost playfully. Mac is now weeping heartrendingly beside her, and Logan is twitching and shaking. The blood running from Logan's nose and from a deep cut over his eye forces him to breathe through his mouth, and the sound of his agitated breathing and Mac's sobs fills Veronica's ears, ramping up her anxiety even more.

_I don't want to die. Please...not yet. Please, I don't want to die._

Carney puts the barrel of his gun under her chin, pushing her jaw upward and her head back. He says calmly, "You're going to tell me everything I want to know. If you hold back, I'll make sure that they suffer while you watch and listen...and then, before I kill you, I'm going to turn you over to Brian. He's been begging me to let him play with you. You see, Veronica...there's no way I'm going to prison. And you're going to help me stay free."

Liam emerges from the companionway with a large band-aid plastered on his arm. He glowers at Logan, who glares back, unrepentant.

Carney glances at Liam and says, "I think you're right...Miss Mars does need a little more motivation. I've decided to give her a demonstration of our seriousness." He turns back and begins pointing to Keith, Logan, and Mac in turn, "Eeny, meeney, miney...moe," ending up on Keith again. "Yeah. The old guy. I don't trust him anyways."

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

This time, Wallace is shown into Sheriff D'Amato's office quickly. Leo, on the phone, motions to the chair opposite the desk. "Yes, sir. If I need anything, I'll be sure to call. And I'll apprise you of any developments." He hangs up and looks at Wallace. "Any idea how the governor came to be involved? He's authorized using the Amber Alert system to try to find them."

Wallace says, "Dick Casablancas...Logan and Veronica's friend? His mom's married to Schwartzenegger's business manager. He offered to contact the governor." He pushes the paper he's holding across the desk to Leo.

Leo looks at the list of properties briefly before asking, "What am I looking at?"

"These are all properties held by offshore corporations and holding companies with the same statutory officer. I think he's Carney's lawyer. So..." Wallace shrugs.

"So maybe these are really Carney's properties?"

"Maybe," Wallace replies. "When I looked at Carney's credit report, it looked a little too perfect. This lawyer went to college with Carney, and—" He breaks off speaking.

"What?"

"Carney calls him pretty often," Wallace adds reluctantly.

"How did you— Never mind, I don't want to know. I can get a warrant for the phone records myself," Leo muses. "It's good, maybe it'll be proof that Carney is involved with the money laundering, if we can trace how the money got into these accounts. But I don't think it will help us find Veronica and the others."

"Don't you think these properties should be checked out? Maybe he's kidnapped them and—"

Leo is shaking his head. "I'm sorry, I think you need to prepare yourself that they might already be dead."

Wallace is silent for a moment. Finally he says insistently, "You've got to try."

"All right," Leo replies reluctantly.

Sacks pokes his head in. "Sheriff, I've got Rio Linda on the line for you. And Kevin Carney's lawyer is here."

"Sacks, put Carney in interview two." Leo picks up the phone and listens. "You found Veronica's car....Really." He scribbles some notes. "That's...that's interesting. I have Mr. Mars' assistant here in my office. He's found some real estate that he suspects belongs to Agent Carney....No, none of the properties are in Rio Linda or Sacramento. Let's see...one's in Lake Tahoe, Mount Shasta, Rockport, Monterey." He pushes his chair backward and looks at a wall map of California as he talks. "Watsonville, you said? Anything in the van?...Okay, ask them to call me when they're done processing the vehicle. I'll pursue these addresses on my end. I'll be in touch."

Leo hangs up and turns to Wallace. "Veronica's car was found abandoned in Rio Linda, with no sign of them. No sign of foul play either, though."

He sighs and continues, "Before the security guards got arrested, they noticed a van that might have been trying to intercept them. And police have located that vehicle in Watsonville, California. One guy, driving the van, with no one else inside, and nothing in it. The driver's not talking, but they found a blonde hair in the back. They're processing the van now for other evidence."

"Watsonville?"

Leo scoots backward to the wall map and beckons for Wallace. They look at the map. Rio Linda is just to the left of Sacramento, in the central northern part of the state. Watsonville is on the coast, just below San Jose. Wallace stabs at the map. "Monterey's not far from Watsonville. See?"

Leo calculates driving times as he ponders the map. "We last heard from them around 3:30 in Rio Linda, right? You said Veronica called Agent Fields at that time."

Wallace nods.

"If they were taken around 4:00..." Leo exhales thoughtfully. "If they pushed it, they could get to Monterey by 8:00, or 8:30, and then...up to Watsonville...that'd be about an hour north of Monterey."

"Why Watsonville?" Wallace muses.

"I don't know. The van was picked up around 10:00. So it's possible." He calls the local police in Monterey and ask them to check around the property there.

As he hangs up, the intercom buzzes, and Sacks announces, "Sheriff, Eli Navarro and Dick Casablancas are here. They're insisting on talking to you...something about Veronica's voicemail."

A few seconds later, Sacks brings Weevil and Dick into Leo's office; Wallace nods a greeting.

Leo says drily, "You've got some serious connections, Casablancas. The governor?" He shakes his head.

"I just hope it helps Veronica and Logan," Dick replies, with uncharacteristic solemnity.

Wallace glances at him, wondering again what the hell was going on between him and Veronica.

"You said you had something for me?" Leo says abruptly.

Weevil puts Veronica's phone on the desk. "Veronica got two calls on her cell phone in the last twenty-four hours. One was from Duncan Kane and the other from Cindy Mackenzie...you know...."

"Right, Mac, the one in witness protection...the funeral. So? They're friends, it's not surprising that she'd call Veronica."

"Mac doesn't sound right," Weevil explains. "We think she was trying to send Veronica a message by calling her 'Ronnie'. It looks like Veronica listened to both messages—there's an incoming call from the prepaid cell she was using up in Rio Linda. Check it yourself...it's speed dial '1', her PIN is already programmed in. It's the second message."

Leo picks up the phone and listens to the voicemail. He listens carefully twice before hanging up. "What time did she check in to get her messages?"

Wallace says, "Around twelve o'clock according to her phone records. Let me hear the message." He takes the phone and listens to the message. He shakes his head and hands the phone back to Leo, saying, "Something's definitely up."

Weevil says, "We tried to call the number on the message, and it just says that it's not in service. It's an L.A. number. See for yourself, it's on the outgoing calls list."

Leo hits the menu key and 'send' and listens to the automated message before hanging up.

Dick butts in, "I talked to Veronica around twelve o'clock. She called me asking—" He hesitates, "She was asking about something to do with my little brother...something that she just realized." His eyes flick to Wallace momentarily. He explains to Leo, "You know, Cassidy?"

Leo nods.

Dick continues, "Veronica was pretty upset. If Mac was trying to send her a message, she might have been too freaked out to catch it."

Wallace suggests, "You know, you could probably get in touch with Mac through the U.S. Marshals and see what's going on. Maybe Veronica did talk to her. It's worth checking out."

Leo thinks for a minute. "All right. Thanks for coming in. If you find anything else, let me know right away."

As Wallace, Weevil, and Dick leave, Sacks tells Leo, "Carney and his lawyer are ready in interview two."

Before Leo can even sit down, Kevin Carney blusters, "How long are you going to keep me here? What are the charges?"

Cliff McCormack says to Leo, "They're so cute when they're young, aren't they?" He turns to Kevin. "Mr. Carney, I've explained to you several times that you should avail yourself of the right to remain silent."

Leo says abruptly, "Counselor, we found eight ounces of methamphetamine in your client's apartment, so it looks like he's going to be a guest of the county. And, as I told him, I've been making sure that everyone knows how cooperative he's been."

"This is bullshit!" Kevin yells furiously. "You're going to get me killed." He turns to Cliff and asks, "Can he do this? Can he lie to everyone and say that I ratted?"

Cliff replies, "I can't control what the sheriff does. Unfortunately, he can say whatever he wants, as long as it's not actually slander. And I don't think calling you cooperative rises to the level of slander."

"This is your last chance to tell me what I need to know, Mr. Carney." Leo stands up to leave. "Maybe you'll be lucky, and your bail bondsman will be faster than the Fitzpatricks."

"Wait," Kevin says.

Leo turns and stares at Kevin without speaking. Kevin whispers in Cliff's ear. Cliff shrugs and says, "See what they're offering."

Kevin announces, "I want to make a deal."

Leo looks skeptical. "What have you got to make a deal?"

"I talked to Uncle Tom last night."

"And?" Leo presses. "Do you know where he is now?"

"Unh-unh. I want a deal in writing. I want the meth charges and the bullshit accessory charges dropped."

Leo puts a piece of paper in front of Cliff. Cilff reads the document quickly and says shrewdly, "You're very prepared, Sheriff."

"I was hoping your client would see the light."

Kevin asks, "What? What is it?"

Cliff explains, "This agreement gives you immunity on the methamphetamine possession, and any charges for intent to sell, resisting arrest, and accessory to murder, provided that the information you give the sheriff is true to the best of your knowledge."

"It expires in five minutes," Leo adds. "Take it or leave it."

"Whose murder are we talking about here?" Cliff asks, reading the document again. He looks up, startled. "Veronica...Keith...Logan Echolls? Sheriff, what's going on?"

"They've been kidnapped and are presumed to be in danger. Kevin, you've got four minutes to decide."

Cliff seems upset and struggles to maintain his composure. "Mr. Carney, the deal appears to be in order," he manages. He glances at Leo, who puts a pen in front of Kevin suggestively.

Kevin looks at Cliff uncertainly. Cliff nods, and Kevin signs the paperwork.

"Where's your uncle, Kevin?" Leo asks.

"I heard him say something about getting the boat ready. He keeps a boat at the house in Monterey. That's all I know."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Lex Talionis  
**Showdown.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Agent Carney: Jason Isaacs. Liam Fitzpatrick:  
Rod Rowland. Brian: Scott Elrod.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-SEVEN: "LEX TALIONIS"

Sat. 3/21/09 evening: Pacific Ocean, near Monterey, CA

Carney points at Keith, Logan, and Mac in turn, saying, "Eeny, meeney, miney...moe," and ending up on Keith again. "Yeah. The old guy. I don't trust him anyways." Carney motions with his head, and he and Liam drag Keith by his upper arms to the side of the boat.

Keith struggles, saying as calmly as possible, "Don't do this. Please don't do this." He tries to resist with his bound feet, dragging them on the deck to no avail.

"Shut the fuck up," Liam growls. "Should have taken you out years ago."

Carney yells up to the pilothouse, "Shut down the engines, Brian." A few seconds later, the engines throttle down to an idle. They push Keith up to the rail, and Carney says, "Say bye-bye to your lovely daughter."

"I love you, Veronica," Keith says, choking back tears. He looks behind him and tries to smile at her. "I'm so proud of you. Logan, take care of her."

Her dad is silhouetted against the dark night sky, with nothing beyond but the sea. _No...no...please, don't let this be the last time I see him...I don't want to see this in my mind's eye every time I think of him._ For a second, she closes her eyes, ridiculously trying to avoid this, trying to make it go away by refusing to look at it. And she is overwhelmed by self-doubt, certain that there is no way she will be able to save them. _ It's just not possible...how can I possibly...Dad...I'm so sorry. Please...somebody...come and help us...please help me...._

_I have to do it now. Now._

"Dad," Veronica breathes. She tries again to placate Carney and force a delay. "Please, Agent Carney, I'll tell you what you want to know. Please don't do this! Please don't hurt my dad." They ignore her, and she looks around the boat desperately. _I need a weapon...something...they're so much stronger than me. Two of them...I need help._ Behind her back, she clasps and unclasps her hands, trying to decide how to make a move...when to make a move. Beside her, Mac is sobbing loudly, completely out of control.

Liam and Carney push Keith over the rail into the water. They hear a loud splash, and Liam starts laughing. He points down to the water, nudging Carney, who nods approvingly.

_No...Dad...No!...._

Veronica pictures her dad, trying to keep his head above water with his wrists bound behind his back. They hear the sound of Keith's frenzied movements in the water. She feels completely nauseated, realizing that he can't possibly last long in the cold water with his recent head injury and bound limbs.

_No one's coming to help. It's now or never. Now. Now._

About ten feet away, she sees a red fire extinguisher mounted to the bulkhead just past the companionway. She stares at it, trying to calculate if she can get to it and then use it as a weapon without being intercepted.

Liam takes his gun from his waistband and aims it at the water. "A little target practice, what do you think?" They hear three loud bangs as he squeezes the trigger, and the splashing sounds stop. Liam peers into the darkness, trying to locate Keith in the water. He fires wildly into the waves. "There he is...fuck! Missed him." Carney watches, enjoying the show.

Veronica bends over and releases her ankles from the duct tape. She sprints soundlessly to the fire extinguisher. She pulls on it sharply with her left hand, and the quick-release mechanism opens, freeing the device. Without hesitation, she takes five quick steps to a spot just behind Liam, lining up her right side with his back. Veronica swings the extinguisher as hard as she can from her left to the right, aiming the device for Liam's head. As her right arm reaches its full extension, her shoulder displaces again with an agonizing flash of pain, but the fire extinguisher makes contact with Liam's head with a sickening thud. She loses her grip on the extinguisher, and it clatters to the deck with a loud bang as Liam crumples, with his gun flying over the side. Liam lies on the deck, his body slack and unmoving.

Carney turns toward her in surprise, and she viciously kicks him in the crotch. Before he can recover, she throws her entire body weight against him and knocks him off-balance. She kicks his leg out from under him, and he hits the deck. Carney's head bounces brutally on the teak wood with a resounding smack. Using the heel of her left palm, she strikes him as hard as she can in the nose. Carney tries to get the gun that is tucked behind his back in his waistline, but suddenly Logan is there, wavering on his bound feet. Logan throws his own weight on top of the agent, and Veronica scrambles for the gun.

She manages to get it loose from his belt but loses it underneath him. The three of them roll around, with Carney cursing loudly and trying to inflict as much damage as possible. Carney gets the advantage and rolls her under him, with Logan clumsily trying to maneuver himself and using his body to try to knock against Carney. Carney bears down, putting his full weight and pressure on her damaged shoulder, and she screams. With a superhuman effort, Logan throws himself into Carney and pushes him off her...directly into the path of Mac's kicking legs. Mac connects with Carney's face, and he finally stops moving.

Veronica scuttles to the gun and takes it in her left hand. She crawls over to Carney and places the barrel under his chin, exactly as he had done to her a short while before. "Don't fucking move...I have no reason to keep you alive," she whispers intensely, gasping for breath. "Hands where I can see 'em."

Logan rolls to her, pushing himself with his feet. "Your dad," he pants. They listen, hoping to hear splashes from the water.

Veronica violently shoves the gun upward into Carney's neck and hisses, "Do you have a knife?" Carney stares back coldly, and she strikes him on the cheek with the butt of the gun. "A knife!" she repeats with hostility.

"Left front pocket," he finally replies, his fury barely concealed.

It kills her to use her right hand to dig in his pocket, with every nerve ending screaming in agony and the pain shooting from her shoulder throughout the length of her arm. She keeps the gun pressed firmly under his jaw and doesn't break eye contact with Carney while she fumbles for the knife. Finally it's in her hand. She uses her teeth to grasp the blade and open the penknife. Logan extends his hands to her, and she holds the blade steady while Logan moves his wrists until the tape separates. He takes the knife from her; she relinquishes it gladly and presses her throbbing arm against her side. Logan saws through the tape on his ankles and then goes to Mac and releases her. He walks over to Liam and kneels, checking his pulse. He shakes his head, and Veronica realizes she just doesn't care that Liam's dead.

Logan comes back to her and motions with his head toward the pilothouse. "Brian," he whispers. He rubs at his bloodied face without much effect.

She nods. "Try...Dad...please," she says incoherently, her eyes blurring over, hoping that the lack of sounds from the water doesn't mean what she's sure it means.

He nods. He kicks off his shoes and strips to his shorts as quickly as possible.

Mac whispers, "I think I saw some more duct tape down below."

Veronica nods, and Mac quickly and silently goes down the companionway. Logan slips over the side of the boat into the water, meeting Veronica's eyes momentarily before he disappears from her view. Mac returns with a roll of duct tape; she tears off a strip and puts it over Carney's mouth. He glares at her with hatred.

Veronica orders, "On your face, hands behind your back." Carney stares back balefully, and she says bitterly, "Oh, fuck this," and moves to pull the trigger. He breathes out and rolls over, putting his hands behind his back. Veronica mutters, "Tight, Mac."

Mac wraps the duct tape around his wrists, yanking his arms together as tightly as possible, and using far more tape than absolutely necessary. Veronica checks the result and nods. Mac tapes his ankles thoroughly as well. Veronica watches, thinking hard, with her eyes narrowed in concentration. As menacingly as she can, she whispers, "Bring your ankles to your wrists. Do it!!" She motions to Mac that she should secure Carney's ankles to his wrists, hogtying him. The agent looks significantly uncomfortable, and Veronica smiles in satisfaction. She kneels to the deck and quickly but thoroughly searches him, finding no other weapons. She takes his cell phone and puts it in her pocket.

Veronica whispers, "Help Logan. I'm going to get Brian."

Mac peers over the side of the boat as Veronica walks around the boat stealthily to the steps leading to the pilothouse. Mac strains her eyes and sees Logan diving underneath the water. He stays under for a minute before emerging to try again.

Veronica tiptoes around the corner and stops, listening intently. She holds the gun so tightly that her knuckles begin to ache; she consciously reminds herself to relax and focuses on her breathing. She counts to twenty-five, and still she hears nothing. She peers around the corner, but she can't see Brian. As quietly as she can, she places her foot on the first step and begins to climb. On the top step, she is suddenly able to see Brian's shoulder. She stops and holds her breath. She listens intently for movement and thinks she hears a faint sound. She closes her eyes momentarily to gather her courage before she rounds the corner into the pilothouse.

Brian is sitting down beside the steering console, obliviously reading FHM Magazine. He looks up, startled, and she points the gun at him and says, struggling to keep her voice steady, "Don't move. I've already killed Liam, and I'll kill you too if I have to."

He keeps his eyes on her and stays silent. She instructs him, "Put your hands up. Stand up slowly and walk down to the deck."

"What about—"

"Shut up," she replies.

On deck, Mac divides her attention between watching Logan diving and checking on Carney. She keeps glancing over at Liam, who is still and unmoving. She catches herself shaking and wills herself to be calm, but her body is uncooperative and trembles uncontrollably.

Brian walks around the corner, his hands held up in front of him. Veronica is right behind, with the gun pointed at his back. Veronica asks quietly, "My dad?" and Mac shakes her head. Mac grabs the duct tape and tapes up Brian as they had with Carney, hogtying him as well. Veronica cautiously searches him for weapons, finding only another knife. Before they tape his mouth, she asks, "Are there any other guns?"

He refuses to answer and spits at her. "Fuck you, bitch."

Veronica presses, "What was the plan? Where are we headed?" but Brian stays silent.

Mac goes back to the side of the boat and looks for Logan again. Logan emerges from underwater again...but this time he is supporting Keith's head above the water. He cries weakly, "Mac..." and goes underwater again.

"Veronica! He's got your dad!" Mac cries.

Veronica rushes to the side. Logan struggles to the surface, obviously having a hard time keeping Keith above the waterline. She looks around for a rope or a life preserver. "Dammit!" she swears loudly. She runs to the bow and finds a long line. Tucking the gun into the waistband of her pants, she fumbles with the knot, cursing her ineptitude. Veronica finally frees the rope and runs back to the stern.

Logan sees her tying the line to one of the stanchions. Veronica hands the rope to Mac, saying, "You do it. I can't throw it left-handed." Mac is about to try to toss the rope to him when Veronica hears him yell, "Stop!" His next words are garbled by the wind and the waves. Veronica looks at Mac helplessly. "What did he say?"

Logan yells again, and Mac and Veronica strain to hear his words. Mac turns to Veronica and says, "Loop, I think he's saying tie a loop." Demonstrating, Mac yells to Logan, "You want us to make a loop?" Logan nods; he and Keith disappear beneath the waves again momentarily before reemerging.

Mac struggles with the rope, trying to make a knot. Veronica takes the line from her and ties a loop with a two-foot diameter. She holds it up to show Logan. He nods and motions with his head, and Veronica passes the rope to Mac again. Mac throws the rope, but it falls far short. She pulls it back in quickly. Veronica suddenly realizes the problem and says, "Use the weight of the rope: gather up more of it, and then throw it." Mac coils the line messily and throws it again. It lands in the waves about five feet from Logan, and he swims toward it, managing to grasp it. He pulls the loop over his head and under his and Keith's shoulders.

It's obvious that Logan is close to exhaustion; he closes his eyes for a second. He yells weakly, "Pull!"

Veronica looks at Mac. "You've got to do most of the work, Mac. I can't use my right arm at all now." Her right arm is hanging limply by her side; she thinks that she would have passed out by now without all the adrenaline coursing through her system.

Mac pulls hard, but she too is weakened. Veronica realizes she may not have even eaten for two days, and Mac makes little progress against the forceful waves. She grabs Mac around the waist with her left arm, and the two of them strain and struggle to pull in the line. Finally they draw Logan and Keith beside the boat.

Logan slips the loop from under his arms and ties an additional length of line around Keith's torso before attempting to get out of the water. With Mac's help, he finally heaves himself up and out of the water. Gasping for breath and shivering with cold, he and the girls maneuver Keith out of the water and onto the deck.

"Dad...Dad!" Veronica exclaims worriedly. "Is he breathing? Logan, did he get shot?"

Logan, still out of breath, shakes his head. "Don't think so. Mac, go below and get us all the blankets you can find. Veronica...you need to do mouth-to-mouth...I'll do compressions."

They lay Keith flat on the deck and take their positions. Veronica tilts Keith's head back and breathes in two slow breaths. Logan positions his hands on Keith's chest and chants quietly, "And one, and two..."

Mac reappears with blankets. When Logan takes a break from the compressions so Veronica can breathe for Keith, he arranges the blankets on top of Keith. He starts pumping up and down again on Keith's chest, and Veronica says, "Logan...you're shivering."

"I can do it," Mac offers. "You have to get warm, Logan."

On the next break for the rescue breaths, Logan helps Mac get in position and watches her until she gets the hang of doing compressions. When he's satisfied, he grabs his clothes and gets dressed. Logan says, "I'm going to call for help."

He goes up to the pilothouse and turns the VHF radio to channel sixteen. "Mayday, Mayday, Mayday." Glancing at the metal identification plaque on the steering console and the GPS, he continues, "This is the vessel Busted Flush. I repeat, Mayday. Our position is 26.58 Latitude by 122.65 Longitude. We need immediate assistance for a medical emergency. We have one dead, one unconscious; we need police and medevac. Seven people on board. Mayday." There is no response, and Logan repeats the message.

"Come in, Busted Flush. This is the Coast Guard, we read you, medical emergency. Can you give me your name and the names of the passengers?"

"Logan Echolls, Veronica Mars, Keith Mars, Cindy Mackenzie, Thomas Carney, Liam Fitzpatrick, and Brian...I don't know his last name. This is a police matter, I repeat, we require law enforcement assistance."

There is a sudden silence, and Logan panics. He triggers the radio button again, "Do you read me? This is Logan Echolls on the vessel Busted Flush. Mayday."

"We read you. The Coast Guard is in your area. They've been searching for you. Is the ship's captain injured? Is your vessel underway?"

"The captain is not able to operate the vessel. I'm an experienced sailor and the vessel is operable, but I am not familiar with the area."

"Set your course as follows, and the cutter Matagorda will intercept you." Logan follows the instructions and engages the engines.

Down on the deck, Keith takes a gasping breath and pukes up a large quantity of seawater, with most of it going onto Veronica. Veronica begins to cry in relief. Keith's eyes flutter open and close again. She tucks the blanket tightly around him and checks his pulse. "Weak, but steady. He's so cold," she reports to Mac in a quavering voice. She counts his respirations, still worried. The boat begins to move, and Veronica says, "Go see what's happening, Mac."

"You did it, Veronica," Mac says quietly. "I don't know how you did it. I can't believe how brave you are."

The Coast Guard meets up with them a half-hour later. The paramedics determine that Keith is in stable condition and transport him to the Coast Guard cutter. When they are all finally safe on the Coast Guard vessel, Veronica collapses into Logan's arms and refuses to speak. The paramedics attempt to examine her, but she shakes her head. She buries her face into Logan's shoulder as he gently rocks her and murmurs, "It's over, it's over."

* * *

lex talionis-An eye for an eye; Retribution


	39. Chapters 138 to 140

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall and Dragynflies. Any remaining errors are my responsibility. Sorry for the delay in updating.

_********There's a reference in this section to my one-shot from a long time ago, Friction.********_

_********Go read it if you never did...don't forget to leave a review and make me happy.************_

* * *

**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from chapters 131-138:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/117038•html )

THIS SUMMARY REFERS TO THE UPDATE POSTED 5/13/09; GO BACK AND READ THE LAST CHAPTER IF YOU MISSED IT.

_[Lots of spoilers in this summary; please make sure you've already read this section before continuing.]_

_Wallace and Weevil struggle to get Sheriff D'Amato to take Veronica's disappearance seriously; they find out Veronica, Keith, and Logan were at the Rio Linda Sheriff's Department around 2:00. They tell Leo about Kevin Carney and his connection between the Fitzpatricks and FBI agent Thomas Carney, of the serial killer task force._

_Mike Fields heads to Rio Linda to find out why Veronica isn't answering her phone and to protect the witness they found, diner owner Mel. Mike has uncovered information about a plane crash in Rio Linda in late December; the FBI had investigated, and the plane was suspected to have been carrying illicit drugs. Wallace contacts him with the new information about Agent Carney._

_The van carrying the captured Veronica, Logan, and Keith takes them to an oceanside property, where they are loaded onto a boat. They discover that Mac is already there, also being held, presumably for the last two days since Veronica last talked to her. Keith is still semi-conscious. One of the men from Rio Linda, Frank, goes with a man from the boat, Andy, to dispose of the van. Brian, the other captor from Rio Linda, joins two other unknown men on the boat, and the boat sets off, with Veronica, Keith, Logan, and Mac tied up below deck._

_Kavner and Harris, the two security guards, are exonerated of the false charges and tell their story to the Rio Linda sheriff's department. They provide the license of the van they had noticed before their arrest. The Rio Linda sheriff puts out an APB on the van; Sheriff D'Amato activates the On-Star system in Veronica's Saturn and provides the Rio LInda sheriff with the information about Agent Carney._

_One of the two men on the boar turns out to be LIam Fitzpatrick. He forces Logan, Veronica, and Keith to go up on the deck. Veronica, with the bonds on her wrists still loosened from Logan's efforts in the van, watches for her chance to save them. She tries to appear broken and emotional, which is not a stretch. When Brian is about to check Veronica's bonds again, Logan successfully distracts their captors by provoking a fight. Mac appears close to an emotional collapse from her ordeal._

_Veronica's Saturn is found, empty, with no leads of value. Kevin Carney is taken into custody and refuses to talk; Sheriff D'Amato threatens to make Kevin appear to be a cooperating witness, which will incur the wrath of the Fitzpatricks. Mike tracks down Mel, barely managing to rescue him from a Rio Linda deputy who was about to shoot him; Mike gets the FBI involved, and they begin to coordinate with the Neptune and Rio Linda Sheriff's Departments. Mel identifies Agent Carney's picture as the man who was interested in Hannah back in January. The van used to kidnap Veronica, Keith, and Logan is apprehended in Watsonville, California; Andy is arrested, but Frank, who was following in another car, escapes._

_Agent Carney reveals himself to Veronica, Logan, and Keith. Carney questions Veronica, who bluffs that many people know of her theories and their whereabouts. He threatens to force her to watch the people she loves most be tortured cruelly before he kills them, and she pretends to acquiesce and talks. She tells him her discovery of the full moon connection between the serial murders and her supposition that Hannah's death was a copycat murder. She explains that she suspected an FBI agent or a policeman was involved because of the inside information necessary to stage the crime. Carney was alerted to Veronica's investigation because Alan, Mac's handler at the FBI, took all agents with access to the Saturday Night Slasher files off duty at the pretend funeral for Mac's family. Liam, frustrated by Veronica's refusal to be forthcoming, punches Logan in the face. Logan impulsively asks why Liam hates him; Liam reveals that twenty-five years ago, Aaron Echolls set up Liam to take the fall for a statutory rape. He vowed to make Aaron pay someday and tried to take his revenge by setting up Logan to be falsely incarcerated for Felix's murder._

_Liam denies killing Kendall but admits he wanted her dead He further divulges that Hannah Griffith was killed to force Dr. Griffith to disclose Kendall's new face, as modified by plastic surgery. Both Liam and Kendall had been unable to access a joint bank account in the Caymans. Dr. Griffith had held off Liam's demands by threatening to go to the Feds with the money-laundering scheme, but caved when Hannah was murdered. Liam taunts Logan again, and Logan responds by biting Liam on the wrist, starting another altercation. During the fight, Veronica pulls apart the duct tape on her wrists and starts to work on her ankles. Keith sees what she's doing and joins in the fight, to further distract them. Veronica gets the tape off her ankles and is about to try something when Carney pulls a gun on Keith. She pats the tape back into place and puts her arms behind her back, but the tape that had formerly been on her wrists is now on the deck near Mac's feet; Veronica realizes she will have to make her move now before the tape is spotted. Carney threatens Veronica with the gun; he decides to force her to talk by killing Keith._

_Wallace, assisted by Weevil and Dick, runs a background check on Agent Carney and checks Veronica's cell phone records. They listen to Mac's out-of-character phone message and suspect that Mac was trying to warn Veronica of a trap. Dick offers to get the help of the California governor through his family connections. Wallace finds that Carney appears to be connected to an attorney who specializes in offshore corporations, and tracks down properties that might be secretly owned by Carney. One of the properties is in Monterey, not far from Watsonville, where the van was apprehended. Leo interrogates Kevin again and offers a deal. Fearful of the Fitzpatricks' retribution, Kevin admits his uncle had said something about getting the boat ready at the house in Monterey._

_Liam and Carney push Keith, still bound, overboard, and Liam amuses himself by shooting at Keith, who is floundering in the water. Liam and Carney are distracted by their sick game, and Veronica takes the opportunity to grab a fire extinguisher. She aims it at Liam's head and kills him; she tackles Carney, and after a vicious struggle, aided by Logan and Mac, she manages to get the upper hand by retrieving his weapon. Her shoulder is further injured by the battle. She forces Carney to untie Logan and Mac. Mac helps to secure Carney with duct tape, and Logan goes overboard to try to save Keith, who has apparently stopped struggling in the water. Veronica goes up to the pilothouse and gets the drop on Brian. Meanwhile, Logan has located Keith in the water; with Mac and Veronica's help, he gets Keith back on board, and they begin CPR. Keith eventually vomits up seawater and begins to breathe on his own. Logan contacts the Coast Guard, who are already in the area looking for them, and they are finally rescued._

_

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_•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Back From the Brink**  
Logan, Keith, Mac, and Veronica  
recover in the hospital.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Nurse #1: Angel Laketa  
Moore. Nurse #2: Linda Shing. Dr. Kellerman:  
David Spielberg.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-EIGHT: "BACK FROM THE BRINK"

Sat. 3/21/09, very late: Monterey Community Hospital, Monterey, California

In the darkened hospital room, Logan sits watching Veronica breathe as she sleeps in her hospital bed. He remembers doing this compulsively back in Vermont—unbelievably, just a week ago—counting eleven breaths, twelve breaths a minute, trying to see some sign in normalcy in her visage, even though he was desperately afraid she would never be normal again after what Klein had put her through. Now, she is sedated and resting comfortably. He wonders momentarily what the hell _'normal'_ means, anyway.

On the Coast Guard cutter, she had watched fearfully from Logan's encircling arms as the paramedics worked on her dad, trying to raise his core body temperature and assessing his head injury. One of the EMTs had tried unsuccessfully to examine her, but she had shaken her head, refusing to leave the comfort of Logan's lap while steadily keeping her eyes trained on her father. Logan finally persuaded her to allow the paramedic to look at her. Veronica had sucked in her breath with an audible gasp when the EMT maneuvered her arm. He radioed in for permission to administer narcotics; Veronica protested loudly, but Logan had convinced her to allow it. As the IV began to work, she had visibly relaxed and her eyes had drooped. She sighed aloud; her eyes fluttered open, and she said to Logan, "Take care of Dad...and Mac." He had nodded, and she had dropped off to sleep.

When they had arrived at the hospital, Logan had taken charge. The doctors had shooed off the waiting federal agents, telling the agents that none of them were in any condition to be questioned, and for that small favor, Logan was eternally grateful. Mac still seemed to be in shock, and Veronica and Keith were barely conscious, so it had fallen to Logan to sign papers and tell nurses that no one had allergies and just what traumas they had all been through. He had snapped loudly at the nurse when she asked him for their insurance cards, explaining in a loud voice that they had been kidnapped against their will and who the hell knew where their possessions were. She had stared back, almost frightened at his angry demeanor. He muttered an apology and impatiently gave the information as best he could.

Once Keith was admitted to the ICU and Mac had been determined to be suffering from nothing more than dehydration and exhaustion—at least physically—he had rushed back to Veronica's side. Upon feeling the touch of his hand on hers, she had opened her eyes and whispered, "Dad?"

He nodded and replied, "They think he's going to be fine. They're watching him for internal bleeding or pressure on the brain."

"Right, subdural hematoma...like you had," she mused weakly.

Logan added, "They said the cold water probably helped him survive...but it was lucky the Coast Guard was nearby."

She closed her eyes in mute response.

He didn't tell her that they had said the next few hours were important and that there was always a possibility of long-term neurological problems from the near-drowning. Whatever happened, they would get through it. He had to believe that Keith was tough. He tried to push away the memory of that cold, limp body that he had struggled to keep above the buffeting waves.

A nurse frowned and leaned in to look at Logan's bloody forehead. "Has anyone looked at this cut? It needs stitches."

Logan had brushed her aside carelessly, squeezing Veronica's hand. "Everything's going to be fine, Veronica. Don't worry about your dad. They're taking good care of him. I'm making sure of it."

The nurse persisted. "Sir...you need to have stitches."

Veronica grimaced and her eyes reopened. "Don't let an intern stitch you. Get a plastic surgeon. You have enough scars. ...Promise me."

He scoffed, but had finally agreed under Veronica's intense stare. "You're so bossy," he had muttered, not meaning a word of it. "All right, I promise."

The doctor had shaken his head worriedly while examining her shoulder. "You must have been hurting a great deal," he commented. Despite the strong painkillers, Veronica had visibly winced as he palpated her joint. The doctor pulled Logan aside to speak to him privately. "The officer told me she swung a fire extinguisher at a man who was threatening to kill you. It must have been excruciating for her."

"There wasn't a choice," Logan had responded. He had thought, _'She didn't just swing at Liam. She hit the motherfucker, killed him dead. She took on an armed man, with only a fire extinguisher for a weapon and saved us all.'_

The doctor sighed. "Her temperature is slightly elevated. You said she's recovering from a kidney infection? I need to speak to the treating physician."

Logan provided the name of Veronica's doctor in Vermont, and after a hurried phone consultation, antibiotics were added to her IV.

"Sir, step back; we're going to sedate her and move her to a private room. I've ordered a surgical consult with our chief of orthopedics for the morning. Right now, she needs to rest." After pushing a vial of medication into Veronica's IV, the rails were raised on the side of her hospital gurney. The doctor pushed Logan aside, and he reluctantly watched as they wheeled Veronica out of the room.

Logan turned to the nurse and said, "You heard the lady. Where's the nearest plastic surgeon?" The nurse began to protest, spluttering about unnecessary caution for a simple wound stitch, but Logan shut her down with a firm shake of his head. "Plastic surgeon," he reiterated. "I have excellent insurance."

The nurse sighed and picked up the phone to issue a page.

After the plastic surgeon had finished fastidiously stitching the cut over Logan's eyebrow and the nurse had cleaned all the dried blood from his face, the federal agents became more persistent and had insisted that Logan give a statement. Their questions had taken a solid hour; Logan had described the man called 'Frank', who had apparently eluded capture. At times, the agents had fallen silent and looked at Logan in disbelief, seemingly unwilling to accept that 5'1" Veronica Mars had somehow managed to kill 6'2" Liam Fitzpatrick with a fire extinguisher and then subdued a seasoned, armed FBI agent. Logan related the revelations that Carney had made and tied them to the money-laundering scheme that was already splashed across the news. The agents seemed to be shaken by the idea that a high-level FBI agent could be responsible for everything Carney had freely admitted on the boat. When Logan asked what Carney had said when he was questioned, the two agents exchanged a quick glance and admitted that Carney had refused to say a word except to ask for an attorney.

When the agents had finally concluded questioning Logan, the hospital admissions department had offered him a private room, but he had asked for a cot in Veronica's room instead. They had argued, saying that it "was contrary to hospital policy" for a non-relative, but Logan was adamant. He wasn't leaving her. He had tried to lie down, intending to close his eyes, but sleep eluded him. Logan was exhausted, physically and emotionally, but he kept reliving the fight on the boat—he was still incredulous that they had somehow managed to survive. He finally gave up and moved to the chair next to Veronica's bed where he could sit and watch her sleep.

She stirs a little now in her sleep, and he tenses, waiting to see if he needs to call the nurse. She relaxes again, and he realizes he had stopped breathing. He catches himself timing his breaths to hers, somehow symbiotically tied to her without even trying.

It all seems so fucking random, and that's what scares the shit out of him. If Liam had turned around and ducked when Veronica was aiming the fire extinguisher at his head...if Mac hadn't been able to kick Carney in the face when she did...if Keith hadn't kept his head above water for as long as he did...if Liam had been a better shot...if he hadn't been provoked into biting Liam...if Veronica hadn't grabbed the gun before Carney could.... He shakes his head. They had been so goddamn close to dying.

He hears the quiet _snick_ of the door opening, and he turns. Mac walks in, trailing an IV on a wheeled metal stand, her face pale and her movements uncertain. "The nurse said...she said I could see how Veronica's doing. She's okay? She looks...." Mac sighs anxiously. "She looks so tired."

"Mac, you should be sleeping," Logan protests. "Veronica's okay. They have her on antibiotics and painkillers. The surgeon's going to look at her shoulder tomorrow. You should go back to bed and try to get some rest."

"When I close my eyes, all I see is...." Mac's voice trails off. After a silence, she continues shakily, "You know, my...my last hope was Veronica, that she would understand the message I left her...when they brought you guys on the boat, I knew...I knew I was going to die. Logan, I keep seeing them push Mr. Mars off the boat, and Liam...pointing his gun, pulling the trigger...." She starts to cry and shake visibly.

"Mac, it's all right, you're safe now," Logan says. He stands up and folds her into his arms, careful to avoid the IV coming from the back of her hand. "Are your parents coming?"

She nods against his chest. Mac mumbles, "Tomorrow." Suddenly, she laughs incongruously. "Dick apparently got the governor involved; Schwarzenegger sent his personal jet to fly my parents up here first thing in the morning."

"Dick did what?" Logan replies, surprised.

"One of the agents said the governor authorized sending out the Coast Guard...that's why they were already in the area."

"How did they know where to go?" Logan asks, puzzled. He strokes Mac's back, trying to calm her shaking.

"I think Wallace figured it out. I don't know. I think...everyone was trying desperately to figure out where they had taken us. Somehow they figured out that something was wrong."

Logan thinks, not for the first time, how foolish they had been to traipse up to Rio Linda. Their precautions now seem ridiculously inadequate: hiding by using cash, with just two security guards following, both he and Keith armed...not nearly enough. But then he realizes: if it hadn't been Rio Linda, Carney and Liam would have tracked them down in Neptune sooner or later, probably with tragic results. He shakes his head again; the effort of assimilating all the traumas of the last twenty-four hours is still beyond him. And he knows that it's even worse for Mac, trembling in his arms after living with this terror for two—almost three—days. He whispers into the top of Mac's head, "Mac, you need to rest. You're exhausted."

"Logan...I keep thinking _this_ is the dream; I'm going to wake up and still be tied up with Carney pointing a gun at me." She says tremulously, "You know, he killed Alan in front of me. He just picked up a gun and shot him...there was blood everywhere...on the wall, it dripped down, oozing...." Mac sobs quietly. "I was too scared even to scream. Logan, he killed him. He _killed_ him." As she talks, her voice speeds up and rises in pitch, betraying her anxiety. "I can't close my eyes, I can't! You're sure Mr. Mars is okay? He was in the water for so long!"

"He's fine. Mac, you're safe now; Carney's in custody, there's no way he can hurt you. It's all right." He pats her shoulders, trying to soothe her. "You were so brave to try to send Veronica a message. You must have been so scared. You're all right now, Mac. Let me get the nurse. Maybe you should have something to help you sleep."

"No!" she protests loudly. "_He_ made me take something. I won't take anything!"

"Okay, okay, I won't call the nurse. Mac, I'm right here. This isn't a dream. We're all safe. Your mom and dad are going to be here soon."

"Logan, I'm so sorry...I wanted to warn Veronica about them, but I couldn't think of anything else. I'm so _stupid_. Of course she didn't figure it out," she says with bitter self-loathing.

"Mac—you did great. If you hadn't been there, we might not have—" Logan breaks off suddenly, realizing the almost coincidental nature of their victory over Carney and Liam is not the best way to reassure her. "Mac, it's all right. We're all safe."

"Please don't make me go back to my room. I don't want to be alone," she begs him, desperately clutching his waist. "Please don't make me be alone. Let me stay here with you and Veronica. I'm so scared."

"Of course you can stay." He sits down and cautiously pulls her onto his lap. "Just put your head against me. You can close your eyes if you want. I'm right here. Veronica's right there. We're all okay. Look at Veronica. She's doing fine. Her dad's okay, you're okay, I'm okay."

Mac whimpers softly, and he rocks her gently in his arms. Gradually she relaxes her head against his chest as he strokes her back. He is suffused with fury at Carney for doing this to Mac.

He remembers going with Veronica to find Mac quaking with fear in her room at the Neptune Grand after Beaver had abandoned her; _this is too much for her. Mac doesn't deserve this._ He recalls silently rejoicing with Veronica freshman year as Mac began to date again and seemed to forget about Beaver. Their conversations had been oblique and vague, with neither he nor Veronica willing to spell out just what Beaver had done to all of them. _ 'Mac's doing good, don't you think?' 'She seems happy.' _ They never said the unspoken words: _'after what that bastard did.'_

And then...he abruptly thinks about Hannah, begging for her life, protesting as Carney shot heroin into her veins and dyed her hair back to her natural color. Poor Hannah, after enduring the school and finally turning eighteen so that she could maybe resume her life and then...suddenly they took her, and she wouldn't have understood why this was happening. _Did Carney gain her confidence by showing her his FBI identification?_ Logan remembers how fragile and delicate she had appeared...but tougher inside than she looked, willing to defy her father to continue seeing him, and brave enough to run from the school when she got her chance. And then...living all alone in Rio Linda: unwilling to make friends, lying low and surviving any way she could.

He pictures the gruesome autopsy photos that Veronica had reluctantly shown him and angrily imagines Carney wielding a scalpel on Hannah's chest, carefully imitating the design from the Slasher's victims. He has a vivid flash of Carney frowning, concentrating as he worked on the dead girl's tender skin, comparing his efforts to a crime scene photo and then staging the body exactly as it needed to be, with Hannah's limp form nestled up against a reeking dumpster in a seedy Los Angeles alley.

He shakes his head to try to erase the horrifying image. Logan realizes that Mac has fallen into an exhausted slumber in his arms.

The overwhelming question—the one that sucks all the oxygen from his body when he lets himself go there—is how will Veronica be?

He knows. He saw it in her eyes. She had almost given up, had almost refused to let him rebind her wrists, even knowing that it would mean giving up their only chance. She had been so close to broken. Klein had started the job—well, if he's honest with himself, _he_ had been the one to start the process, by running away from her back in January—Klein had started to break her and almost succeeded, but Carney had been determined to finish her off. And she had accepted that fact. She had accepted that she had been beaten.

Somehow he had managed to pull her back from the brink...Logan had convinced her not to give up, and somehow she had done it, she had saved them.

But he wonders how she will be...now that it's over, now that she knows she _can _be broken.

Sun. 3/22/09, very early: Monterey Community Hospital, Monterey, California

The nurse gently taps Logan's shoulder. "Mr. Echolls. We need to get Veronica ready to see the surgeon. Ms. Mackenzie, I think your parents are going to be here soon."

Logan opens his eyes. Mac is still clinging to him. "Mac, are you okay?"

She nods. "My parents are here?" she says to the nurse as she struggles to sit up on Logan's lap.

"Soon. Come on, Cindy, I'll take you back to your room. Mr. Echolls, you can use the bathroom to freshen up."

Logan looks down at his clothes; he's filthy, and his shirt is stained with blood from the cuts on his face. "I don't suppose you have any clothes I could wear."

She looks at him sympathetically. "I'll have an orderly bring you some scrubs."

Logan splashes some water on his face, avoiding the dressing on his forehead wound. Someone taps on the bathroom door and passes him a set of hospital scrubs and a plastic bag with a toothbrush and other toiletries. He hesitates, then throws his clothes in the wastebasket. He emerges and goes to the nurses' station. "How is Mr. Mars doing?" he asks anxiously. He doesn't even remember falling asleep, but his neck is stiff from sleeping in the chair. He had intended to check on Keith periodically through the night, and now he's suddenly nervous that something happened while he was sleeping.

She smiles broadly. "He's doing fine. We're going to keep him for observation for a couple days, just to make sure there are no aftereffects from the blow to his head or his time in the water."

_His time in the water,_ Logan notes. _Not—his almost drowning, his use as a target by a psychopathic methhead._

He returns to the room. The nurse has helped Veronica to a seated position and arranged breakfast on a tray for her. She glances at Logan and says, "I can order a meal for you, as well, if you'd like to stay with her."

"Yes, please. Thank you." The nurse leaves, and Logan says to Veronica, "How are you feeling today?" He sits down on the chair again.

"Did I dream that Mac was sleeping on your lap last night?" she asks, a little puzzled.

"She couldn't sleep. She didn't want to be alone, so she stayed in here with us."

"I'm glad," Veronica says quietly. "Is she okay?"

Logan shrugs. "Yeah. She was dehydrated and exhausted, but no injuries. How are you feeling?"

"It hurts," she says quietly, avoiding his eyes.

"Do you want me to get the nurse?" he offers quickly.

She shakes her head. "Not until after I see the surgeon. What about Dad?"

"He's doing fine. They're going to keep him for a couple days just to be sure."

Veronica sighs in relief and looks away again.

He has a million things to say to her, and he can't think of a single one. Finally, he settles for, "I'm sorry you're hurting."

Veronica glances at him. "Did you get stitched up?"

"By a plastic surgeon, just like you ordered." He pretends to salute, and she smiles weakly. "Veronica...you're going to be fine."

"Right."

He stands up and sits down cautiously on the bed next to her. "You _are_ going to be all right. You...you did an amazing thing, Veronica." Logan caresses her cheek gently. "I'm going to take care of you. Whatever you want, whatever you need."

She swallows, and her eyes fill with tears. "You're not mad at me?" she chokes out.

"What?"

"You know, for insisting we go to Rio Linda and...you know. The usual. Not being careful."

"You _saved_ us, Veronica."

"I almost—" She breaks off suddenly as a doctor strides into the room.

"I'm Dr. Kellerman. I understand we have a little shoulder problem here." The doctor glances at Logan meaningfully, and Logan moves to the chair to allow the doctor to begin his examination. "Let's see what's going on here. Can you get out of bed? I need to see you standing." The doctor helps Veronica out of the bed and has her stand in front of him. "Turn around, please. There's definitely some asymmetry. Can we sit back on the bed? Sit up straight, now."

_'We?' _ Logan is pretty sure that the doctor is an ass. He sucks in his breath and tries to hold his tongue.

Veronica grimaces as she struggles to sit down and keep her back straight. The doctor uses the back of his hand to feel the temperature of her shoulder joint, then begins to check her clavicle from the sternum to her arm. He palpates the muscles in her upper back. Veronica suppresses a gasp at several points, and the doctor presses harder.

"You're hurting her," Logan finally comments in exasperation.

"It's necessary for the examination. You're the husband?"

"Boyfriend," Veronica replies through gritted teeth as the doctor touches a particularly tender spot. "Ahh!" she exclaims.

"Sorry. Can you put your arms up? Clasp your hands behind your head."

Veronica complies, slowly, in obvious pain.

"Now, behind your back."

"I can't," she whispers, and Logan realizes, _she's scared. She's scared of the pain, and she's scared of this doctor._

"Try."

Her left arm goes easily behind her back, at waist level, but she can't force her right arm to rotate backward at all. The doctor tsks audibly and palpates the joint once again, and Veronica emits a sharp cry of pain before the doctor gives up. He walks over to a light box and, apparently angry, shoves the x-rays onto the screen to examine them.

"How did this happen?" The doctor turns and faces her.

"I'm a private investigator. About a week ago, the man I was investigating forced my arm behind my back and dislocated it. Then...." She glances at Logan for moral support.

Logan jumps in. "We had an appointment scheduled for tomorrow with an orthopedist in Neptune, where we're from. We...we ran into some difficulties over the weekend and the shoulder was stressed again."

The doctor opens a file folder and reads the case notes. "You were kidnapped and used a fire extinguisher to assault a man?" He looks up at Veronica. "What were you thinking? Weren't you supposed to be resting?"

She's stunned by his words. "I...."

Logan interrupts defensively, "She was taking it easy. They couldn't do surgery until she recovered from a kidney infection."

"And you thought the way to recover from an infection was to travel around and get kidnapped?" the doctor responds sarcastically. "I'm sorry, this is ridiculous."

"What?" Logan says, stunned.

She says, "I'm sorry."

Logan glances at her in shock. "Veronica! Why are you sorry?"

"I shouldn't have—"

"Veronica, this isn't your fault," Logan protests. "You were assaulted."

Kellerman says rudely, "The likelihood of a complete recovery is very low at this point. You can't expect miracles from surgery. You'll be lucky if you recover fifty percent of your mobility and strength. And the pain? It's always going to be a problem." He shakes his head in disgust.

Veronica's lip is quivering, and her eyes fill with tears.

"Get out!" Logan says angrily.

"Excuse me?" the doctor replies.

"You're fired. Terminated. Your services are no longer required," Logan bites off. When the doctor merely stares at him, Logan continues, "Get the fuck out. You're not the only surgeon in the world. We'll be consulting someone else." Finally Kellerman shrugs and leaves.

Veronica is crying soundlessly, trying to hold herself still. Logan walks to her and helps her lie back down, pressing the call button for the nurse.

The nurse hurries in. "What happened? Dr. Kellerman threw her file on the desk and stormed out."

"She needs her pain medication, please," Logan says in a tone that indicates there will be no discussion. The nurse backs out of the room quickly. Logan gently hugs her, making sure not to hurt her, and whispers, "I'll call my orthopedist. We'll go down to LA. That guy's a jerk."

"He's right," she sobs. "What was I thinking? I should have been staying in bed at home, not running around getting hurt even worse. Now...Logan, what if he's right?"

"He's not right." Logan tries not to mentally replay the scene of her slamming the fire extinguisher into Liam's skull and the subsequent brutal fight with Carney. "You're going to be fine." He smoothes the hair from her forehead. "Trust me. I'm going to take care of you."

The nurse returns with a small bottle and inserts Veronica's pain meds into her IV. Logan continues to hug her and caress her until her face demonstrates that she has some relief. Veronica closes her eyes, and Logan lifts the handset on the phone by Veronica's bed and dials a number he has memorized.

"Dick...yeah...yeah, we're okay. Listen, I need you to do me a big favor. Do you still have Barry Randall on speed-dial?...Right, our favorite trust attorney....Tell him I need to talk to my orthopedic surgeon, today, as soon as possible. Dr. Remick at UCLA Medical Center. He's probably on the golf course today. Randall goes to him too, for his back, and I bet he has Remick's cell phone number....Yeah, have Remick call me on this number."

When Logan hangs up, Veronica protests, "We can't go to LA."

"Why not? I'll rent a private ambulance. Or a helicopter. Whatever."

"We can't leave Dad. I won't leave Dad. I won't let him wake up alone."

"I won't let that guy operate on you, Veronica." They stare at each other, at an impasse. A few minutes later, the phone rings suddenly, and Logan grabs it.

"This is Logan Echolls," he answers. "Dr. Remick, thanks for calling so quickly." He puts his hand over the mouthpiece and says quietly to Veronica. "I think I have a solution, Veronica."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Confiteor**  
Veronica has her shoulder surgery;  
a guilty conscience in Neptune.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Leo: Max Greenfield. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Rebecca: Paula  
Marshall. Dr. Remick: Christopher Grove.  
Sacks: Brandon Hillock. Tom Griffith: Rick  
Peters. Father Patrick: James Joseph O'Neill.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-NINE: "CONFITEOR"

Tues. 3/24/09, morning: UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, California

Wallace sits with Logan in the waiting room outside surgery. Logan drops his unread magazine and stands up to pace around the room again. Wallace comments, "She's gonna be fine...wrestling bad guys to the ground 'fore you know it."

Logan scoffs, "She better not be wrestling bad guys." His cell phone, brought by Wallace from Neptune, rings again, displaying the name JAMES, R. He triggers the send button. "Rebecca? Oh, hey Keith. No, she's still in surgery. Rebecca's taking good care of you?...That's good. I'll call you the second the doctor comes out."

Twenty minutes later, Dr. Remick emerges and reports that the surgery went very well, and he expects her to make a full recovery. "Thank you, doctor," Logan says sincerely.

"She's going to need to do a lot of physical therapy," Remick warns.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure she does it."

Remick raises his eyebrows. "The way you did?" Remick had severely chastised Logan for skipping out on his physical therapy. Logan explained that he spent his time in Texas doing his exercises and walking on the beach. Remick had quickly examined his knee, and, laughing, said, "I don't know how you did it, but you're doing great."

"I had a good surgeon," Logan had replied. Now, he says, "Veronica is much more compliant than I am."

Remick says, "You can come in to see her in a few minutes. The nurse will come get you."

A short while later, Logan is holding Veronica's hand in the recovery room. "How do you feel?"

"Dopey," she says crankily.

"Wallace is outside too, remember? Your dad called, and Weevil. Mac too."

"That's good," Veronica replies drowsily.

"Dr. Remick said it went very well. He told me to crack the whip to make you do your PT."

"We've got to stop getting hurt," she murmurs before shutting her eyes again.

Tues. 3/24/09, very late: Coronado Bridge, Neptune, California

Sacks triggers his radio. "Sheriff, come in."

"D'Amato here."

"We got a jumper on the Coronado. Abandoned car. There's a note on the front seat."

Leo sighs. "You're sure they jumped?"

"Yeah. There was a witness."

"Do you have a name?"

Sacks pauses. "Um, Sheriff? The note's addressed to Stephanie Denenberg."

"I'll be right there."

Wed. 3/25/09, afternoon: UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, California

One day post-surgery, Logan and Veronica are hanging out quietly in her hospital room. Their conversations are still punctuated by long silences where neither knows exactly what to say. The focus of the last few days has been on Veronica's surgery: Logan took charge, speaking to the doctors and presenting Veronica with all her options. Dr. Remick had recommended open surgery rather than arthroscopic, since the joint had been stressed several times and he was concerned about hidden damage that might be missed arthroscopically. So when the conversation lagged, it was easy to deflect by turning the topic to medical concerns.

After accidentally changing the channel to a cable news station and seeing her picture on the television screen, Veronica had asked to leave the television off. Federal agents have questioned her several times; each time Logan notes that her mouth settles into a tight frown and her brow creases with worry.

Logan's phone rings and he triggers the send button. "Hello?...Hey, Mac; yeah, she's awake." He starts to offer the phone to Veronica but realizes that her face is filled with dread. He puts the phone back up to his ear and says quietly, "Mac...can Veronica call you later?...All right...Me too." He puts the phone down. "Veronica? What's the matter?"

"Nothing," she lies, avoiding looking at him.

"I don't believe you. What's going on?"

She sighs and looks down at her lap. Her left hand fiddles nervously with the blanket. "I know Mac is probably blaming me for what happened."

"I don't think so."

"I almost got her killed," Veronica says vaguely. "And she witnessed her FBI handler getting killed."

"She's not blaming you, Veronica. No one's blaming you. You know that Carney and Liam were responsible for a lot of murders, and who know how many people's lives you saved by investigating."

"Uh-huh," Veronica agrees without conviction.

"You solved Hannah's murder," he tries.

"I'm just not sure it was worth it."

"I'm sure it was worth it to Ms. Denenberg." He falls silent, watching her, trying to figure out what to say. He runs through all the possibilities in his head but her apathy is completely unnerving. Logan suddenly says, "Do you think Liam was telling the truth?"

"What?" she replies, turning to look at him.

"Liam said he didn't kill Kendall. Do you believe him?"

"I suppose. Maybe one of the other Fitzpatricks did it," she answers listlessly.

"Aren't you curious at all?" he says, surprised.

"No. I don't care about Kendall."

Cautiously, he offers, "In the newspaper, it said that they are presuming Liam was responsible for her murder."

Veronica shrugs. "He had an alibi for that night. Wallace and Weevil were watching him, and then he was arrested."

"I think the exact phrase they used was criminal conspiracy to commit murder. And what about the forensic evidence?"

"What forensic evidence?"

Logan pulls out the newspaper he had hidden in the drawer beside Veronica's bed. "The article says 'hair and fiber evidence belonging to the victim were found on items recovered from Paddy's Used Car Emporium.'" He watches her face: momentarily, she looks interested, but she struggles against it and shrugs again, refusing to look at the newspaper. He continues, "If Liam didn't do it, then somebody sure wanted to make it look like he did."

"Let's talk about it later, okay? I'm tired now."

_Bullshit,_ he thinks. She uses the remote to lower the head of her bed; she lies down and closes her eyes, but he's quite certain she's not sleeping. After a few minutes, he leaves the room and makes a few phone calls.

About an hour later, Logan is reading a magazine while Veronica sleeps. He keeps casting a glance in her direction, certain she's avoiding talking about what's really on her mind. There's a light tap on the door.

"Knock, knock? Veronica?" Keith walks into the room slowly, followed by Rebecca James. He looks weak and gaunt, but he is smiling.

Rebecca says to Logan, "He insisted on coming. The doctors wanted to keep him for another day, but he convinced them to release him."

"Dad!" Veronica sits up and grins broadly.

Keith sits on the bed and hugs her gingerly. He helps her adjust the bed so she can sit up easily and plumps her pillows for her. "I wish I could have been here for you, honey. How are you feeling?"

"What are you doing out of bed?" Veronica asks sternly. "Logan told me they ordered bed rest."

"You can't crack Keith Mars' head that easily," he jokes.

"What about—" she worries aloud.

"I'm fine, Veronica. I just have to take it easy. I wanted to see my little girl, and since I have a chauffeur...." Keith shrugs, grinning. "Chauffeuse?" He glances at Rebecca, who blushes slightly. "How are you feeling, Veronica? Are you hurting? I'm glad Logan brought you here to a surgeon that he had confidence in."

Veronica replies quietly, "I'm okay. I didn't want you to wake up alone."

"I wasn't alone. Rebecca was there," Keith corrects. "What did the doctor say?"

"They said the surgery went very well, and they're going to release me tomorrow morning if I'm still doing okay." She sighs. "Four months of rehab."

"That's okay. Rehab is not a big deal, Veronica. It's just some exercises...you're used to working out. You'll be chasing down the bad guys again in no time."

A shadow crosses her expression. "You're really okay, Dad?" she asks nervously. "I'm so sorry about—"

"Shh. There's nothing to be sorry about." Keith glances at Logan, who frowns slightly. "Honey, I'm so proud of you."

Veronica flushes deeply. "I was lucky."

"No, you used your training and took advantage of an opportunity the way you're supposed to."

Rebecca interjects, "Veronica, is there anything you need? We could get you some books to read, or some magazines."

"Some manicotti?" Keith suggests.

Veronica barely smiles, and he frowns. "Honey? What's going on?"

"Nothing," she lies.

Before he can press her further, there is another knock on the door. Leo D'Amato walks in hesitantly. "Keith. I'm glad you're here. I was hoping to speak with Veronica and Logan." He glances at Rebecca.

Rebecca says, "I think I'm going to get something to eat. Veronica...what can I get for you? Please...let me do this."

Veronica sighs. "I don't know...I guess a cheeseburger."

Keith draws Rebecca aside and murmurs in her ear; Rebecca nods and leaves. Keith says, "What was so important that you drove up to Los Angeles, Leo? Did something happen with the case?"

Leo draws up a chair and sits down. "I don't know if you saw the news about a jumper off the Coronado last night."

Veronica immediately tenses. "Who was it?" She glances at Logan, who swallows compulsively.

"Tom Griffith," Leo replies brusquely. "His body was recovered this morning. He left a note for his ex-wife. She gave her permission for you to read it." He begins to read aloud.

_'Dear Stephanie,_

_'If you are reading this, I finally had the guts to do what I should have done three years ago. I'm sorry for destroying our marriage with my drinking and drugging. As I'm sure you suspected, I allowed myself to get into debt with the Fitzpatricks, and they slowly began to take control of my life and my business. At first it was small things: stitching up a knife wound, writing prescriptions for Percocet, lasering off a gang tattoo. And then I found out that they had killed Ms. Patrino to quash her lawsuit against me...and then they owned me.'  
_  
Leo looks up and says, "Ms. Patrino was a patient of Dr. Griffith's who was suing him for malpractice."

Keith remarks, "Stephanie told us about her. So Griffith is confirming that the Fitzpatricks did arrange to have her killed in a car accident?"

Leo nods.

_'Then they needed a credible witness. For some reason, Liam Fitzpatrick wanted to set Logan Echolls up for murder. He told me they had evidence to prove that I had been the one to murder Ms. Patrino. He made it clear...I would go to prison if I didn't do what he said. So I did it. I lied to the police and said that I witnessed Logan Echolls with a bloody knife in his hand standing over that dead gangbanger's body._

_'When Echolls found out I was the witness, he went after Hannah. He told me in no uncertain terms what he would do to her. I made a deal with Echolls: I would drop my testimony, and he would stop seeing Hannah. I told Liam that the police had found a discrepancy in my statement, and I had to withdraw it. Liam didn't believe me, but the damage was done. I couldn't go back to the police and change my story a second time._

_'Then Hannah started arguing with me, telling me that she intended to have a relationship with Logan whether I liked it or not. She told me she knew I was doing drugs and was working for the Fitzpatricks. I don't know how she found out.'  
_  
Leo pauses. "I assume Hannah found out because Veronica was investigating Dr. Griffith on Logan's behalf."

Veronica nods.

He continues reading.

_'The next day, Liam called me in a rage: Hannah was with Logan Echolls at the Neptune Grand; what the hell was she doing with him? I rushed over there and got her out.'  
_  
Logan looks nauseous. _Someone told Liam that Hannah was with me? Of course...I never thought about how Griffith knew Hannah was there that day._

Leo notes Logan's expression. "Probably that guy Oswaldo Cortez who told me about you and Kendall. I have a feeling he was watching you for Liam. It's a funny thing: we arrested Oswaldo the other night on a pretty solid drug bust. Almost too solid...like somebody wrapped him up with a shiny bow and gave him to us. But Oswaldo's not talking. Somebody really scared him." He glances from Logan to Veronica. "If you know anything about Oswaldo's bust, I'd love to hear it."

They are silent. Finally Veronica says quietly, "We don't know anything about Oswaldo."

"Uh-huh." Leo looks dubious. "Why was Liam having Logan watched? Any ideas?"

Veronica glances at Logan, who nods slightly. She explains, "On the boat, Liam told us...Liam claimed that Logan's father set him up to take the rap on a statutory rape twenty-five years ago and that's why he hated Logan so much. Liam brought drugs to a party, and when the girl accused Aaron of raping her, he blamed it on Liam and got the girl to change her story...and probably paid her off." She knows Leo will eventually see the reports from the interviews they did with the FBI agents; there's no point in trying to conceal this.

"Do you think it's true?" Leo asks Logan.

Logan sighs and mutters, "Yeah, I do. When I talked to my dad after he was arrested...it was almost like he had convinced himself that he didn't have a choice, that Lilly was to blame for her own death. I could see him blaming the drug dealer at the party, even justifying it to himself that the guy was actually responsible for what happened, and convincing himself that God's gift to womankind deserved to be free." He looks out the window. "I think Aaron was a sociopath." He turns back and focuses a challenging gaze on Leo. "And it doesn't surprise me at all to hear that he raped another young girl."

"I guess there's no way to prove it now."

Logan tries for a diffident tone. "If there's any way...if you don't have to mention it in your report...."

Keith finishes for him, "If this doesn't have to be public knowledge, we'd appreciate it, Leo."

Leo nods thoughtfully. "I can't see that it would be necessary, and the publicity would be unreal, possibly even prejudicial for a trial. I'll try to keep it out of the reports."

Logan's relief is palpable.

Leo looks down at the note again and continues reading.

_'I didn't know what to do. Liam was psychotic, ranting about Hannah and Logan. I knew I had to get her out of town and away from him. I remembered a client telling me about a private school, a boot-camp type place where he had sent his son. He was bragging about how it turned his kid around; it made me sick to my stomach. But I remembered what he said about the security: the students were supervised at all times, and no one could get in or out. Liam was calling every five minutes, screaming at me that I had to fix this._

_'I called the school; they said they could take Hannah immediately. They could arrange a pickup for that night. It was just a temporary solution, for a month or two while I looked for something better. I always knew Hannah was stronger than she appeared. She stood up to me about Logan, and she got through the divorce better than most kids do. No matter how bad the school was, I thought she'd be okay there for a short while. I managed to convince you that Hannah was going to end up pregnant or worse because of Echolls. You believed me when I told you that Echolls had already been in rehab twice and had a long record of arrests that had been settled with big payoffs. When I told you that I had found narcotics and condoms in Hannah's room, you said okay, and I let the school take her away. I'm glad you didn't see her crying, begging me not to send her away. It was the hardest thing I ever did. But I knew she'd be safe from Liam at the school._

_'I was frantically trying to get the money together for a high-security boarding school in Europe that caters to the children of royalty. I didn't know how I was going to explain it to you. And then...the school called. Somehow, Hannah had managed to escape.'  
_  
Leo pauses. Logan's face is particularly pained.

_'I swear to you that I sent Hannah to that school to protect her._

_'And then...a year later, Kendall Casablancas showed up and blackmailed me into doing surgery on her face. She had heard me making my deal with Logan and threatened to tell Liam everything. I had no choice...I did what she asked._

_'I don't know how Liam found out about Kendall's plastic surgery. Maybe my scrub nurse talked...I paid her a lot of money to keep quiet, but maybe she went to Liam and asked for more. I denied it, but Liam was persistent. His threats were getting more violent; he broke into my house and searched it. I had to hire a bodyguard for my wife, and I was constantly looking over my shoulder. You didn't know it, but I paid a guard to sit outside your house and watch as well. Then Liam got arrested in November, and I thought he was going to go to prison. I thought maybe it was all over. Maybe I could finally stop working for the Fitzpatricks. Stephanie, it's all true, what the papers are saying. The Fitzpatricks were running their drug money through my clinic._

_'Then in January, I got a picture of Hannah in the mail. She had dark brown hair and there was a newspaper in the photo supposedly proving that it was recent. At first I thought it might be a fake; Hannah looked very different. But the more I looked at it...I couldn't take a chance. I knew Liam was still in prison waiting for trial. But I was scared. There wasn't a letter with the photo. I didn't know who I was supposed to contact. I thought about turning myself in, but if they had Hannah, I thought they might kill her anyway. I thought about killing myself, but I didn't have the guts, and I was worried they'd still hurt her. The next day, I got a phone call. A girl's voice—it sounded like Hannah—she just said "Daddy," and then the line went dead.'_

Keith muses, "They were keeping him off balance, making sure he'd cooperate."

_'Two days later, I got another phone call. A voice I didn't know said, "Confess your sins. All will be forgiven," and hung up. At first I couldn't figure out what they wanted, then...I went to St. Mary's Church and delivered a picture of Kendall's new face to the Fitzpatricks.'  
_  
_FLASHBACK: Dr. Griffith parks in front of St. Mary's Church. Looking around nervously, he walks quickly into the church past a sign that says 'CONFESSION HOURS: Tues./Thurs. 4:00-6:00pm.' He carries a manila envelope under his arm. He looks around and notes three booths on the right side of the church. There is a light burning on top of the center compartment. Griffith checks his watch: 4:05. He approaches cautiously, then, taking a deep breath, he pulls back the curtain on the rightmost compartment and enters the booth. He looks around and realizes he's supposed to kneel._

_He clears his throat. A mesh screen slides open, and a voice says quietly, "Yes, my son."_

_"I was told to confess my sins. Uh...Father."_

_"The Lord told you to come?" the priest says leadingly._

_Griffith is genuinely confused and wonders if he misinterpreted the voice's instructions. "Father, I'm not Catholic, I don't know how to do this."_

_"I see. Say with me if you can, 'In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.'"_

_Griffith mumbles along as best he can._

_There is a silence, and then the priest prompts, "Have you anything to confess, my son?"_

_"Yes, uh, bless me Father, for I, uh, I have sinned." Griffith waits. When there is response, he says hesitantly, "I helped a very bad woman. She knew...she knew something that I had done...before." He had debated all day just what the Fitzpatricks were trying to accomplish with this charade. "I made a deal with the devil...I went against the men who were my...uh, business partners to save another man from prison."_

_"Why would you do that?"_

_"He was threatening to hurt my daughter if I didn't help him. This woman heard me talking to him."_

_"I see," the priest says leadingly. "And how did you help this bad woman?"_

_"I gave her a new face to protect her from my partners. I...I felt I had no choice."_

_"You always have a choice, my son. In Deuteronomy, the Lord said, 'Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make.'" The priest's voice turns cold and harsh. "'Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!'"_

_Griffith's heart stops when the priest says 'so that your descendants might live.' He says quickly, "I'm trying to make the right choice now. Please...I know I...I sinned before." He waits expectantly, but the priest is silent. "I have her picture," he finally mumbles._

_The priest intones, "'God, the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church, may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." After a pause, the priest adds, "Amen?"_

_"Oh yeah, Amen," Griffith hurries to add. "Are we uh...am I okay here?"_

_"That's between you and your God."_

_Suddenly angry, Griffith says, his voice slightly raised, "What about my daughter?"_

_"Go in peace." The sliding panel slides shut._

_"WHAT ABOUT MY DAUGHTER?" Griffith asks again angrily, pounding on the partition. There is no response._

_Griffith stands up, breathing heavily; he leaves the envelope in the booth and gets out of the church as fast as he possibly can._

_(END FLASHBACK)_

Leo continues reading.

_'I was a wreck. My wife insisted we get out of town for a while to relax or she would divorce me. While we were away, Hannah's body turned up in Los Angeles. It was a message: "Don't ever fuck with us again."_

_'I swear to you, Stephanie, I thought the picture was a fake. I couldn't believe Hannah was alive after all that time. None of the private detectives had turned up any sign of her. But I gave them Kendall's picture anyway, to protect you and my family. I swear to you, I would have done anything they wanted to prevent them from hurting Hannah._

_'When Kendall showed up in Neptune a few weeks later, she insisted on meeting me in the park. She tried to blackmail me again, tried to squeeze some money out of me. It sounded like some scheme of hers had fallen through, and she needed money desperately. I told her that Liam already knew what she looked like, and if she was smart she'd run for her life. A few days later, she was dead._

_'I don't expect you to forgive me, but I wanted you to know that I tried to protect Hannah and my family. But I can't live with the choices I made. I can't face my family, my son.'_

Leo says quietly, "It's signed, 'I always loved you, Tom.'" He sighs wearily. "It confirms a lot of your theories, Veronica."

She nods without speaking.

"Why did you...why are you telling us this?" Logan asks curiously. "I'm assuming you won't make this letter public."

"Ms. Denenberg asked me to share it with you, after everything you went through to catch Hannah's murderer."

"We still don't know who killed Kendall," Logan observes. "I think if Griffith had done it, he would have admitted it. What do you think, Veronica?"

She shakes her head. "No, he didn't do it. He's a coward. He wouldn't use murder to solve his problems. He let them force him into working for them rather than take a stand. He sent his daughter away instead of going to the police. He lied to his wife...his wives."

Logan glances at her, happy to see a hint of the normal Veronica, thinking aloud and deducing. She catches him looking and frowns slightly. Logan says aloud, "What's the status of the investigation into Kendall's murder?"

"We're at a dead end. The district attorney intends to file charges against Padraig and Ciaran Fitzpatrick for conspiracy to commit. But the case is weak; I don't think they'll be bound over for trial."

"There's forensic evidence, right?" Logan presses.

Leo shrugs. "Hair and fiber from Kendall. No other forensics. All it really proves is that Kendall was in that particular car at one point."

Keith frowns. "Was the car clean?"

"We only recovered part of the car; it had already been chopped for parts. But we found the seats, and the owner identified them by a stain on the upholstery. And the forensic techs were able to lift a hair and a few fibers from the passenger seat."

Keith asks, "How did you find the seats?"

"A witness saw Kendall getting into the car. He identified the make and model, although he didn't see the driver. The car was reported missing by Lawrence Crawford, and the stereo system turned up in a chop shop in San Diego. They got the stereo from Paddy's," Leo explains. "By the time we got to Paddy's, every valuable part from the car was gone, probably scattered across the country and already installed into other vehicles. We're still hoping that more of it turns up."

"Not likely at this point," Keith observes.

"And Ciaran and Padraig both have pretty solid alibis for the night in question, and of course, Liam was in police custody that night."

"What about some other Fitzpatrick flunky?" Keith asks. He turns to Veronica. "What do you think, honey? Do you have any ideas?"

She shakes her head and stays silent. For a moment, they all seem to be staring at her, and she flushes under the scrutiny. "I don't know," she says finally in a low voice. "I don't want to think about it, okay?"

"Okay," Keith replies, puzzled. He is about to add something, but out of the corner of his eye, he sees Logan shake his head imperceptibly, and he holds his tongue.

Leo says, "I have to get back to Neptune."

Keith stands up and offers his hand. "Thanks, Leo."

They watch as Leo leaves. Veronica says quietly, "Do you think it's going to be okay with him now? You know. Are you going to be able to work with him, Dad?"

Keith nods. "I think so. He didn't have to come all the way here. I think he wanted to make sure we heard the news from him."

Rebecca returns with several large pizza boxes. Keith smiles and says, "Excellent."

Veronica smiles wanly and says, "What did you do?"

"Well, it's not Mama Leone's, but close enough. The nurse said this restaurant was one of the best in Los Angeles," Rebecca explains as she sets the boxes. "Keith thought...pizza might be easy to eat with one hand."

Logan braces himself. Veronica tenses slightly but forces herself to relax. She says unenthusiastically, "Thanks, Rebecca. That was very thoughtful."

Rebecca laughs nervously, picking up on Veronica's tension. "Come on, I hardly ever eat carbs. I want to enjoy this."

With a faint smile, Veronica says sincerely, "Thanks for staying with Dad, Rebecca. I really didn't want to leave him alone in Monterey."

"I know, Veronica. Anytime. I'm glad you thought to call me," Rebecca responds. She opens one of the boxes and hands Veronica a slice on a paper plate as Logan maneuvers the table in front of her. "It's got to be better than hospital food, right?"

Keith grabs a slice and bites into it without bothering with a plate. With his mouth full, he mumbles, "I don't know about you, honey, but I needed some real food." He chews a little and continues, "I feel better already."

Veronica laughs quietly. "Dad, don't make me laugh." She takes a tentative bite and then, despite herself, begins to go at it with gusto.

A little while later, Logan's cell phone rings and he takes the call, muttering into the mouthpiece. "Okay, I'll talk to her and get back to you." He ends the call and looks at Veronica. "I was thinking...I think we need to get away for a couple days. I talked to my travel agent. There's a room available at the Hotel Villa Portofino in Catalina this weekend. Just the two of us, nothing but lying around on a deck chair, enjoying the sunshine and the ocean breezes. Lots of silly drinks with fruit and umbrellas, room service. No doctors, no FBI agents, no stress."

Veronica protests weakly, "I don't know, Logan. I think I just want to be home."

"Veronica, I need to get away too," he reminds her softly. "A change of scenery would really do me good, with nothing to remind us of the last few weeks." She finally nods her agreement hesitantly.

Keith adds, "I think it's an excellent idea. Honey, Rebecca and I are going to head out. We're going to stay at Logan's beach house for the night, and we'll come back in the morning to get you out of here." Veronica looks at him quizzically, and he admits reluctantly, "I'm a little tired, and my head hurts."

Her brow creases with worry. "Dad, maybe you should see the doctor—"

Firmly, he replies, "Veronica, I'm okay. I just need to take it easy for a while. Don't worry, Rebecca won't let me do anything." He sits down on the bed and hugs her gently.

She whispers, "Dad, I love you so much. I thought I...I can't lose you. You're sure you're okay?" She grabs on tight with her left arm, wishing she could throw both her arms around him.

"I"m sure," he says. "I love you too, honey. I'm so proud of you. I knew you could do it."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**It's Called Self-Surrender**  
Veronica and Logan get away for the weekend.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FORTY: "IT'S CALLED SELF-SURRENDER"

Fri. 3/27/09, afternoon: Villa Portofino, Catalina Island, California

The ferry ride across the bay from San Diego to Catalina Island is uneventful. After a few comments about the last time they were here, Logan allows the conversation to lull. They sit outside, enjoying the sun despite the relatively cool temperature. He watches her as she stares silently across the water, thinking unknown thoughts, huddled in one of his oversized sweatshirts with the sleeve dangling. The stiff breeze keeps whipping her hair into her face, and he gazes at her as she brushes it from her eyes without comment.

At one point he tenses, realizing to his horror that perhaps the trip was reminding her of that summer after senior year, when she had been so traumatized by Beaver and her dad's brush with death at his hands. "Veronica," he says in a low voice. "Are you sure this trip is okay...maybe it's too...I'm sorry, I didn't think about it that you might not want to focus on almost losing your dad again. We can turn around and get the next ferry back—"

Veronica whirls around to face him. "No. It's perfect. You were right, we both need a change of scenery. And...I'll always remember that trip...you were so patient with me, so loving. I wanted to tell you I loved you that day." She leans gently against him, and finally he relaxes. He puts his arms around her, keeping her warm and safe, wishing it was always that easy to take care of her.

Logan's travel agent had pulled a few strings and managed to secure the Capri Suite, with a private balcony overlooking the ocean so they wouldn't need to mingle with other guests unless they wanted to. Logan carries their two small bags into the room; he had told Veronica salaciously that all she would need for clothes was her bikini, and maybe not even that.

Veronica sits down on the comfortable king bed and smiles at him. "Alone at last," she comments quietly. Her legs swing a short distance from the floor as she relaxes on the luxuriously high bed. "Maybe we could...lay down for a little while before dinner?"

He kneels down in front of her and begins untying her sneakers, removing them gently and rubbing the arches of her feet. Logan glances up at her; she is watching him intently. He slides a finger under the cuff of one of her socks and, keeping his eyes trained on her face, eases it slowly off her foot and presses a delicate kiss to her instep, suddenly horny as hell and hoping the feeling is reciprocated. "I've missed this foot," he murmurs.

"Just that one? What the hell's wrong with the other one?" she teases gently.

"Mmm. Let me take a look." He grasps the other sock and slides it off as he follows the fabric with light kisses down her ankle to her foot. Logan massages her foot as he places it on his shoulder, running his other hand under her calf to stroke her leg through her jeans. "This foot is acceptable as well," he says matter-of-factly, following his words with a sly grin.

"Don't you dare tickle me," she warns.

"I would never." He caresses his hand firmly under her leg, remembering that she is extremely ticklish behind her knee, even through her jeans. "How do you feel about biting?" He pulls her calf to his mouth and pretends to take a bite.

"Maybe," she admits. "As long as I get to be the biter, as well as the bitee."

"Ooh, kinky." Logan stands up, carefully allowing her leg to drop. He moves to the head of the bed and grabs several pillows, arranging them in a pile behind her. "Lie down, so I can pleasure you," he says smarmily. He sits next to her on the bed and eases her down gently. "Comfy?" She nods, and he adds, "Would you like something to bite on so you don't scream? We don't want to disturb the other guests."

"Cocky, aren't we?" she teases him as he pops open the button on her jeans.

He slides the zipper down and trails his fingers across her exposed satiny underwear. "High standards. I'm not going to quit until you're hoarse from moaning my name."

"What was your name again? Bill? Danny? I know, Harold."

There's just the slightest quiver in her voice, and for a second he wonders what she's thinking. _She's trying too hard. _He lies down next to her and cuddles with her, his hand tracing patterns on her stomach. "We don't have to...we have all weekend, you know; we have forever if you want." When she doesn't respond, Logan adds, "You've been so quiet today—"

"No," she whispers. "I'm okay. Please don't." She breathes out hard, not quite a sigh.

_Don't,_ he thinks._ Don't stop? Don't ask me? Don't say it?_ He contents himself with stroking her torso. "You feel so nice," he whispers, and he takes the chance of slipping his hand under her blouse, just feeling the edge of her bra. "I love to just be alone with you; it feels like forever since we could just be together."

"Yeah," she exhales.

And then he feels it: she consciously relaxes into his caress. She rolls her head sideways, closing her eyes, and her hand fumbles for his hand trapped under his body. Her fingers lace with his, and she holds on tight.

"I've missed this," he mumbles, brushing his lips against her extended neck.

"Me, too," she says, turning her head to graze his lips with hers and opening her eyes to look at him.

There's something playing behind those eyes...she's still concealing whatever it is she's thinking. "It's okay, Veronica, we're okay," he tries, between kisses.

"I know. Love you, Logan."

When he tongues her, she shudders a little and closes her eyes. Her hand clasping his tightens almost painfully.

Almost dreamily, she says, "What was that about making me scream your name?"

He leans down and nuzzles her neck. "I want to make you forget your own name before I'm through. Veronica, Veronica, Veronica," he whispers into her ear as his hand skims the skin underneath her breast.

"Yes," Veronica whispers. "Make me forget...." She arches into his hand, and he slips under her bra, his fingers splayed, gently drawing his fingertips across her breast. Almost too quietly to discern, she says, "Touch me there, play with me...please, Logan."

He feels the heat on her face from her blush, and he kisses her cheek soothingly. "Feels good?" he asks. "I love this, tell me what you want." His finger circles her areola, almost but not quite touching her pebbled nipple.

"Don't hold back," she breathes. "Come on...." She inhales and says more bravely, "Come on, big boy."

He almost snorts with laughter. "Big boy?" He lightly tweaks her nipple between thumb and forefinger, and she gasps.

"Harder...please," she says; he obliges, tormenting her nipple, and her answering moan is unforced and instinctual. Almost hoarsely, her voice raw with need, she admits, "God, I love it when you touch me there. Flick...flick your finger against me, Logan, please."

She never talks as much or as explicitly as this; his cock is suddenly painfully erect and straining against his jeans. He rises up on his elbow, letting her hand go, and positions himself over her, his left hand toying gently with her nipple. Logan leans down and kisses her gently. "What's going on, Veronica? Talk to me."

She presses her leg against his crotch, and he groans a little. "I am talking," she replies distantly.

"It's not that I mind all this sexy talk, but usually foreplay for us is you calling me an asshat," Logan reminds her, unable to keep the worry out of his voice.

"Asshat."

"If only you meant it," he says, kissing your neck. "You're okay? You trust me, right?"

"You have no idea," she says, almost wringing out the words. Heartrendingly, she begins, "Logan, just—" She stops short and says instead, "Please, Logan. Joke around with me. Tell me again how you're going to make me scream. Come on, where's my obligatory psychotic jackass when I need him?"

He's uncertain, but he can't see the harm if it makes her happy. So he whispers in her ear, "Such a horny little girl. You want me to touch you, don't you? You always did like the unreformable bad boys." He pinches her nipple a little stronger, and she presses hard against him.

"Mmm, unreformable. I bet you know all sorts of tricks," she snarks quietly, not quite convincingly.

"Oh, I do. And I'm going to use all of them." He remembers suddenly how excited she got on the airplane back from Texas, and he nuzzles her ear, flicking her earlobe with his tongue as he works her nipple. He murmurs hoarsely, "You're wet for me right now, aren't you? It's all you can do not to grab my hand and pull it to your pussy."

"Oh, god," she replies, arching beneath him.

Releasing her nipple, he trails his hand slowly down to her crotch and caresses her lightly through her underwear, making sure not to touch her where she most wants him to. To his surprise, she's already damp with arousal.

"You're such a tease," she groans in frustration, pushing her crotch wantonly against his hand. He's unrelentless, touching her lightly, pulling away as she tries to press against him, and Veronica moans again. "Damn you."

"I'm just returning the favor, baby; you know you've been working that sling for two weeks now, trying to drive me crazy. You know how gimps turn me on."

"Ugh. Differently-abled, please, is the proper term." She reaches down and tries to guide his hand, but he bats her away and sits up.

Logan stands up again at the end of the bed and reaches to pull her jeans over her hips. "Lift up, darling," he commands. He makes sure to leave her panties on; she tries to push them down as well, and he grabs her hand and kisses it to prevent her. "Not yet...I'm taking my time with you." The jeans slide down her legs; he pulls them free and tosses them behind him onto the floor and settles himself again between her knees. He makes eye contact with her as he begins to kiss from the inside of her knee up her thigh; he listens for that slight catch in her breath as he gets close and then...her frustrated exhalation as he stops just short. Making sure she's watching, he places his fingers on the front of her panties, with his thumb poised above her slit. As lightly as possibly, he caresses her with his thumb, and she twitches helplessly at his too-gentle touch. He teases her with his restraint, and she tries again to guide his hand with her own, but he prevents her by lacing the fingers of his other hand with hers.

The whisper-light strokes torment her, and she moans, "You're not playing fair."

"I love your panties," he whispers and leans in to kiss her on the damp fabric. She almost rises up at the sensation but winces at the resulting pain in her shoulder. Logan immediately pulls back. "Are you all right?" he asks with concern.

"Dammit. Don't stop...please don't stop," she pants. "Lohhgahhn. Are you happy? I'm moaning your name," she adds, slightly cranky. "Dammit!"

He huffs a laugh. "And you're so sweet about surrendering to me, aren't you." Mischievously, he pulls the crotch of her panties to one side and blows a hot breath on her. She arches in response, and he pulls back to look at her suggestively as he lets her panties go back in place.

Veronica moans again in frustration. "I surrender, okay? Just...kiss me there again...harder...please?" she begs. "I surrender, Logan."

He puts his thumb back to stroke her incrementally harder, and she breathes deeply, exhaling in pleasure at the feeling. "Let yourself go, Veronica," he murmurs. "Let me love you." Logan kisses her gently and begins to tongue her through her panties, feeling the contours of her arousal through the soft slippery fabric. Her legs raise slightly, and he pulls her calves on top of his shoulders and sucks at her hard.

"God, Logan. I've missed you. I've missed this. Oh, please...."

He releases her momentarily and whispers, "Tell me what you want." He sucks again, and she arches helplessly against him.

"God...I'm already begging you, Logan please, what do you want from me...." Her head moves from side to side; he knows she would be flailing against the sheets without the restraining sling on her arm. "Please...take my panties off...fuck me with your tongue...I surrender...." she pants desperately.

"Say it a little louder, the whole hotel didn't hear you yet," he says smugly.

"Dammit, if I didn't love you so much—"

"But you do." He pushes her legs down and moves up over her on the bed, kissing her intensely, letting her taste herself on his tongue. "You taste so good, Veronica. I love the way you feel under my tongue." He hoists himself up and reaches for the slim waistband of her panties, drawing it down over her hips and down her legs. Veronica, impatient, pushes at the flimsy material, trying to be rid of it, and he chuckles. "You're so beautiful."

"Shut up and fuck me," she whines. He kneels back down and bends to her. His thumb presses harsh circles against her clit as his tongue dips into her, sucking out her wetness and probing as far as possible. "Oh god, oh god, Logan, I love you, please," she begs.

He switches, beginning to flick his tongue diligently against her clit and inserting two fingers into her slowly. She arches and gasps, panting out, "Logan, Logan." She's never been this vocal, and he loves it. "God, love you, love you." His tongue is spurred on, battering her tender flesh as she thrashes around his thrusting fingers. "Logan, Logan, I love you," she mutters repeatedly. She lets out a loud cry and arches high, and Logan is thrilled, secretly hoping that half the hotel does hear her in her abandon. She vibrates against his tongue and clenches around his fingers deep inside her; he feels her intimate muscles pumping wildly against his cheek as she tries to draw him in further with her legs. When she finally calms down, he moves up to kiss her mouth again; she grasps the back of his head with her hand and tongues him fiercely. Breathlessly, she whispers, "I want you inside me. Make me come again. Please, Logan. Love you."

He finds their bags beside the bed, feeling her eyes on him the entire time. He locates a condom and quickly shucks off his shoes and jeans, not even bothering to pull off his socks or his shirt before stroking himself quickly to a full erection and sheathing himself in the condom. He's hard as a rock; Veronica's arousal always does that to him and her unusual vocalizations today were like an electrical charge to his cock.

She reaches for him, gazing directly into his eyes as she caresses him, just the way he likes it, just hard enough. He's unbearably excited, and he positions himself quickly at her entrance, whispering hopefully, "Yes?" She nods, closing her eyes, and he thrusts into her wetness. With two quick strokes, he's in her fully and moving quickly, barely able to control himself. "God, Veronica, you feel so good."

"Yes...Logan, god, fuck me," she replies breathlessly.

He tries to slow down but fuck he's excited...his cock has a mind of its own right now. He maneuvers her up on the bed a little, trying to get a better angle. "You're okay? You're okay?" he pants, trying to hold his body weight up off her, desperate for more friction. She angles her legs a little differently, and he moans gutturally as he goes a little deeper.

"Yes...yes...please, god, love you, Logan," she groans as his cock slides in and out. "Logan, Logan, Lo— ah!" He's frenzied now, trying so hard, moving faster, flailing, pumping, trying to find her clit between them, feeling the nub—_right there, right THERE—_and her urgent response, her throbbing walls clasping him tightly, her legs pulling, urging, her hand wildly pulling at his hair. "Logan!" she cries suddenly, and he thrusts hard, again, again, _again_, into the sudden tension and release of her body as she lets go...and he follows her, his vision blackening, his muscles uncontrolled and spastic, his cock pulsing and turbulent, with every nerve ending in his body firing intensely. Somehow, he manages to roll onto the bed, pulling her over with him to keep his weight off her even in his incoherence. His heart racing, he breathes wildly, trying to gather enough oxygen again. He hears the sharp exhalations of her own aftermath as the pounding gradually recedes in his ears.

When he can breathe again, he opens his eyes to look at her. There are tears running from the corners of her eyes, and he quickly pushes up onto his elbow. "Hey! Hey, what's wrong? Veronica...talk to me!"

"No, I love you...I'm fine."

"You're crying, you're not fine," he whispers as he traces his thumb over the wetness on her temples.

"We're alive," she chokes out. "I...I thought we were going to die. I love you so much...I was so afraid that...Logan, I didn't think we'd ever do this again. I thought we were going to die."

"I knew you'd save us," he says simply. He brushes her hair, messy and damp, from her forehead. "I believed in you, Veronica."

"Oh god, don't say that," she sobs.

"What? Talk to me, Veronica." He lays down beside her, focusing on her as he caresses her stomach gently.

"I can't do it anymore. I'm not going to be an investigator anymore. I'm going to change my major. No more PI work, no FBI." Her voice is desolate but resolute.

"Veronica, that's crazy! There's no one better than you at this."

She turns to him in shock. "I thought you'd be happy. You don't have to worry about me anymore." She looks back up at the ceiling. "I'm not going to put the people I love at risk anymore."

"Veronica...give it some time. Don't make any decisions now. You've been through so much these last few weeks," he begs.

Her breath hisses in frustration. "I can't believe you! For years, you've been telling me I'm not invincible and how it made you crazy when I took chances! And now I'm ready to give it up, and you're still arguing with me."

"I love _you,_ Veronica, not some girl who sits at home afraid. It took me a long time to realize it, but I love all of you, even the part of you that takes crazy chances. That's the girl I fell in love with." Logan tenderly touches her cheek with the back of his hand.

Veronica sobs helplessly, "That girl doesn't exist anymore. I'm afraid, okay? I can't do this anymore. I'm afraid."


	40. Chapters 141 to 147

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall and Kazy. Any remaining errors are my responsibility. Sorry for the delay in updating.

* * *

**Last time on The Year of Living Dangerously Part II-Just the important stuff from chapters 138-140:**

( for the whole overblown "previously on", see my journal.  
vanessagalore•livejournal•com/126162•html )

THIS SUMMARY REFERS TO THE UPDATE POSTED 6/22/09; GO BACK AND READ THE LAST CHAPTER IF YOU MISSED IT.

_[Lots of spoilers in this summary; please make sure you've already read all the updates before continuing.]_

_After the rescue, Logan, Veronica, Keith, and Mac are taken to the hospital in Monterey, where Logan takes charge, as the least injured of the four of them. Veronica's shoulder is in bad shape; she is given painkillers and sedated; Keith is unconscious but stable. Mac is determined to be suffering from dehydration and exhaustion and shows symptoms of post-traumatic stress. Logan gets stitches for the cut on his forehead, but focuses on taking care of Veronica. He worries about her ability to recover psychologically after being almost completely broken by their experience._

_Veronica's orthopedic surgeon in Monterey is an ass, so Logan contacts his old surgeon in L.A. and transfers her there. He calls Ms. James and asks her to watch over Keith when he and Veronica leave. Veronica's surgery goes well, but she keeps expressing her guilt over Mac's trauma. She claims not to care who murdered Kendall. Keith is released from the hospital._

_Dr. Griffith commits suicide by jumping off the Coronado Bridge. He leaves a note, which Sheriff D'Amato shares with Keith, Logan, and Veronica. In the note, Dr. Griffith tells of the pressure the Fitzpatricks put on him to reveal Kendall's new face and claims that he sent Hannah to Briar Hill to keep her safe from the Fitzpatricks. D'Amato tells them about the investigation into Kendall's murder, which remains unsolved._

_Logan arranges a weekend getaway for him and Veronica in Catalina Island. They make love; Veronica is vocal and open, saying that she didn't think she'd ever get the chance to make love with him again. She admits she thought they were going to die and says she's giving up being an investigator because she doesn't want to put the people she loves at risk anymore._

_

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_

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Fix You**  
Logan and Veronica discuss the future.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FORTY-ONE: "FIX YOU"

Fri. 3/27/09, afternoon: Villa Portofino, Catalina Island, California

Veronica sobs helplessly, "That girl doesn't exist anymore. I'm afraid, okay? I can't do this anymore. I'm afraid."

Every masculine cell of Logan's body immediately goes into hyperdrive at the sound of her tears: _Fix this, fix this!_ Before he can even take a breath to respond, his brain has developed a twelve-step plan, complete with a bodyguard, extended cognitive behavior therapy, self-defense protocols, a weapon, a new living situation, and rationalizations why she's completely wrong. He's about to protest, 'That's crazy, Veronica, you love to investigate. You're curious about everyone...you know it drives you crazy not to know something,' when something makes him stop and hold his tongue.

Surprised at his silence, she looks at him, snuffling a little. "Say something!"

Hesitantly, he replies, "I don't know what to say...except...I know I love you and I'm glad we're alive." His voice gathers strength. "I love you, Veronica."

She scoffs. "You just told me...you fell in love with the girl who took crazy chances. Does that mean you're not going to love me if I decide to teach kindergarten?"

"What was that movie with the Governator? 'Kindergarten Cop'? It's a jungle gym out there, baby," he muses. "Okay, there's no way you're teaching kindergarten. You'd taser those kids the first time they ate a crayon. And what if a kid has an accident? You know, _poop?_ I think you'd have a nervous breakdown."

She glares at him...and then she laughs faintly. Veronica wipes her tears from under her eye; she glances at him and looks away again.

Logan says, "I don't know how to help you, Veronica. I don't think it's up to me. You're your own person. But you can say whatever you want to me...you can decide to change your life however you want...I'm not going to stop loving you, as long as you let me be a part of your life." He wants to scream,_ this isn't you, this isn't you, don't do this._ He's never worked harder to hold a poker face. _Don't push her...don't push her._ There's a small selfish part of him that can't stop rejoicing that she'll be safe now, but he's far more scared that she'll resent him one day for encouraging her to give up her life, and he'll lose her forever.

She stares at him in disbelief. Finally, Veronica whispers, "I was expecting...I thought you'd be so glad I was giving it up. But it's almost like...you're disappointed in me." Her voice lapses back into silence.

He takes a deep breath. "I know. I was going to say— This is hard, okay? I want to protect you; I want to make everything right for you again. A part of me is relieved that you won't be chasing down criminals. And yet...I hate that they made you afraid to do the thing you love the most. I almost—" He plays with her hair, unwilling to tell her that every part of him is aching to argue with her, to try to push her to fight this fear.

"You almost what?" she prompts.

He exhales in frustration. "I'm trying really hard not to tell you how to feel and what to do, Veronica. Frankly, I never considered that my mission statement might change from 'convince Veronica not to take foolish chances' to 'convince Veronica that she was born to be a snoop.'" He presses his body against hers, leaning his forehead against her temple. "It's really hard for me to see you hurting. You know I want to figure out some way to take all the pain away. But...Veronica, I don't know what to do here."

"I've been...." She sighs deeply. "I've been so afraid to tell you how I'm feeling."

He hugs her. Logan wants to ask her about Mac: why won't she talk to her friend? He knows Mac is completely confused and not a little hurt about Veronica's silence to her. _Not yet, you idiot. Shut up shut up shutup._ Aloud, he says, "Veronica, I can't promise I'm not going to do that stupid guy thing, where we tell you how to solve your problems instead of listening. And with our history...I'm sure I'll say something asinine that I'll regret later. I feel like I'm going to explode right now from discussing all these feelings, or maybe grow a sympathetic uterus or something." He motions to his chest. "Does this shirt make me look fat?"

It takes her a second to react, and then she punches him in the chest lightly. "Shut _up_!"

"I'm serious, Veronica. I'm not equipped to help you with this," he adds. "But I'm really trying. Please don't hold it inside. You have to tell me what you're thinking so I don't have to read your mind."

Veronica bites her lip and nods slightly. "I know."

"Now tell me I'm a stud before my penis completely shrivels up and falls off," he says sardonically. "This boyfriend stuff is impossible."

"Do you think...do you really think we can do this?" she asks nervously.

"What?" he asks, slightly confused.

"A relationship. Boyfriend and girlfriend. We've never...we've never managed to make it work for very long," she replies morosely.

"We were doing pretty good until Hannah..." he replies.

She nods. They're both remembering that the relationship completely fell apart when that happened. Veronica asks, her voice breaking with stress, "Do you remember talking last week about being together, how it would work...after? I...I feel like I need you so much right now. I couldn't bear it if you weren't around all the time."

"If you want me to be around, I'll stay in Neptune for as long as you want me to."

"What about school?"

"We don't have to decide that today, Veronica. Why don't we just concentrate on figuring out what we want first?"

"What _do_ you want?"

Logan says honestly, "I do want to be with you. I want you to be happy and healthy. And I want to figure out a way to continue with my screenwriting program at UCLA. I like my professors. It's the first time...the first time I've ever felt like I did anything worthwhile."

"Oh god, Logan," she sighs dispiritedly. "I was always so critical of you—"

"Please stop, Veronica. We've talked about this. That's in the past."

Wretchedly, she says, "I don't want to be responsible for preventing you from doing well and getting on with your life."

"You're not." Slightly aggravated, Logan adds, "Veronica, I don't know the answer. But we don't have to figure it out right this minute. I've already taken a leave of absence for this semester, so we have plenty of time to work it out." She still looks very uncomfortable and upset, and she opens her mouth to speak. He interrupts, "Veronica, I don't know. But I promise you, you're not preventing me from doing well. You're important to me. _We're_ important to me. Let's just see what happens for a little while. I want to relax this weekend and enjoy being alone with you."

Pensively, Veronica nods. "Okay. We'll figure it out. We've got time."

"Room service for dinner? Maybe a soak in that gigantic tub?" he suggests.

"Okay," she agrees.

He rolls away from her and finds a room service menu in the drawer next to the bed. He holds it up for them both to look at. She stares at the menu for several minutes before announcing she wants the shrimp paella. "Really?" he asks, surprised. Suspicious, he glances at her face, which struggles to stay blank. "You love filet mignon. Or the angel hair with salmon and broccoli in an alfredo sauce."

She adopts a stubborn look momentarily but withers under his gaze. "The paella will be easier to eat left-handed." Almost embarrassed, she adds, "I can use a spoon."

He smiles happily and can't resist saying, "_That's_ my Veronica...she never wants any help. Please order the filet mignon, Veronica. Or else I'll order the Lovers' Special for us...the caviar appetizer and Oysters Rockefeller for two," he threatens with a laugh. "Mmm, oysters, that sounds good. You can eat that with one hand, Veronica. So can I." He tries to insinuate his hand between her legs.

She laughs, making a face and closing her thighs against his hand. "Ugh, oysters. Fine, order the filet mignon."

He calls in the order for two steaks, rare, with baked potatoes and asparagus. "You know what they say about asparagus," he whispers, with his hand covering the mouthpiece, and she rolls her eyes. He listens for a minute before saying, "Yes, that would be perfect." Logan hangs up. "Thirty minutes. Do you have any ideas what we could do for thirty minutes?" he asks suggestively.

"You're insatiable," she chuckles.

"I know, that's a little rushed. I'll have to concentrate," he says thoughtfully. Pretending to be aggrieved at her attitude, he adds, "It's been a week since we were alone together, Veronica. I have needs, you know." He gently rolls her up onto her side, curling up behind her and molding his body to hers.

"Don't you want to wait for the asparagus?" Her breath hitches a little, feeling him press his pelvis into her ass.

"Mmm. Asparagus. Fun with food...I could put it—" He delicately strokes her thatch of hair.

"No, that's okay!" she hastens to say, giggling and twining her fingers with his. "Don't make me laugh."

"This feels all right like this? No pressure on your shoulder?" he mumbles into her scalp. Logan gently bites the nape of her neck.

"Yeah," she pants.

He wiggles against her and slips his cock between her legs. "Feels nice?" he asks, sliding forward gently and feeling her moist folds grazing over him. "You feel amazing," he says huskily. "Let's just stay in bed all weekend."

"Mmm," she agrees. Veronica closes her eyes, concentrating on his gentle thrusting, back and forth, slow and steady. The subtle stroking feels intimate and safe, with a sense of belonging, but still holding the promise of desire and abandon. "Aaahh," she exhales. "That feels...wonderful. Don't stop."

She adjusts her pelvis slightly to increase the pressure, and he's suddenly incredibly aroused. He fumbles with her shirt, finally getting it unbuttoned and opened, and then tackles her bra. "Too many clothes," he complains as he nuzzles her neck. "I forbid you to get dressed for the rest of the weekend."

"You know, if we were just going to stay in bed, we could have saved some money and just gone to the Camelot," she muses breathlessly.

"Put your hand on me," he says urgently, as he grasps her breast and begins to play with her nipple. He snakes his other hand under her waist and puts it to her crotch, rubbing her nub gently.

She circles his cock with her hand and fists him. "Logan, we need—"

"I know," he groans. "Just ten more seconds...." Reluctantly, he releases her and rolls backward, flailing behind him for his overnight bag. He stretches, still not quite reaching it, and then...he falls off the bed onto his back, knocking the breath out of him.

"Logan! Logan?" she says anxiously. Veronica cautiously rolls onto her back and looks sideways. "Logan...?"

He looks at her sheepishly. "I'm all right," and she begins to giggle.

"Stop laughing at me!" he moans from the floor. "That hurt....the things I put myself through for you." Logan makes a comical face.

"Oh god," she hisses through clenched teeth as she tries to hold herself still. "Don't make me laugh."

Logan sits up slowly; shaking himself a little, he locates a condom and gets back on the bed. He hesitates, touching her shoulder lightly through the sling. "Can...can you stand it to take this off for a few minutes? We'll have to be careful. I want to feel all of you." He strips off his own shirt, throwing it over his shoulder, watching her face carefully for her cue. She nods, and, taking his time, he helps her to sit up and eases the sling off her shoulder. Logan pull her sleeves off, first the left, which is easy, and then the right, which is much more problematic. Her creamy skin is marred by a padded bandage covered the surgical incision on her shoulder. But more than that, he sees that she's still afraid of moving her arm, even though she's sailed through her post-surgery passive stretching exercises. "Are you hurting?" he asks with concern when he sees her wince.

Biting her lip, she shakes her head 'no'. "Not really. It aches, and the joint feels swollen."

"That's okay," he remarks with relief. "It's going to get better every day, if it's anything like my knee."

Veronica avoids meeting his eyes.

Logan asks, "You believed Dr. Remick when he said the surgery went extremely well, right? That other guy was a hack, Veronica."

"I know," she answers distantly.

"You are going to be okay, Veronica, you're not going to be hurting forever. You're going to be able to do everything you want to do. In fact...." He turns to the bedside table and searches for a moment. Logan triumphantly displays a notepad and a pen. He leans close to her ear and says theatrically, "I'm making a new list."

She huffs a quiet laugh, finally smiling.

Logan snarks, "Come on, you're going to help me on this one. Doggy style and tied to the bed, of course."

"Uh, Logan...how is this different from the first list?" she muses.

"Those are classics. They're on _every _list."

"We never—"

"What?" he asks curiously.

"We never actually tried that...you know, tying to the bed," Veronica says, trying very hard to sound casual.

He looks at her, wondering, until she drops her eyes in embarrassment. "Veronica, that's only because I never wanted to take time to find the rope. I'll have to be more proactive. Maybe we can go shopping together; I'll let you pick out the restraints you like," he teases. "I can't wait."

A shadow crosses her face. He is about to press her, but she smiles and glances at the bedside clock. "Uh, Logan? Fifteen minutes before dinner arrives."

"Shit, you're right." Logan puts down the paper and pen, and, for just a moment, he stares at her naked body. Even after all this time, her beauty and the simple perfection of her body's proportions always take his breath away. He helps her to roll back onto her side and settles in again with his front nestled against her back, luxuriating in the soft feel of her flesh against his. "Let's see...where was I before I was so rudely interrupted," he muses. "I had _this_ hand on one of my most favorite parts of your body." His left hand slides underneath her and caresses her breast. "And I think _this_ hand was right...here." His right hand finds her crotch and begins to stroke her folds casually.

"Mmm," he hums in her ear. "Very nice, Veronica. Can I tell you what I plan to do to you, as soon as that arm is healed?" Her breath hitches as he hits a particularly sensitive spot and then settles in to fondle her rhythmically, brushing against her clit on every upstroke. His left hand teases her nipple, alternating between flicking and gently pinching her. "I'm going to tie your arms and your legs to the corners of the bed and lick you from head to toe."

Her whole body tenses, and he takes his right hand and gently turns her head to face him.

He strokes her cheek softly. "Yes, Veronica, I am. Your shoulder's going to be okay...you're going to be able to do everything again, and I'm going to live out my fantasies if it kills me...even if I have to take you to every orthopedist in California to get your shoulder fixed. I'm very motivated, you know." Logan trails his fingers down her torso, finding his place again between her legs. "Listen to me, Veronica. You're going to be okay. We're going to be okay." His finger strokes a little harder as his voice intensifies, dropping in pitch until there's just the slightest growl in his timbre. "This is what I'm going to do to you...you're going to be completely spread out, so I can kiss and suck on every inch of you, and you can't do a _damn_ thing about it except enjoy it."

She trembles a little, and he whispers, "Veronica...it's okay, it's okay." He strokes her, pulling gently on her nipple, until she seems to relax a little. Logan says hoarsely, demonstrating, "I'm going to take your nipples between my fingers and roll them, pull on them, squeeze them hard until you're shaking and screaming my name. And then...just when you think you can't stand it any more, I'm going to put my mouth on you and suck on your clit until you almost come...and then I'm going to stop and kiss you all over again. When you beg me, I'll come back and lick your clit again, but I'm still not going to let you come. I'm going to do that to you for hours, until you're exhausted and trembling in the ropes and pleading with me to let you come."

Her eyes closed, she says breathlessly, "That sounds kind of...cruel." She pants a little and writhes against his finger.

He keeps his pace steady, mimicking the fantasy he's telling her. Logan suddenly pinches her nipple hard, and she gasps. "No, no...you're going to be so excited, your body's going to be vibrating under me, and then when you can't stand it any more, I'll turn you over and tie you again, on your hands and knees...you still can't move, I've got you all pulled into position, ropes keeping your thighs apart, your arms and feet completely immobilized, your face pressed to the bed and your beautiful ass propped up in the air on some pillows." He keeps his thumb moving on her clit, but suddenly slides two fingers inside her. His aching cock, nestled between her ass cheeks, throbs and juts into her flesh of its own accord. Logan shifts himself to glide between her legs, his erection sliding sloppily against her slickness, and she breathes out deeply with a shudder. "You're going to be helpless to do anything but let me make you come, Veronica, and I do. I take your ass in my hands and, holding you tight, I fuck you from behind, hard and slow." His fingers thrust deep inside her as he talks. "You're screaming, you're coming again and again, but still I'm fucking you, fucking you, _fucking you_...you're still shaking and quivering...when you're completely spent, I finally come inside you."

"Jesus, Logan," she exhales, her head thrown back onto his shoulder. She grabs his hand and presses his thumb hard against her nub.

"_Don't move_...keep your arm tight against you...I'm going to fuck you now," he whispers. He quickly dons the condom and without further warning thrusts hard inside her, making her moan loudly. "You're okay?" Logan asks frantically, trying to hold back.

"God, that's...that's...oh god, please keep going," she mumbles incoherently, her eyes squeezed shut and her mouth slack with concentration.

He holds her pelvis tightly but gently. "Let me do it all...don't try to help. Remember, you can't move, you're tied to the bed," he instructs her. "Oh, Veronica, you feel so good. I love to fuck you so much." He pumps in her hard, his cock hitting her inside inexorably as he steadies her against his thrusts.

She's moaning almost constantly now, wordlessly urging him on. His muscles begin to protest, and he angles himself a little differently. Just like in the fantasy, she's helplessly letting him fuck her, letting him wring every last bit of sensation from her, and he encourages her to lose herself in it. "You can't move; you're tied to the bed, all spread out, and you have to let me fuck you, Veronica. You're sore and aching, but you still want it, you're begging me to fuck you harder, fuck you deeper. You're going to come so hard for me, harder than you've ever come before." He moves his hand bracing her pelvis a little so he can press his thumb hard on her clit...and she actually screams quietly, shocking him with her vocal abandon. Logan chuckles loudly and breathlessly spurs her on. "Let go, Veronica, you have to come for me now, let it out, come for me, baby. You don't have a choice, I'm making you come, over and over."

Her voice almost unrecognizable, she cries hoarsely, "Oh god, oh god, _oh god._"

Suddenly, he feels what's almost a wave surging through her body, the beginning of a powerful orgasm, and he thrusts hard, trying to go with her. She's trembling around him, her muscles spasming uncontrollably. "Oh god, Veronica, you feel so damn _good_," he exclaims, the words practically torn out of his mouth. He feels his orgasm beginning with a faint tingling inside his pelvis, and he tries to summon just a little more strength, plunging deep within her and feeling his balls rubbing against her overheated skin as he buries his whole length inside her.

Suddenly she gasps loudly and tenses, with her walls pumping rhythmically around his cock. "Yeah, Veronica," he groans. "God...." She feels so incredible around him; with a loud sigh, he just lets go on his next firm stroke and lets her milk his cock. As she begins to subside, he thrusts gently several times more with his waning erection and hugs her tightly in his arms.

"Jesus, what was that?" Veronica exhales.

"That was you letting go," he replies, nuzzling her neck.

"It was like you were inside my head," she muses, still slightly bewildered and out of breath.

He smiles against her scalp. "Love you, Veronica." _You are going to be okay, I promise you,_ he thinks. There's a sharp knock on the door, and he laughs. "Just in time."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Kiss and Makeup**  
Logan and Veronica fill in the blanks.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FORTY-TWO: "KISS AND MAKEUP"

Fri. 3/27/09, evening: Villa Portofino, Catalina Island, California

Veronica is leaning back against Logan in the deep bathtub, almost drowsing in his arms. He idly caresses her arm and torso, completely lost in thought.

_Is she really going to be okay? That was incredible but..._

He holds back a deep sigh, worried about how dependent she seems to be upon him. He had found it remarkably thrilling when she allowed him to feed her dinner and then toddle her off to the bathroom for a sexy and relaxing soak together, but...

_How long until she feels confined? How long until she's bored to tears without the thrill of investigating? How long until she resents me for being the one who saw her at her weakest? Maybe even blames me for always pushing her to give up her work? How long until this blows up in my face, and we can't get past it?  
_  
He tries to tell himself he's being ridiculous, but by now all the old fights are hardwired into his brain._ 'I'm not built that way.'_

_What happens when one morning she wakes up and hates her life?_  
_  
And what about me?_

He's been pushing this thought away for a later time...but for just a moment, he lets himself nudge up against it.

_Dammit. I don't want to give up the screenwriting program. UCLA is the best program in the world, and I'm doing well there...well, I was, until I bolted. But...I want to be with her. Do I try to talk her into transferring to UCLA, leaving everyone else she loves and needs? Right now, she's vulnerable...she'd do it. But fuck, I think she'd hate me for it later._

_I've got to figure out a way to help her....I wish...I almost wish she was accusing me of evil again. All smug and certain that I was responsible for whatever crime of the week she was investigating...I miss that Veronica. 'Smells like an evildoer.' Goddammit. She was so cute...she never took any shit from me or anyone else. It's too bad I have such a good alibi for Kendall's murder, or maybe she'd start suspecting me again._

She stirs in his arms. "Logan?"

Absentmindedly, he replies, "Yes, Veronica."

"What was it like for you?"

"What?" Still distracted by his own thoughts, he struggles to comprehend. "What was what like?"

"You know...in the van...on the boat. When...."

He rests his chin on the top of her head and sighs. "I'm not sure what—"

"You didn't even seem scared. You just seemed...angry, and determined. I was so frightened. I've never...." She exhales loudly. "I've never been that frightened before. I was certain we were all going to—"

"Shh, it's okay, Veronica. Of course I was scared; I was terrified like you were. But after I got the corner of the duct tape on your hands loose, it was all I could think about. My hands were cramping like crazy; I had to keep shaking them, trying to get them to work again. I just focused so hard on getting you free...and then...I was watching them. Trying to protect you."

"You were so fearless, you just attacked them...I was holding my breath, waiting for the sound of—" She takes a shuddering breath and closes her eyes, hearing the echo of a close-range gunshot in her head. "I can't say it." After a pause, Veronica says, "I hate that they made me so scared."

"You've been through so much these last few weeks, Veronica. Please don't—"

"I know." She lapses into silence again. "I thought that I had killed Dad by waiting. I thought it was too late."

"Your dad is fine. You saved him."

"I almost didn't. I was too scared to act." Suddenly tears are running down her cheeks again. "Dammit. Logan...I don't care that I killed Liam, but...I keep hearing the fire extinguisher hitting his skull. I dreamed last night that...bits and pieces of his brain were all over me and—"

"Jesus, Veronica!"

"In my hair, and there was blood in my eye and— Oh god, Logan, Mac was dead. In the dream, she was dead." Veronica is shaking in his arms. "Dad was drowning, he was screaming why wouldn't I help him—"

"Veronica, shh." He tries to hold her as tightly as he can without hurting her. "It's okay. We're all okay." Logan kisses her head and keeps murmuring until she calms down. "Veronica...I...I used to dream all the time...about him."

She stiffens. "You mean...hurting you?"

"Yeah, for years I had nightmares. Sometimes it got so bad...I used to steal my mother's Valium, just so I could sleep the whole night through. Or I'd hit the liquor cabinet. Of course, if he noticed that the level in the Glenfiddich bottle was an inch lower...."

"Did the Valium help?" Veronica asks so quietly that he has to strain to hear her.

"A little. But...Veronica, I didn't have anybody. My mom always acted like nothing was happening—I couldn't talk to her about it. Mrs. Navarro would have helped, maybe, but she was afraid of my dad. But you've got me, and your dad, and all your friends."

"Oh my god, Logan—"

"I'm not saying I had it worse. I'm just saying you've got a lot of people who care about you, and I didn't, when that was going on." Logan sighs. "Veronica, I was a mess. You're not a mess. You've got help, you're going to get through this." He hugs her.

"I feel like a mess," she admits. "Remick said...if I had trouble sleeping he could write me a prescription."

"Okay, that's good. We can call him if you need it. You know, Veronica, I don't think I could love you the way I do if you weren't affected by what happened to us."

Without thinking, she whips around to look at him and ends up wincing in pain. "Shit. ...Say that again?"

He hesitates, regretting his hasty words. Finally he says, "I think it's okay that you're scared and upset. You're not a cold-blooded killer, Veronica. I don't think I could love you the way I do if you didn't get upset about what happened. Do you remember...do you remember how you were after Beaver died?"

She nods.

"You hated him, but...it wasn't just hate. It was sorrow for what Woody did and how stupid we all were that we didn't know what was going on. After everything he did to you, every evil thing he did, you were still able to pity him. And that was hard for you...you hated that it wasn't just easy and black-and-white, he wasn't someone that you could just despise...even though you wanted to."

"You're giving me more credit than you should. I do hate him." Suddenly she tenses. _ 'I hate him, I hate him.'_ She remembers saying that at Briar Hill...or does she? '_I hate him, I hate him.' Klein saying, 'You thought it would feel even better if you had sex with someone,' but she had denied it, 'No! I hate him, I hate him. He raped me!' When we were in the van...I remember freaking out...thinking about Aaron trapping me in the freezer, about Beaver trying to get me to jump, about Klein— It was something about...lipstick?? No, that can't be right. That last day at the school, it's such a fucking jumble. Roger...I mean— Logan. His face. The way that he looked at me that day. Shit. Dammit!!_ She whispers intensely, "Logan...that last day at Briar Hill...when we ended the operation. I think...I remember you coming in...I don't know why, but I was frightened of you. Your face, when you saw me—it's so clear in my mind, almost the only thing I'm certain I remember from that day—why were you so shocked when you saw me?"

She feels him go rigid behind her. "Veronica...what? Briar Hill? Y-you know I don't really know what happened that last day. Your wire was out and—"

"You're lying. You're not telling me something. What did you see when you came in? What was so shocking?" She exhales sharply, getting increasingly wound up. "You said you would tell me last week, after we got back to Neptune, and then we never talked about it again. Logan...I remembered something from that last day while we were riding in the van. I was freaking out, obsessing about Beaver...and Mercer...and...and Aaron. God, Logan! I was panicked, and all of a sudden I remembered Klein doing something with..._lipstick_. And I remember feeling so ashamed. Logan, what did you see?" He doesn't answer, and she slaps the bathwater in frustration, making him flinch. "Dammit, I can't even storm out of here. I have to fucking ask your help to have an argument with you." Veronica grabs the towel bar and tries to haul herself her up out of the water. She slips and falls backward against him.

"Veronica, stop! I'll help you." He grabs her in a hug. "Just breathe for one minute...and then I'll do whatever you want. I'll help you out of the tub so you can throw things, or punch me in the chest, whatever. I promise."

"Will you tell me what happened!? God, Logan. We already went through this! How many years that you kept it from me what really happened at Shelley's party? How could you do this to me again? You know how much it..._pisses_ me off to not know something."

"Veronica...breathe. Give me a second to catch up to you! You didn't say—I didn't know you remembered something...Veronica, please." He holds her tightly, stroking her hair, listening to her agitated breathing and feeling her heart thump in her chest.

He realizes suddenly..._she's pissed. She's pissed as hell...because there's something she wants to know. That's...that's fucking great. I'll take Veronica pissed over apathetic any day. She's still Veronica after all._ She's calmed down a little, and he kisses the back of her head. "All right. Scoot forward in the tub so I can stand up and help you get out." He hears her repressed sigh. "Veronica...it's not going to be forever. You're not going to need me like this forever." He gets out of the tub and wraps a towel around his waist, grabbing a second one for her. "Okay."

Veronica glares at him. "You're going to talk to me about that day?"

He nods and extends a hand to steady her as she tries to stand again, hanging onto the grab bar. She steps out of the tub and into the towel that he wraps around her. "Can I carry you to the bed?"

She tries to scowl at him. "Stop sucking up."

"Come on, I'm not above using a little romance to get on your good side, Mars." He carefully picks her up and takes her to the bed. He crawls onto the bed and lies down on his side facing her. He caresses her hand for a few moments, squeezing it lightly. Logan sighs dramatically and drops her hand. "Okay, I'm ready."

"What?" she says, exasperated.

"Go ahead, hit me if you need to."

She punches him pretty hard in the chest, left-handed.

"Ow! I didn't think you'd really do it," Logan comments, rubbing the spot where she nailed him. "Was that good for you? Because it really sucked for me."

"Stop it."

"What?"

"You're trying to distract me."

"It's not working, huh?" He reaches to her face and puts a strand of hair behind her ear.

"It kind of is," she mutters.

"Good."

"How bad is it, that you have to prop me up like this before you talk about it?" she says suddenly. "Or is it that I'm too fragile to hear it?" He plays with her hair again, and she grabs his hand to stop him. "Just tell me, Logan. I have to hear it sometime."

Hesitantly, Logan begins. "That last night, I couldn't sleep. The night before, I'd had a horrible dream. Hannah was in restraints, telling me I had to finish this and that you needed me to be strong. She wanted me to tell the world what was going on at the school. And then it changed...it was you in the restraints, telling me you loved me and needed me." He glances at Veronica. "I...I'd really been having a terrible time, Veronica. I was upset that I might be turning into my dad. The guys I was working with at the school...I was so worried they could see that I was there to protect you and...I had to be tougher with you when they were watching. And...the jokes and...."

Logan sighs loudly. "Your dad and Lynley decided that they needed to keep the operation going for a little longer. I wasn't happy about it. I knew something bad was going to happen sooner or later. And Kavner told me they were making an example out of you, and he thought they might have hurt you pretty bad when they took you down to the floor." He brushes her injured shoulder with the back of his hand.

Veronica nods encouragingly.

"When I picked you up from the hike, I _knew_ you were hurting...and you were being so stubborn about quitting. And they started asking you about Lilly in group...and I almost lost it. I'm sorry, Veronica...that was hard for me. I know, I shouldn't have reacted. I'm so sorry. I jeopardized your safety."

"Logan, no...it's all right—"

He interrupts, "Veronica...I know you had to think on your feet so you didn't blow your cover. It's okay. I was really affected by the school too. It was so fucking hard."

She's shaking her head. "You don't understand. I think...I think I was already starting to— to hallucinate."

"What?"

"I had a fever...Kavner had slipped me some Tylenol that morning, which helped, but.... I remember thinking you were going to go to Alyssa and tell her everything...you were going to tell them I was undercover, because you were working for them now."

Logan stares at her. "Oh, Veronica. You must have been so scared." He swallows and presses on. "Anyways, that last night, I couldn't sleep. I was worried about you, and I didn't want to have another nightmare, I guess. So finally I got up and walked around the campus, and I saw Alyssa coming back from the main building. I knew something was wrong. I knew they were doing something to you. I called your dad right away, but they said you were okay."

"My bug wasn't working. That was...right when they were stressing me."

"You remember that part?"

"Yeah...the jumping jacks, and then they made me shelve books. I was so exhausted, and my shoulder hurt terribly."

"What about the next day? What do you remember?" He takes her hand again and holds on tight.

She closes her eyes. "I remember...breakfast. Then Alyssa talking in group therapy...she wouldn't shut up, 'everything happens for a reason', over and over again. I remember I kept imagining people were there who shouldn't have been there...Madison, Shelly Pomroy, Kendall. And then I thought I saw Carrie Murray, and I knew she was to supposed to be with Dad...and I didn't know what she was up to. I was so confused." Veronica pulls her hand loose from Logan's and rubs her forehead.

"It's okay...it's okay. Take your time."

"And then Alyssa told me it was time for me to get honest, and Klein sat down in front of me." Veronica opens her eyes. "It's just flashes after that. Something about we don't do anything when we're high that we don't want to do when we're sober...and I know he called me a slut." She exhales loudly. "I know we were talking about my rape. I don't remember what I said. Logan, you know...I don't really remember much of Shelly's party. Even after we talked last week, it's still just a blur. People told me what happened, and sometimes I think that what I think are my memories are actually the lies that people told me. I might have told Klein the things that people told me, whether they were true or not."

"What's the next thing you remember for sure?"

"Your face...you were so upset. But I remember being scared of you. I remember Klein was talking, he wouldn't shut up."

"I had to punch him out to make him stop talking." He avoids looking at her and stops talking.

"Logan, just tell me," she says anxiously.

"That morning, Lynley paged me, telling me to check on you in group therapy. I peeked in the room, and the girls were sitting in a circle around you."

Veronica nods, listening intently.

"Klein was talking to you, he was touching your chin, trying to make a point."

Veronica winces.

"I told Lynley I wanted to go in there and get you, and he told me to wait for the feds. There were two guards, plus Klein and Alyssa." He sighs deeply. "He probably was right, you could have gotten seriously hurt. But I hated waiting like that; I could hear you crying. I peeked in again; a couple girls were holding you and Alyssa was doing something to your face." He can't look at her anymore. "Kavner finally got there, and we went in."

"Just say it," she begs, a single tear streaming down her cheek. She brushes it away in annoyance.

"They had put makeup on your face, not regular makeup...really a lot, like—"

"Whore makeup," Veronica realizes shakily.

"And they had written SLUT on your forehead with lipstick. Oh my god, I'm so sorry, Veronica, I should have gone in sooner, I should have found you in the middle of the night when I first thought something was wrong. By the time we went in, you didn't even know me...you were scared of me." He pulls her close and murmurs into her ear, "I'm so sorry, Veronica. It's okay, it's okay."

Almost like a whisper in her brain, she remembers his words that day, the intense fear and concern of his voice at that point bewildering and frightening. _'Veronica, it's all right, I'm here, it's over. It's over, Veronica. I'm sorry. I'm here, Veronica.' _ _Logan's voice, or was it Roger trying to trick her?_...she had been so confused and scared. In a monotone, she recalls, "I think...I think I thought you were going to take me back to the restraints. I remember that now. When you guys didn't come when I used the code words, I decided that I had made it all up and imagined the whole operation. I thought I was really there for treatment; Dad had really sent me there. I thought you were trying to trick me into running again."

"God, Veronica...you really thought—" Logan pulls away to look at her. "Veronica. Talk to me." He caresses her cheek gently, but Veronica is lost in thought, with her eyes unfocused and a little damp from tears. "Are you going to be able to forgive me, Veronica?"

"What?" she replies, startled out of her reverie. "It's not your fault."

"I could have—"

"No, you couldn't. You tried." At his mournful expression, she says, "Logan, goddammit, don't make this worse. We can't change it. You didn't do this. I just wish...I wish we hadn't gone there at all. I was so certain that I'd be able to do it, no problem. I didn't think...but we _did_ go there. It _did_ happen."

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you what happened before now, Veronica. I told myself you weren't ready to talk about it, but the truth is, _I_ wasn't ready to talk about it. I was really close to killing Klein that day. If the firemen hadn't pulled me off, I think I would have."

"I'm glad you didn't kill him."

She falls silent again, and he knows she is still trying to order her memories. "Veronica...what can I do?"

"Just hold me, Logan." He folds her into his arms again.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Fear and Loathing**  
Logan and Veronica return to Neptune.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FORTY-THREE: "FEAR AND LOATHING"

Sun. 3/29/09, Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, California

Logan knocks on the front door of the Mars apartment and fits Veronica's key into the lock. Before he has a chance to open the door, Keith pulls it open and greets them with a hug. "Did you have a good time? How's the shoulder?"

Veronica smiles. "It was great. We didn't do much, but it was really good to get away."

From the living room, Mac walks over tentatively, her hands in her back pockets and an uncertain look on her face. "Hi, Veronica."

Veronica's smile fades. "Mac."

Logan glances from one girl to the other. "Mac, come here." He swoops down and clasps Mac in a tight hug. "How are you doing?"

"I'm good. I'm going to start classes again tomorrow." Her eyes flick over to Veronica, who looks completely wretched.

Logan replies, "So's Veronica. Are you going to move back into the dorm?"

"No, not yet. I don't think I'm ready for that. My parents are still getting settled in their new house anyways. I kind of want to spend as much time as possible with them. Veronica...what are you going to do?"

Veronica mumbles, "I guess I'm staying here." She looks to Logan for help. "Logan's...Logan's going to stay in Neptune for a while, until my shoulder's better. I'm a little nervous about driving with one hand."

"How's it feel?" Mac asks, motioning toward Vernonica's shoulder.

"You know. It hurts sometimes. But I think it'll be all right."

Keith interrupts, "Mac and I were just going to turn on 'South Park'. What do you say? Some popcorn? Ice cream?"

Logan says definitively, "Ice cream," at the same time as Veronica says, "Popcorn."

"No problem," Keith laughs. Veronica follows him to the kitchen while Logan puts their bags in Veronica's bedroom.

"Dad...you're feeling okay? Any more headaches? No weird symptoms?"

"I'm _fine_, Veronica." Leaning against the counter, he turns to look at her. "Mac called yesterday. I told her you'd be home tonight, Veronica. How come you haven't called her?"

Veronica shrugs and looks away.

"Veronica?"

"Don't, Dad."

"She thinks you're mad at her."

Veronica looks stricken. "Of course I'm not mad at her!"

"Then what? Veronica, she needs to talk to you. Her family doesn't understand what she went through. They wanted to throw her a big party, and she had to ask me to talk to them and tell them no."

"My fault," Veronica whispers. "It's my fault she went through this."

"She doesn't blame you, Veronica—"

"I blame me, okay?"

"She thinks you're upset because she couldn't figure out how to warn you. She seems depressed. Mac missed a month of school while she was in protective custody...she's got a lot of hard work ahead of her; she needs her friends to help her now."

Mac is approaching, unnoticed by Veronica, and she hears Veronica say intensely, "I'm not much of a friend. She's better off without me. I almost got her killed."

"Veronica!" Keith objects.

Mac interrupts, "Veronica, I don't blame you!" She touches Veronica's left shoulder tentatively. "Please...most of my friends...they just don't get it. My dad keeps telling jokes, thinking I'll just snap out of it one of these days. He doesn't understand that I'm scared. My mom keeps making my favorite vegan macaroni and cheese, like food is going to cure me."

Logan rejoins them. Keith meets his eyes, and Logan grimaces slightly, indicating that he's heard the conversation.

Veronica's voice is filled with self-loathing. "If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't be scared, okay? God, Mac...everything you went through...it was because I went after Gory, and then I just _had_ to investigate Hannah's murder. I couldn't leave it to the professionals, I had to butt in." She takes a deep breath and looks around at their concerned faces. "I've decided...I'm quitting the detective business. And I'm changing my major. I'm so sorry, Mac. I really screwed up, okay? I'm not going to put the people I love in danger ever again."

Mac and Keith are shocked into silence. Finally, Keith says, "Uh...are you sure about this, honey?"

Veronica nods emphatically.

Keith adds, "This seems a little...precipitous, Veronica."

"I thought you'd be relieved! You know, you won't have to worry about me anymore."

"I'll always worry about you, honey. That's my job. But Veronica—"

Veronica interjects, "Please...are you going to respect my decision? I'll help you interview new employees at Mars Investigations, and then I'm done. I want Wallace to stay out of the field, too. Okay?"

Everyone stares at her. Defiantly, she repeats, "Okay?"

"Okay, honey," Keith replies, trying to calm her down by rubbing her arm. "Why don't you and Mac go sit down by the TV? I'll bring the ice cream and popcorn in a minute." He smiles at her, and she and Mac go silently out to the living area. Logan moves to stand beside him and helps with the task of dishing up the ice cream while Keith puts the popcorn in the microwave. Keith says quietly, "You knew about this?"

"She told me over the weekend," Logan mutters. "I just want you to know, it wasn't my idea. I think she'll be completely miserable."

"It's one thing for her to recognize that she needs to be more careful, but to change her whole life?"

"I know. I tried to get her to promise that she wouldn't make any permanent decisions until some time went by, but...she's pretty stubborn."

"Yeah, I've noticed."

In a falsely chipper voice, Veronica says loudly, "What's taking so long with that ice cream, Logan?" She stares at Logan accusingly.

In a quiet singsong, Keith chants, "You're in twou-ble!"

Logan snorts. "Huh. That hasn't changed." He grabs the three bowls of ice cream and takes them out to the TV.

Veronica is sitting on the couch, her legs crossed with her foot swinging nervously. Over in the armchair, Mac's upset face is concentrating on the TV screen, which is showing a 'Girls Gone Wild' commercial for the millionth time. Veronica comments, "Comedy Central needs better sponsors."

"Totally," Mac replies distractedly.

Logan sits down beside Veronica and offers her a bowl of ice cream. She shakes her head; he's pretty sure she picked popcorn because it's easy to eat left-handed. In a stage whisper for Mac's benefit, he says, "You sure you don't want me to feed you some ice cream? I'm still in slave mode from this weekend." He makes a show of licking the ice cream spoon salaciously with his tongue.

Veronica frowns at him. "I'm quite sure."

"Maybe I'll slurp it out of your bellybutton later," he snarks. "Mmm." He winks at Mac.

"Gross," Mac pronounces, with a small smile. "Get a room."

"Stop it," Veronica whispers.

"Stop what?"

"You know." She glances at Mac.

"Veronica...try to just...be glad we're all okay," he says, a little more frustrated than he intends. "I'm just screwing around, trying to be normal."

Veronica sighs. "I'm sorry."

Mac clears her throat. "What, uh, classes do you have tomorrow, Veronica?"

"I'm actually going to try to stop at the dean's first thing to find out what my options are for changing my major. You know, what majors are even possible with all the criminology courses I've taken. Pre-law, maybe business administration...they'd be the obvious choices I guess."

Logan sucks in a breath. _Damn her, she's always so determined._ He whispers, "Veronica, you promised you wouldn't—"

A little bitchy, she replies, "I know, Logan, I'm not making a decision yet. I just want to see what my options are. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, it's okay. It just seems a little..."

"What?!" she snaps.

"Nothing, Veronica," he sighs.

"I'll make sure to get your permission before I do anything permanent, okay?" She turns toward the TV and sulks.

Mac looks at Logan with a worried glance. He changes the subject instead, saying, "Put the volume up a little. This is the good part." Logan stares at the TV without really seeing Cartman's antics.

Keith joins them, and they watch the episode in virtual silence. Keith laughs loudly, and Mac chuckles quietly a few times, but both Veronica and Logan don't even make a pretense of enjoying it.

Sun. 3/29/09, Neptune, California

Logan offers to drive Mac home. In the car, Mac is quiet and pensive. Logan asks, "How are you really doing, Mac? Are you sleeping okay?"

"Not really. They gave me a prescription for Ambien and some stuff for anxiety, but I don't want to take anything."

"I know what you mean." He glances over at Mac, noting the dark circles under her eyes. "Veronica's been having nightmares, too."

Obviously uneasy, Mac asks, "Logan, why would Veronica think I was mad at her?"

"How much do you know about what happened at the undercover operation at Briar Hill?" Logan explains briefly about the psychological conditioning that was occurring at the school.

"They told her she was a black hole and a user? That's awful. Wait...you think—"

"She's still affected by it, I'm certain of it. They drummed it into her head over and over that she never thinks about how her actions affect the people around her. She spent the whole week she was there thinking about all the bad decisions she's ever made. Then as soon as we got back, the Gory thing happened, and she felt guilty about that too. And then...the other thing is...Mac, she was very close to giving up when we were kidnapped. I think she was ready to die. She's always thought of herself as so strong, and I think it's really scared her to know...that someone could break her like that."

After a tense pause, Mac muses, "How is she not locked up in a rubber room right now?"

"Just be patient with her...I think when her arm heals a bit that will help. Now it's like a constant reminder that she's broken. And every time she has to ask me for help...." He shrugs. "Mac, what about you? Is there anything I can do?"

"The FBI found me a counselor who specializes in crime victims. I guess she's okay. I've only seen her once so far. The thing is...my family just doesn't understand. They keep saying, 'Try not to think about it,' and figure that's all I need." She looks over at him. "I'm kind of scared about tomorrow, going back to school."

"What's scary about it? Can I help?"

"Just...I'm nervous about being alone, nervous about the other kids asking me about it."

"I know someone who'd be more than happy to guard you all day long. And all night if you could stand it."

Mac laughs. "Hah. Yeah, you're right; that's a good idea."

"I'll call him for you. What time do you want Dick to pick you up?"

"Eight thirty, I guess."

"He'll probably be just rolling in from a kegger...but don't worry, he'll be here. As for that other thing—why don't you practice on me? You know, figure out a way to answer people with stupid questions."

"Okay...go ahead."

"'So...what was it like?'"

Mac swallows. "Jesus, this is hard." She sighs. "You'd think I would have figured out an answer by now."

"How about, 'It's really hard to talk about it, it was a very difficult experience.' Then you need to shut 'em down, say something like, 'I appreciate that you asked, I know I can count on you if I ever need someone to talk to.' Then smile and walk away."

They pull up outside the Mackenzie residence and sit in the car practicing various responses until Mac declares that she feels a little more prepared for tomorrow. "Thanks, Logan."

"I've had a lot of experience with the paparazzi, you know. But the thing is, I usually lose my cool and blow up, and I don't think of a great response until later. I wish I had thought to practice with someone when all my shit was going on."

"Oh god...Logan, do you think there will be reporters?"

He nods. "Yeah, probably. Try to just say, 'I can't comment on an open investigation.' If they bug you, tell them you're going to call the sheriff and file harassment charges. And they'll go away eventually; they'll lose interest and move on the next time some actress gets popped for driving drunk. And Mac...don't read the papers. And ask your family not to, either."

Mac turns to him. "What are we going to do about Veronica, Logan? I don't want her to chase after serial killers, but I don't want her to change everything about her life either because of what happened. She loves to investigate. She was so excited about the FBI after the second internship last summer."

"You know, in some ways, she was doing better tonight...picking a fight, getting pissed at us, being her usual stubborn self. She's been completely apathetic this whole week."

"Except she's determined to stop being _Veronica_...I can't imagine her not being a detective."

Logan nods. "I know. Right now, she's really clinging to me...it's scary how much she's depending on me. All I can think is that she's not herself any more, and I really want to push her, try to force her to be more like her old reckless self. Because Mac...if I let her make these changes, let her turn into a pale imitation of herself, I'm afraid she's going to wake up one day and hate her life and hate having me in it." He looks at Mac with a desolate expression. "I think she'll blame me...because I always tried to make her stop taking foolish chances. And now...I don't know what to do. She's hurting and she's afraid, but I can't see her being happy in the long run if she changes everything that makes her Veronica."

Mac thinks for a minute. "Maybe with some time...."

Logan nods. "Yeah...I'm hoping that something will pique her interest. Maybe when she sees her dad investigating, she'll realize how much she misses it. Maybe I can try to nudge her a little, try to help her see that she won't be happy if she gives it up."

Almost inaudibly, Mac says, "Logan...what if this _is_ the right thing for her...to stop investigating? Maybe she _would_ be happier."

He's completely unnerved and unable to respond.

Mac adds gently, "Maybe you should be prepared...sometimes people go through a life-changing event and are completely different afterwards."

He knows she's talking about herself. "But they still find a way back to themselves."

"But they've _changed_, Logan."

He presses his head back against the headrest and closes his eyes. "I don't know, Mac. Lately, when she opens up to me...she's clearly making this change because of fear and guilt. You know, I used to fantasize about a life together, where she wasn't taking crazy chances and was able to tell me she loved and needed me all the time." Logan opens his eyes and looks at Mac. "Even in my fantasies, I always knew that wasn't really _Veronica_. I don't want to force her to do anything...but I love her. I want her to be happy. And still somehow be together with me."

"Even if she changes, you can find a way to be together. I think Veronica is never going to be exactly the same again, Logan. I don't think you're the same either. Think about everything you've been through. You're two different people now. I'm different." Her eyes drop to her lap. "I'm more scared of...well, of living my life, than I ever used to be. I feel like I've been away forever. God, I missed you guys so much."

Logan grabs her hand. "We missed you too, Mac." He squeezes her hand tightly. "We've got to figure out how to be okay again." Logan leans over and grips Mac in a tight hug. They hold onto each other for a long time. Logan whispers, "I'm sorry Veronica's being such a butthead. She'll come around. And I'm here for you if you need me. So is Mr. Mars."

"I know." She still holds on tight. Finally Mac breaks the clinch. "Maybe we'll see you at Hearst tomorrow."

"Yeah. Definitely. We'll find you at lunchtime."

After Mac goes in the house, Logan sits in the car for a long time just thinking about people changing.

Sun. 3/29/09, Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, California

When Logan gets back to the apartment, the lights are off and both Keith and Veronica have gone to bed. He walks into Veronica's bedroom; just a small light is on, and Veronica's eyes are shut. He stands there for a moment looking at her, suddenly worried that she doesn't want him in her bed tonight.

She opens her eyes and says, "Hey. Mac got home all right?"

"Yeah. Do you— Do—" He falters. "Did you want me to sleep on the couch tonight?"

"No, of course not. I'm...I'm sorry I was such a bitch tonight."

"You get a free pass, just this once." He undresses and gets ready for bed and slips under the covers next to her, his front snuggled up to her back. "Your dad helped you get ready for bed?"

"Actually...I got the sling off and on by myself. I can move my shoulder a little more now."

"That's great. Pretty soon you won't need me to dress you at all, then I can concentrate on my prime directive—undressing you." He feels rather than hears her amused reaction. Logan finds her hand and twines his fingers with hers.

"You guys are making me crazy," she whispers.

"You guys, or me?"

"You want to take care of me, but you want me to be more independent; you want me to keep being a detective, even though you used to make me nuts being overprotective; you don't want me to feel guilty about Mac, but god I _do_ feel guilty....It's not just you, it's Dad too."

"We're just trying to help...but we don't know how."

"I can't help how I feel, Logan. It just seems like...it's just not worth it anymore. I've got to make some changes in my life, or I'm going to go crazy with all these feelings. I'm sorry this is so hard." She inhales and then, almost babbling, blurts out, "Logan, how come you're not more of a mess? I keep falling apart, and you're always there, ready to listen and talk me down. I feel like I'm going insane half of the time—and somehow you're holding it together. You must have thought we were going to die too. I can't believe you weren't scared. Didn't you...weren't you—"

"Shh, Veronica, it's okay....Of course I was scared. I'm just...." He exhales and presses his lips against the nape of her neck. "All I can think is that I'm glad we're okay. I can't spend any more time thinking about what we should have done, or what we shouldn't have done. I've spent too much time worrying about the past. I want to worry about our future." Relinquishing her hand, he rolls onto his back and looks up at the ceiling, lost in thought. After a few minutes, he says morosely, "At least that's what I think I want. Maybe I'm kidding myself. Maybe I'm avoiding dealing with things by focusing on you. Maybe instead of drinking myself into a stupor I'm drugging myself with taking care of you."

"You're not doing that. Come back...hold me," she begs, and after a moment he rolls back to cuddle with her. She fumbles and finds his hand again, holding on tight.

He whispers in her ear, "I just have this idea of the two of us, someday, happy together. I'm trying so hard to hold onto it. I can't see the details yet...I just can't make them out. And I'm focusing every bit of energy I have into keeping that vision alive."

"Riding off into the sunset together?"

"Something like that." Logan holds her close, his head buried in the fine strands of her golden hair. He breathes in her familiar smell, that precious emanation of all her scents that always calms him. His last thought before he falls asleep is a solemn vow to help Veronica Mars find herself again.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Stuck on Pathological**  
Time marches on; Veronica reflects; Keith  
takes a new case, which is an old case.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Duncan: Chris  
Carmack. Susan: Merritt Wever.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Mon. 4/13/09, morning, Hearst College, Neptune, California

**Two weeks later....  
**  
VERONICA

I walk out of my Topics in Criminology Seminar, and there he is...sitting on the wall in the quad, waiting for me. Logan doesn't see me yet, so I walk slowly, appreciating the chance to spy on him for just a minute. The sun picks up the blond highlights in his hair; he looks relaxed, smiling at someone across the way. I turn to look and see Mac waving from across the quad.

Logan has a large cup of cappuccino waiting for me; his laptop bag rests against his ankle. He turns his head and sees me.

I think I'll never get tired of seeing his smile whenever he sees me. I remember how uncomfortable he used to make me in the past; he was so intense, so focused in his adoration, and I couldn't ever just _accept_ it. But now...I'm not sure what I'd do without him taking care of me every day.

It scares me how much I need him.

He takes my backpack from me and hands me my coffee, and we walk to his car. Logan tells me about the writing he got done during my classes; he sounds excited and happy. And I'm glad for him...and worried...and guilty...and jealous.

We still haven't figured out what we're going to do after the semester ends. I stopped talking about changing my major after that last fight a couple weeks ago, and Logan thinks I've reconsidered. But I'm going to do it...Dean Rose said it was of course possible, but I would probably lose at least a semester toward my degree at this late point. It's occurred to me more than once that this would be the perfect opportunity to transfer up to UCLA, just chuck everything here and start over as a junior at a new school. Nobody will know me there...maybe I can actually do it right this time and try not to piss anybody off.

Just be Logan's girlfriend: Veronica Mars, the pre-law major. She's kinda quiet, doesn't talk much. She needs a few hobbies, though. All this free time is beginning to chafe.

I see a girl and a boy arguing; as we pass by, I hear her say angrily, "You lied to me! You slept with her, didn't you?" I note her pained expression and his defensive posture, and I automatically connect the dots: cheater. And I can't help thinking about late-night assignations and stakeouts at cheap motels featuring hourly rates, with a thermos of bad coffee and aching shoulders from sitting in one position for too long. I resolutely turn my thoughts away from the insane thrill of finally getting that perfectly focused money shot, and try to concentrate on how nice it is to always get eight hours of sleep every night.

I'm pretty certain I see one of the Pi Sigs buying some weed over by the Science Building, and I make sure to look away. I'm not going to have anything to do with criminals anymore. I'm thinking about patent law, or maybe trusts and estates. Lots and lots of boring paperwork, and I won't need a gun or a taser.

Dad hired a temp for the office. I know he's confused by my decision. It took him so long to accept me pursuing a career in law enforcement, and now it's like he's stuck there and can't change his mind. Sometimes he slips and says something like, "When you're in the FBI, you'll have to—" and then he catches himself when he sees my face. I can see that he's bursting to talk about his cases with me, but I just feel exhausted and scared, and I beg him not to. I can't take the chance that I'll make the wrong decision again.

Sometimes when the light hits Dad's profile in just the right way, it reminds me of his silhouette just before Liam shoved him off the boat. All I can hear then is splashing and the pops of bullets hitting the water, and I completely lose track of whatever Dad is saying to me. I nod my head and hope he doesn't notice.

Logan is still talking about what he wrote today. He's been working on an outline for a screenplay based on the undercover operation. At first, he was hesitant to tell me about it, but when I lied and said it didn't bother me, he said it was really helping him to 'process' what happened. I'm dreading the day when he asks me to read it.

He seems so enthused by this project...I can't take it away from him. I need him so much right now, and I like seeing him happy. That's what this was all about, right? That's why I started investigating Hannah's murder, because he was so tormented by his guilt. And of course I thought I had the solution.

As usual, there are reporters waiting for us by Logan's car. _'Ms. Mars, what do you think of the latest development in the Fitzpatrick case?' 'Veronica! Can you give us a quote?'_ Logan is ready for them and quickly shuts them down with a 'no comment'. We get in the car and drive to my physical therapy. I keep my poker face stoic and unchanging when they snap photos through the car window as we exit the parking lot.

Yes, there's been a development in the case. Before he jumped off the Coronado, Dr. Griffith very thoughtfully mailed duplicate flash drives with detailed records of his money laundering operation for the Fitzpatricks to the US Attorney, Sheriff D'Amato, and my dad. I guess Griffith wanted to make sure that the evidence got out there...and to make sure that Hannah's murder was avenged somehow. They were very detailed records, including taped conversations with Liam Fitzpatrick and a certain crooked FBI agent.

And Agent Carney read the writing on the wall and turned government witness before you could take a breath. The newspapers are reporting that he'll serve the minimum sentence of fifteen years for Hannah's murder and the same for killing Alan Sheffield, and then spend the rest of his life in witness protection, in return for helping to shut down one of the largest criminal organizations on the West Coast and locating their financial assets. He also pleaded kidnapping and attempted murder down to menacing and assault—another scant eighteen months for what he did to us.

Thirty-one and a half years in total. It doesn't seem enough. What he did to Hannah was heinous: he should be facing the death penalty, or at least life without parole. But there was no forensic evidence pointing to Carney in her murder...in fact, the only evidence against Carney was his confession to us and Mel the diner owner's eyewitness testimony.

Apparently, Carney's attorneys were able to break the Saturday Night Slasher's alibi for Hannah's murder. Andrew Shekar confessed to all the other murders except Hannah's, but he can't prove he didn't kill her, and, with eight consecutive life sentences already hanging over his head, he probably wouldn't try very hard. Carney's prosecution promised to be a courtroom circus rivaling the Aaron Echolls' trial, with Carney blaming Shekar for the murder and trying to impeach our testimony. The four of us would have had to relive the entire trauma, and, with the media relentlessly publicizing the real serial murderer's sick journals, Carney might have won an acquittal on reasonable doubt. Here's some more irony for you: Carney's defense team subpoenaed Mac's research on just who else had access to the FBI's Slasher files.

They never did find Alan Sheffield's body, so that case had problems too. Mac's eyewitness testimony was the only evidence. I don't want to think about how Carney's attorneys would have attacked her testimony.

So when Carney offered to become the prosecution's star witness in exchange for a sweetheart deal of second degree murder on both charges, the government caved. I guess it was too important to close down all the Fitzpatricks' drug running.

Thirty-one and a half years...but word on the street is that Ciaran Fitzpatrick, new head of the family, doesn't intend to let Carney live very long at all.

But the end result of the plea arrangement is that Carney won't actually have to be tried for either murder, and his testimony means the rest of the Fitzpatrick family and their cronies will probably end up also taking deals rather than face certain conviction. They're practically tripping over themselves blaming everything on Liam, anyways. I'm not sure how Liam had time to do everything his brothers are blaming on him.

The main thing is Mac won't have to go through the ordeal of a trial. She won't have to testify about seeing Alan shot to death in front of her or talk about the two and a half days she was kidnapped. That's one thing I don't have to feel guilty about.

When I'm with Mac, I feel like a cartoon Wile E. Coyote, with a giant cannonball hole through my gut, smoking and blackened...still somehow alive and moving, but with a gaping void right through the center of my body. I smile, I sometimes even laugh a little, but I've died inside...she shouldn't have had to go through that. It was all my fault. I don't know how she can stand to look at me.

Maybe giving up what I loved most in the world will be enough to make up for it.

I think Logan suspects how I feel, even though I hide it from him. I've caught him looking at me, very worried and concerned, and then when he sees me looking, he smiles and makes a joke. I'm pretty sure he's decided that distracting me with sex is a good plan...we've always been good in the bedroom, and now is no exception. I guess he thinks it's life-affirming and it's what I need right now. I do feel more alive when I lose myself in his arms, so maybe he's onto something.

Dr. Friedman says that the people around us don't always know what to do when we're in crisis. Crisis...I guess that's what this is.

Yes, I'm in therapy. God, I'm such a cliché. Logan and I head up to Los Angeles on Fridays after my morning class. He meets with his academic advisor, trying to salvage something of this semester, while I talk with Dr. Friedman. She and I are going through the Briar Hill operation one day at a time. I'm impatient to get to my memory gaps of the last day, but the good doctor seems to think I need to be a little stronger before we go there.

She wants to talk about my mother and the betrayal I felt when I found out about her relationship with Jake Kane. And then we talk about how Mom abandoned me when I needed her the most. Most of the time I just wonder how all this talking is supposed to be helping me. I prefer to stuff all my feelings about Lianne into a tiny box and shove it into the back of my closet. That's healthy, right? Sometimes Dr. Friedman looks at me like I'm an incredibly intriguing puzzle. We haven't even begun to talk about Beaver yet...but he's always right there, under the surface, tainting almost everything.

Logan is so passionate about his sessions with her. He talks about how much she has helped him. I nod and agree...while on the inside I'm just as confused as ever.

This reinvention stuff is hard. I know...I'm supposed to be on a journey from pathologically suspicious to trusting and well-adjusted. But most days I feel like I'm stuck on pathological.

Mon. 4/13/09, Mars Investigations, Neptune, California

Keith is working hard at his desk, trying to clear up the mountain of paperwork that has accumulated over the last few weeks while he's been recuperating. The temporary worker, Susan, that he and Veronica selected to act as a receptionist and secretary is experienced and eager, but there is a stack of correspondence from the insurance companies for whom Keith investigates personal injury claims that only he can handle. In addition, the FBI has requested to interview him again about the Briar Hill case, and Keith knows he'll need to review the notes and transcripts from the operation. He's been procrastinating, unwilling to think again about his daughter being subjected to psychological conditioning and physical abuse. To make matters worse, the requests for interviews have barely slowed down. He directs Susan to hold all his calls, and with a heavy sigh, begins to look through his material on Briar Hill.

After a few hours of hard work, Susan knocks lightly on the door. "Someone to see you, Mr. Mars."

"It's Keith, please," he replies. "Who is it?"

"Duncan Kane."

"Show him in," he says, standing up and walking to the doorway.

Duncan walks to the door, with Lilly holding onto his hand. He says nervously, "Um...do you think your assistant could watch Lilly while we talk?"

"Oh, sure," Susan says agreeably. "Come on, Lilly. Let's play on the computer."

Lilly looks to her dad. He nods, and she relinquishes his hand and goes to Susan. Duncan shakes Keith's hand. "Thank you again for what you did for me."

"Of course. What's going on?" Keith takes his seat behind the desk and watches Duncan, who seems agitated.

Duncan says abruptly, "A reporter came to see me last night. He wanted to get my reaction to the news that no charges will be filed in Kendall's murder case."

"Yes, I saw the press conference with Sheriff D'Amato. 'At this time, there is insufficient evidence to pursue an indictment.' But Duncan, everyone is assuming that someone connected with the Fitzpatricks killed her on Liam's orders. Carney admitted that Kendall was the reason that they killed Hannah."

"The reporter was insinuating that there was some sort of coverup. Someone at the Neptune Grand told him about my affair with Kendall. I think his story is going to imply that I killed her...because she was blackmailing me." Duncan's voice quivers slightly. "It's a little too close to the truth. And I don't have an alibi for that night. You know that Sheriff D'Amato's original theory was that Kendall was blackmailing me about the kidnapping."

"Are you worried about being charged?"

"I don't think they have enough evidence for that. But you know that the judge will be reviewing my adoption petition in a few months. I'll be under scrutiny for the rest of my life because I ran with her. And frankly I'm worried about the publicity. I don't want Lilly to grow up and discover that people suspect I killed someone."

They look at each other for a moment, both of them unwilling to voice the words that a thorough investigation into Duncan's past might also invite an inquiry into Veronica's role in the kidnapping. Keith finally says, "You were home alone the night Kendall was killed?"

Duncan nods. "I was fixing up Lilly's bedroom...mostly painting."

"Did you save the receipt for the painting supplies?" Keith asks.

Duncan shakes his head. "I paid cash."

"Well, we can go to the store and see if anyone remembers you. You bought the paint that day?" When Duncan nods, Keith continues, "There had been a lot of publicity after your amnesty announcement; maybe the clerks noticed you. Did you get a custom color for the paint?"

"Yeah...I painted a border of pink flowers with green leaves all the way around the room. I brought a picture from a magazine that they copied with the color scanner, and they helped me pick out a stencil for the flowers."

Keith adds, "Did you listen to the radio while you were painting, anything that could support your testimony? Listen to a ball game maybe?"

"No. I had my iPod playing. And I didn't call anybody, and nobody called me. Keith...I was in a pretty dark place. Katerina had turned out to be Kendall, and I felt like a total sap for falling for her. I was worried about the custody hearing, and of course Veronica—" He looks at Keith mournfully. "You know, I never gave up hope that Veronica had maybe waited for me. I still love your daughter. I know, she's happy with Logan. But I'll always care about her. I was just barely holding it together that night."

Keith ponders. "Duncan, even if we find somebody who remembers you buying paint that day, it's a lousy alibi. You could have painted for a while and then left. You'll still be the target of rumors if this story comes out. And you can't hold a news conference and declare your innocence."

"Exactly. Keith, I think the only way to clear my name is to figure out who actually killed her. I know...I know you're still recovering from what happened up north. Do you think—?"

"Of course. I can take a look into it."

"I'll pay double your usual rates."

Keith shakes his head. "That's not necessary."

"You've had a lot of trouble because of me. I insist." Duncan takes out a checkbook. "Five thousand retainer okay?"

"It's more than enough."

"Please take it." Duncan finishes writing the check with a flourish and pushes it across the desk to Keith. "Thank you again."

"Duncan...one other thing. Veronica has decided she doesn't want to work here anymore, and she says she isn't going to pursue a career in the FBI. I don't know if she'll change her mind. And I don't even know how I feel about her decision just yet. For right now, I think she needs a little peace and quiet in her life to feel safe again. So, I think it would be best if you don't tell her that I'm working for you."

"She's quitting?" Duncan says incredulously. "Veronica?"

Keith nods. "Like I said, peace and quiet...some time to heal. Please don't involve her in this." He looks out the window, saying quietly, "I'm worried about her. She's not herself."

With a guilty expression, Duncan nods and leaves, shutting the door behind him. Keith listens as Duncan and Lilly take their leave from the outer office, with Lilly saying 'Bye-bye' several times to the temp.

Keith thinks back to the boat. Liam had said, _'Nope...didn't kill her. Wish I had...I really wanted to kick her ass after that crap she pulled on me with the Phoenix Land Trust. Stupid bitch, didn't know when she had it good. Yeah...somebody did me a big favor killing Kendall. Why do you think we killed Hannah Griffith?'_

Keith wonders, _Would Liam have lied to us at that point? I doubt it. He was certain we weren't going to live to tell the tale. No, Liam didn't kill her. And it sounds like Carney had an alibi that night as well. And if one of Liam's flunkies did it, they would have made damn sure that Liam knew about it._

He picks up the phone and dials a number. "Sacks...it's Keith Mars. I wonder if I could take you out to dinner and pick your brain?" After a short conversation with Deputy Sacks, he hangs up and dials Cliff McCormack. "Hey Cliff....I'm fine, I'm back to work, what are you up to?" Keith listens and laughs. "Oh no, your client got caught with his pants down at Le Jerk De Soleil massage parlor? You'll have to do some fast talking....Cliff, I need a favor. What's the scuttlebutt down at the courthouse about the Kendall Casablancas inquest?" After Cliff promises to ask around for him, Keith begins surfing the internet for all the news reports on Kendall's murder investigation.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Reinvention**  
Wallace, Mac, and Dick catch up; an arrest  
in Shawn's murder case.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Wallace: Percy Daggs III. Mac: Tina Majorino.  
Dick: Ryan Hanson. Candice: Toy Connor.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FORTY-FIVE: "REINVENTION"

Wed. 4/15/09, noon, Hearst College Food Court, Neptune, California

Wallace waves at Mac, who is wandering around the food court looking for him with Dick in tow. Mac nudges Dick, who goes off to get some napkins, and she hurries over to Wallace's table.

"Still got your pet gorilla, I see," Wallace comments.

"He's got his uses," Mac says, smiling ruefully. "He's actually pretty good at fending off the paparazzi. Of course, he's constantly trying to get in my pants."

"You're not considering—?"

"Oh, god no," she replies.

Dick walks up to the table and puts down his tray. "Hey, Fennel."

"Dick, how's it hanging?"

Dick shrugs. "You know what they say...if in doubt, rub one out. Words to live by."

"You gotta appreciate him for the sheer entertainment value," Mac remarks. "He's got a million of 'em, unfortunately. So...how she's doing?"

"Is Veronica still avoiding you?" Wallace says with concern.

"Yeah, pretty much. I'm starting to think she's never going to forgive herself. I miss her," Mac sighs. "What are you up to?"

Wallace looks around before saying discreetly, "Keith has me working on the Kendall Casablancas murder case."

"What?"

"You know that they dismissed the indictment against the late Liam Fitzpatrick for lack of evidence." Wallace appraises Mac for a moment. "The client is Duncan Kane. He was hooking up with Kendall Casablancas for a couple weeks before she was killed." He briefly summarizes what happened while Mac was in protective custody at the FBI.

Mac makes a face and turns to Dick. "Duncan was sleeping with your super-hot step-mom? Did you know about this?"

"Uh, no," Dick admits. "I didn't even know she was in town until the sheriff came to question me about my alibi. How did Duncan manage to get her in the sack?"

"I'm guessing he flashed his bank balance at her," Wallace snarks. "Anyways, a reporter has been asking a lot of questions about Duncan's relationship with her, and Duncan thought that the rumors would never go away unless the real murderer was found. So he asked Keith to look into it. It's totally hyphy that people think Duncan could have offed Kendall...Duncan would never murder someone. He's much more likely to run away and leave Veronica to pick up the pieces of his life."

"So what are you working on?" Mac asks.

"I'm checking on the stolen vehicle that picked up Kendall the night she was murdered, the last time she was seen alive. It belonged to the Crawfords...you know, parents of Jennings, who went to Neptune High with us? Keith asked me to see if I could find out anything more about the theft." Wallace leans in. "I told the Crawfords I was a reporter for the Register, doing a series on crime victims and the hassle of collecting claims from insurance. They opened up like—"

"Like the legs of a Zeta Theta?" Dick proposes.

"I was going to say like the Lions backfield. Anyways, the Crawfords were out of town on their annual spring vacation to Bonaire. They have a security system, and apparently it wasn't tampered with. The insurance company was trying not to pay at first because they claimed it was an inside job and possibly fraud, and they refused to pay without a full investigation. Sheriff D'Amato assumed that the housekeeper's nephew got the code from her purse," Wallace explains.

"Who's the housekeeper's nephew?" Mac asks.

"Daniel Mulvaney, one of the Fitzpatrick flunkies. But he was one of the crew that got rounded up the night of Kendall's murder. Liam and most of the Fitzpatricks were taken into custody that night for receiving a shipment of stolen cars." Wallace reminds himself to tell Mac someday how he and Weevil accomplished that feat.

"So he has an alibi, too," Mac muses. "How does the sheriff account for that?"

"Mr. Crawford said the sheriff assumed that Mulvaney passed the security code along to another one of the Fitzpatrick associates who then committed the actual theft."

"What kind of security system was it?" Mac asks curiously.

Wallace pulls out his notes and pronounces, "Simon XT. Why?"

Mac opens her laptop and begins typing. "Some of the more expensive security systems transmit a log of every event to a remote server. We're talking the Crawfords here, right? As in our classmate who got a BMW convertible on his sixteenth birthday and took tennis lessons with Ilie Nastase? Not exactly the wrong side of the tracks. I'm betting the Simon XT is top of the line." Mac scowls at her screen. "Yep, 'internet-based control and monitoring'. And the system is completely wireless, controllable by a keypad or a key chain remote. Hmm...." Mac types furiously. "I can try to hack into the server, see if there's any useful information."

"Mac? Are sure you want to help with this?" Wallace asks quietly.

Mac looks uncomfortable. "What do you mean?"

Wallace continues hesitantly, "I mean...we can handle it. You're still.... Keith isn't even telling Veronica about this. He's afraid she'll get too upset and want to help Duncan."

"You're not telling her?" Mac repeats, aghast. "She's going to be furious when she finds out."

Dick chimes in, "It's not cool, dude, you know she'll be hella pissed."

"She said she doesn't want to do this anymore, right? And Keith said he would take the heat. We can handle it, Mac. If we need somebody to do some hacking, Keith has some other contacts he can call."

Mac seems to be considering Wallace's words. Suddenly, she says, "I want to help. This is what I'm good at...I missed this when I was at the FBI. All their stupid rules and regulations...I can't wait to break through some firewalls again. Besides, I think you guys are missing something important."

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm wondering why that car. You said the Crawfords were out of town when it was stolen, right?"

Wallace nods.

Mac adds, "So it wasn't even reported as stolen for several days. What kind of car was it?"

"A Lincoln Navigator, top of the line. Premium sound system, the works."

Mac asks, "Including a state-of-the-art alarm, right?"

"Yeah, I think so."

"So even if Mulvaney had the security code, he would have had to have stolen the keys for the car too, right?"

Wallace looks at his notes. "I think the Crawfords said that the only set of keys at the house were still there when they returned from vacation."

"How did D'Amato even figure out that this was the car?"

"Sacks told me there was a witness who identified the car...a Jeffrey Ratner."

"Ratner?" Mac asks incredulously. "No way."

"Who's Ratner?" Dick asks.

"He's the one who blew the whistle on Veronica for cheating in Landry's class freshman year, except of course she didn't cheat at all. And of course Veronica paid him back."

"Of _course_ she did," Wallace agrees. "Do you think that's a connection?"

"There's certainly no love lost between them," Mac observes. "Didn't Ratner work at the Neptune Grand?"

Wallace muses, "Maybe that's where he witnessed Kendall in the SUV. I wish we could get a copy of the official police report."

"Why not just talk to Ratner, see what he knows?" Mac suggests.

Wallace nods. "Maybe he would talk to Keith."

Mac continues, "I still think we should look more into the car. How did it end up at the Fitzpatricks' chop shop?"

"I don't think anybody knows," Wallace states. "The Fitzpatricks aren't talking."

"How can we find out?" Mac asks.

Thoughtfully, Wallace says, "I think I have an idea—" Mac kicks him under the table, nodding toward Veronica and Logan approaching.

Veronica sees Mac and stops dead for a second before squaring her shoulders and continuing on to the table. "Hey, is there room for us?" Veronica asks tentatively. She meets eyes with Mac momentarily before steadfastly focusing on Wallace's face. "What are you guys talking about?"

"Nuthin' much," Wallace says, moving over to give her a little room. Logan puts down a tray loaded with both their lunches, and he and Veronica sit down.

Mac says cautiously, "How are you today, Veronica?"

Veronica glances at her quickly. "Pretty good. You know, still trying to catch up with the work that I missed. How about you?"

"Yeah, tell me about it. My professors are being really cool, though."

"That's good." Veronica suddenly notices that everyone is intently following her and Mac's conversation. Nervously, she looks around and asks, "What are you looking at? Do I have something on my face?" _On my face. Fuck._ Veronica's lower lip trembles as she suddenly pictures 'SLUT' written on her forehead. It takes every ounce of willpower to resist rubbing the back of her hand on her face, and she clenches her fingers into a tight fist.

Wallace clears his throat and asks, "You okay, Veronica?"

She closes her eyes and nods her head once._ You've got to stop doing this. Don't let them get in your head!!_ She takes a deep breath and, opening her eyes, says shakily, "So how's the veggie lasagna today?"

The conversation remains strained, with Dick taking the lead and telling a story about the Pi Sigs' latest debauched scheme for increasing alcohol consumption. Veronica seems distant, barely contributing to the conversation. Wallace gets a text from Candice that makes him frown. He checks his watch and announces he has to leave for class on the other side of campus. Dick offers to dump Mac's tray for her, and Logan goes with him.

Alone with Veronica, Mac says quietly, "Are you okay, Veronica?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Veronica replies. "Hey...." She swallows and tries again. "Were you guys talking about me when we got here?"

"No. Wallace was asking my opinion on a case he's working on for your father." Mac watches Veronica's face fall and wonders all of a sudden if it's really wise to keep her out of the loop. "I'm glad you sat with us today. I miss you, Veronica. I miss hanging out late at night, laughing and joking with you. I'm not mad at you, I swear."

"I know you're not," Veronica answers. "But I'm mad at me."

A short distance away, Logan puts a restraining hand on Dick's arm. "Hold up. Let them be." They sit down at another table and surreptitiously watch the two girls.

Mac says, "Let's hang out, go to a movie or something. What do you think? Maybe we'll ditch the guys and see a chick flick. Come on, you know you want to see '17 Again'."

Veronica laughs weakly. "Zac Efron. Rawr."

"We can throw popcorn at the screen."

"Mac...I'm sorry...I never asked how you were doing," Veronica blurts out suddenly. "I'm so sorry, Mac, I've been such a terrible friend."

"Veronica, it's okay—"

"Logan told me that you were scared to go back to school and that's why Dick is always hanging out with you now."

"Yeah. It's helped to have him around."

"God, Mac, I'm so sorry for everything, I wish you'd...I wish you'd just yell at me or something," Veronica says miserably.

"I'm doing better lately. I'm going to be okay, Veronica. So are you. I hate to see you beating yourself up like this...you were so amazing on the boat...so brave and smart. You _saved_ us."

Veronica puts her head on the table and starts sobbing. Mac gets up and sits down next to her, putting her arm over Veronica's shoulder and pulling her into a hug. "Shh, Veronica, it's okay."

Between sobs, Veronica chokes out, "You're sure you guys weren't talking about me when we got here? It seems like you guys always stop talking when I come in the room."

Mac winces. "No, of course not! I told you, we were talking about Wallace's case. You said you didn't want to do any investigating anymore, so we're trying not to rub it in your face."

"Oh. Okay," Veronica replies softly.

Mac thinks that she's never heard Veronica sound _sad_ before. Pissed, vengeful, even irrational, but the only time Mac's heard her sound anything close to this was when Duncan fled with baby Lilly. _Desolate, that's how she sounds._ Gently, she says, "You miss it, don't you."

Veronica nods. "It's only been a couple weeks, and already I'm going crazy. But I can't be that girl anymore. Look what I did to you. I have to re— reinvent myself," she concludes, stumbling over the words.

"Please don't."

"What?!"

"Please...don't change, Veronica. I miss you. I don't want you to reinvent yourself."

"Please don't try to talk me out of it, Mac."

Mac pulls away from Veronica. Wretchedly, she says, "Veronica, I have to get to class. Are you going to be okay?"

"Yeah. I'm okay," she mumbles.

As Mac walks away, she casts a glance over her shoulder at Veronica, who tries to smile.

Logan sits down next to Veronica. Before he can say a word, she begs him, "Take me home," and he escorts her out of the food court and back to the apartment.

Wed. 4/15/09, afternoon, Candice's off-campus apartment, Neptune, California

Candice opens the door to her apartment, and Wallace realizes immediately that she's been crying. "Hey...hey, what's going on?" he says, folding her into his arms.

"The detective from the Glacier Police Department called this morning. He wanted to brief me on the status of the investigation into Shawn's murder," she replies shakily.

Wallace walks her over to the couch, and they sit down. After Carney had been captured, Wallace had made a phone call to Glacier and spoken to the detective in charge, explaining his theory that the Fitzpatricks and possibly Carney had been responsible for Shawn's death. The officer had been dubious that any progress could be made at this late date, but promised to look into it and report back. "What did he say?"

"That agent...the one your friend captured? Carney. He cooperated and told the detective what happened. Shawn was bringing the meth in across the Canadian border in one of the national parks up there. Someone named Ciaran Fitzpatrick...is that right?"

"Yeah, Ciaran, he was the CF in Shawn's Blackberry," Wallace reminds her.

Candice continues, "Ciaran tried to take over and cut Shawn out of the operation. Shawn cashed in his plane ticket to try to make a big score on his own and headed up to Glacier. Somehow Ciaran found out and asked Carney to...take care of Shawn." She stumbles over the words and begins to cry.

"Hey, hey...I'm here," Wallace says, trying to soothe her.

With a slight hiccup, she says, "Carney ordered a man...Brian something...to go up there and...kill him."

_Brian, the other man on the boat who Veronica captured,_ Wallace thinks.

"Carney agreed to testify against Brian, so the detective thinks he'll definitely be convicted. But Carney—" Candice slumps against Wallace. "He made a deal."

"I know. He turned state's evidence in the other cases too. Carney will be in jail for a long time anyways, Candice."

"It just seems so unfair. I know...Shawn shouldn't have been mixed up with those people, but eventually Carney will be walking around free." Candice pulls away and stares into Wallace's eyes. "Wallace...thank you. It's awful, but...at least we know. I called my parents and told them what happened. My mom just thanked me for calling and hung up, but I know she'll rest easier now. We'll have to go up to Glacier for the trial. Will you come with me?"

"Of course."

When he leaves Candice, Wallace calls the detective himself. After thanking him for his assistance on the case, the detective tells Wallace that Carney explained that Shawn got greedy and wanted a larger cut. The Fitzpatricks decided they didn't need him and spoke to the supplier directly about expanding the operation. In search of an easy way to bring more Meth-X across the border, the Fitzpatricks hit upon the idea of bringing the drugs in by plane to Rio Linda, where they already had a large infrastructure in place for distributing drugs. They recruited two Rio Linda deputies who took turns accompanying the flights to avoid scrutiny at customs, and the new system worked extremely well until a plane carrying drugs crashed in late December of 2008. Carney immediately got himself assigned to the investigation and went to Rio Linda to try to do damage control.

Wallace thinks, _Which is when he stumbled on Hannah Griffith._ He immediately resolves to find Veronica and tell her everything, imagining her excitement at having more of the loose ends of the case explained. He pictures her triumphantly smiling face.

And then he remembers Veronica's fragile state, and he doesn't know what to do. Wallace decides to call Keith and tell him, allowing him to break the news to Veronica.

Wed. 4/15/09, late, Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, California

Late that night, Logan volunteers to take Backup out for a run. As soon as he's out of earshot, he calls Mac. "Hey, I got your text." The dog eagerly pulls him along the beach as he talks.

"Is Veronica okay? She was pretty upset at lunch."

"She blew off her afternoon class. She's okay now," Logan responds.

"Logan...she noticed that we stopped talking when she sat down at the table...and she was upset about it. She thinks we're always talking about her."

"I know, she told me." Logan stops walking, gripping the phone tightly. Backup whines, urging him to continue. "I don't know what to do."

"Maybe we shouldn't do anything, Logan."

"Dammit, I just can't imagine her being this way forever," he replies tensely. "She's trying so hard not to be herself."

"She said she was trying to reinvent herself." She pauses. "But she also said that she misses investigating...and she's going crazy already."

Logan exhales. "That's good, right? Maybe she'll change her mind. At least she talked to you today. That's progress."

"I guess. But she also started crying."

"I know. ...Mac, don't we think we should be encouraging her to do all the things she used to love? Tonight, after she finished her homework, she just stared at the TV. That's not Veronica."

Wretchedly, Mac replies, "Logan, I don't know how to help her." After a protracted silence, she finally says, "I guess I'll talk to you later."

"Yeah." He ends the call and walks along the beach. _Am I being selfish? Maybe I should be listening to her, doing what she asks. Who am I to—no! dammit, I don't want her to give up on her life...on us. I know...in a week, or five years, or ten years...she'll be completely miserable. Fuck._

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Compulsion**  
Veronica wonders about Keith's new case;  
Veronica announces her plans; Weevil visits  
Oswaldo; Keith works on Kendall's murder.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Eli: Francis Capra.  
Ratner: David Magidoff. Oswaldo: Frankie  
Rodriguez.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FORTY-SIX: "COMPULSION"

Thurs. 4/16/09, late afternoon, Mars Investigations & Mama Leone's, Neptune, California

Veronica and Logan walk into the outer office at Mars Investigations, waiting for her dad to finish up with an appointment before they head out to a restaurant for dinner. The new temp looks at Veronica curiously, obviously bursting with questions. The temp opens up her mouth to speak, but Logan gives her a stern glance, and she closes her mouth and looks down at some papers on the reception desk.

Keith opens the door to his inner office, saying, "Thanks for coming in. I'll be in touch." Jeff Ratner exits into the waiting area.

"Ratner," Veronica comments, with just a bit of the old sarcastic Veronica creeping into her tone. "Fancy meeting you here."

Surprisingly, Ratner blushes a deep red and stops dead before stammering, "Veronica, uh, Mr. Echolls."

Veronica can't help herself and snarks, "Yo, Pops, investigating late-night shenanigans at the Grand? You can bet Ratner had his ear to the keyhole." She wouldn't think it possible, but Ratner's flush deepens, and she realizes just how nasty she sounded. _Way to go, Veronica._ "Damn my big mouth. Jeff, I'm sorry. I hope everything's okay. If you need help, my dad's the guy to come to."

"No problem, Veronica. I'm uh, I was glad to hear you were okay." Ratner nods at Logan and leaves the office quickly before either Veronica or Logan can respond.

Veronica raises her eyebrows at her dad. "Jeff Ratner?"

"You said you didn't want to work here anymore, remember?" Keith says, surprised. "Client confidentiality."

"It's just...I know him from Hearst. He was always trying to take me down a peg in Landry's class."

Something in her voice makes Logan look at her sharply. Veronica is almost...wistful.

"I bet he never succeeded," her dad comments.

She purses her lips and shakes her head 'no'.

"Ratner's helping me on a case, Veronica, that's all I can say. So let's get going, shall we?" To the temp, he says, "Susan, it's almost five o'clock. Why don't you knock off for the day?"

At Mama Leone's, Veronica seems a little distracted. She pushes her food around on her plate as Keith and Logan inhale their entrees.

"How's the manicotti?" Keith asks. "Veronica?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, the manicotti. It's great," she muses. "Like always."

"Something on your mind?" Logan asks.

Keith kicks him under the table and tries to catch his eye. "Logan, did you see the message that Trina called?"

"Yeah, I did. As usual, it's all about her—why didn't I call her to tell her what was going on, family has to stick together, blah, blah, blah. At the very end, she remembered to ask if I was okay, and then asked if I was considering selling the movie rights." Logan shakes his head.

Veronica asks, "Did you tell her about your screenplay?"

"What screenplay?" Keith queries, puzzled.

"Logan's writing a screenplay about Briar Hill."

Keith says, "You know you can't—"

"I know," Logan rushes to say. "At least...not legally. But I'm finding it very therapeutic. I can use it as my final project for film school. And you never know...." He shrugs. "Maybe someday I could work out the rights...if Klein is convicted."

"_When_ he's convicted," Veronica corrects.

Logan and Keith exchange a glance. Keith says gently, "You know that Epstein said there have been some problems with the criminal complaint."

"You mean the countersuit against us, right?" Veronica says. "And his threat....his promise to go after me personally at the trial if I testify."

"I don't want you testifying, Veronica. You've been through too much the last few months. We've accomplished enough: the state is scrutinizing everything that's going on at Briar Hill now. Surprise inspections and plenty of publicity...the school won't be able to get away with treating girls like they used to."

"He'll just get better at hiding it. You know it, Dad. He's too good at what he does. You _can't_ let him get away with it," Veronica says, her voice trembling. "I want to testify."

Keith grabs Veronica's hand. "Shh, honey. We don't have to decide today—"

"I want to take him down," Veronica swears. "It's the last thing I want to do before—" She realizes they're staring at her, and she clamps her mouth shut.

"Before what?" Logan asks.

"Before I quit," she mumbles, avoiding his gaze. She inhales and looks up at him. "Before I change my life, okay? Before I turn into Veronica Mars, the most boring person on earth."

"I thought— You haven't..." Logan sees her infuriated expression and sighs. "I'm shutting up now."

"_I'm_ not shutting up," Keith protests. "Veronica, you can't make these decisions yet; you're still traumatized. I'd rather see you forget about Klein and finish your criminology degree. You can still go to law school later."

She steels herself for his reaction before plunging in. "I've been thinking of transferring to UCLA. It'll give me an edge to get into law school there. Mainly...I think I need a fresh start somewhere new. I'll have to repeat junior year, but I'd have to do that when I change majors anyways." Veronica hears Logan sucking in his breath, and she consciously avoids looking at him.

Keith looks stricken. "You mean...leave Neptune?"

She nods. "I can be with Logan all the time. I'm ready to move in with him. It feels right."

"Did you know about this?" Keith says tersely, turning to Logan. "Did you suggest this?"

Logan shakes his head. "No."

"Stop acting like I'm not here," Veronica says angrily. "_My_ life..._my_ opinion should count for the most."

They stare at her, unable to say anything at all.

Finally, she says, "I know...I said I would wait to make a decision, but if I'm going to transfer, the deadlines are coming up." At their continued silence, she continues nervously, "Say something."

"I don't know what to say, Veronica," her dad admits. "I would really miss you. And—" He pauses. "I'm still not certain you're thinking..._clearly_...just yet."

"You've made that quite obvious," she says, slightly bitter. "I'm not a child anymore. Besides—"

"Geez, Veronica. We haven't even _talked_ about this. Living together?" Logan interrupts. "Did you even think about asking me what I thought?"

"I thought you'd be in favor of it!" she cries.

"Yeah, in theory. But I also don't want to screw it up with you," he comments quietly. "We've both been through a lot lately. I'd rather go slow with you and me."

"We're together all the time, Logan...practically twenty-four hours a day! I think we're ready for the next step." She looks from him to her father and back. "I'll be in the ladies' room." She tosses her napkin onto the table and walks to the back of the restaurant, her eyes welling up with tears as she goes.

Logan drops his head into his hands. He mutters, "Well, she's certainly being stubborn. I'm trying to look at that as a hopeful sign."

"Yeah, I know what you mean."

"What are you working on anyways? What was Ratner doing at the office?"

Keith evasively says, "It's not important."

"What?" Logan repeats, more strongly. "Why'd you kick me?"

Keith sighs. He looks over Logan's shoulder to make sure Veronica is still in the ladies' room. "Duncan asked me to look into Kendall's murder again. With the indictment against Liam dismissed, apparently some reporter got wind of Duncan's affair with Kendall and wants to make a story out of it."

Logan stares at him. "You're kidding. Duncan?" He fusses with his hair, thinking. "I asked her in the hospital if she thought Liam was telling the truth about not killing Kendall, and Veronica said she didn't care."

"Wallace and I have been following up on a couple new leads. He's been making good progress trying to figure just who would know that the Crawfords go away the first two weeks every March. And he's also been checking on the problem of how someone got into Kendall's suite that night without her key card. Mac had a couple good ideas, too."

Logan leans toward Keith. "Listen, what if we drop some hints about this case? See if we can make Veronica curious about your investigation? I hate seeing her like this. Maybe if she has something to worry about, she'll be more like her old self." Slightly bitter, he adds, "You know...if she knew it was Duncan's ass on the line, she'd jump into action in a second."

Keith shakes his head. "You really think it'd be that easy? That she'll get sucked into an investigation and magically turn back into the old Veronica? She's smarter than that. She'll see that we're manipulating her."

"Hopefully she'll see that she does still want to do something more than be 'the most boring person in the world' and forgive us.'"

Keith comments, "That was pretty awful to hear her say that. Veronica's never been boring, even when she was a baby."

"She probably solved the case of 'who stole my binky' before she was two years old."

Keith ponders. "It was actually a 'Squealer the Pig' beanie baby, and she was four at the time.'" He spies Veronica emerging from the ladies' room and says quietly, "Here she comes. I say don't push her. Let's just try to have a nice dinner, okay?"

Thurs. 4/16/09, very late, Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, California

Veronica wakes up and checks the clock. _3:08am._ She listens to Logan's steady breathing for a few minutes. Veronica crawls cautiously out of the bed and makes her way to the bathroom; she flips on the light switch. She looks over her shoulder and pulls the door almost closed and soundlessly walks to the living room instead.

Her dad's laptop is on the kitchen counter, plugged in to charge overnight. She flips the lid up and scans the folders on the desktop. One folder is marked 'ACTIVE CASES'. She clicks on the folder, and a password text box appears on the screen. _Dammit._ She tries a couple combinations halfheartedly without success before giving up. She closes the laptop and goes back to bed, where she lies awake, staring up at the ceiling.

Finally, she gets up again. Logan is still sleeping soundly; she keeps an eye on him and opens the second drawer of her desk. From the back of the drawer, she extracts a tiny device and a small electronic item about the size of a pack of cards. She carefully replaces the batteries of both items, continuously watching to make that Logan is unaware, and secretes them in her book bag. Veronica climbs back into bed and eventually falls asleep.

Fri. 4/17/09: California Institution for Men, Chino, CA

Oswaldo Cortez shuffles to the non-contact booth at the visitors' area in Chino with a belligerent expression on his face. He sits and stares through the glass at Weevil.

Weevil holds the phone up and mouths, "Pick the phone up, motherfucker."

Glaring, Oswaldo takes the phone. "What the fuck do you want?"

"How's it going? The first few weeks are a bitch, huh?"

"Did you come all the way up here just to fuck with me? 'Cause I don't need your bullshit. Thanks for setting me up, _pendejo_."

Weevil shrugs. "You got what was coming to you. You're lucky I didn't put you down." He looks at Oswaldo quizzically. "I see a couple nice bruises on your face. And you're walking like you hurt. Emilio keeping you in line?"

"Yeah," Oswaldo replies curtly.

"You know I could put a word in for you. I'm pretty tight with Emilio."

"What the fuck do you want, Weevil?"

"Or I could remind Emilio how you sold out the PCHers to the fucking micks."

Oswaldo stares furiously at Weevil.

Weevil says quietly. "I got a little proposal for you. I need you to ask your old buddies the Fitzpatricks...find out how that Lincoln Navigator—you know, the one that got Ciaran and Padraig popped for fencing stolen goods—find out how the Fitzpatricks got that car. All the details."

"Fuck you."

"Okay, if that's what you want. I guess you like getting beat down every day." Weevil hangs up the phone and turns to call the guard, and Oswaldo raps the glass with his phone. Weevil picks up the phone again. "I'm listening."

"That's all you want?"

"Yeah, everything you can find out about the SUV. Where they got it from, or who they got it from. Call me collect when you got the 411."

Oswaldo nods.

Fri. 4/17/09: lunchtime, Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Keith reviews all the information they have gathered so far about the investigation into Kendall's murder.

• Fall 2007: After Kendall Casablancas narrowly escapes from Liam Fitzpatrick, she convinces Dr. Griffith to perform plastic surgery, and she disappears  
• Fall 2008: Liam hears that a blonde woman was trying to get into the joint bank account in the Caymans; he surmises that it's actually Kendall; begins actively searching for her and putting pressure on Dr. Griffith  
• Nov. 3, 2008: Liam and the other Fitzpatricks in prison, held without bail, awaiting trial on racketeering and conspiracy charges  
• Jan. 10, 2009: Carney finds Hannah and uses her to threaten Dr. Griffith  
• Approx. Jan. 15: Dr. Griffith delivers a photo of Kendall's new face to Father Patrick  
• Feb. 2: Kendall arrived in Neptune the same day as Duncan; later Kendall claimed she heard Liam was in prison and felt it was safe to come back to Neptune  
• Feb. 8-28: Kendall has affair with Duncan, videotaping him without his knowledge  
• Feb. 9: Racketeering and conspiracy charges against the Fitzpatricks are dropped; Liam released, but Kendall doesn't leave Neptune despite the increased threat that she'll be recognized and killed  
• Feb. 27: Kendall breaks into Mars Investigation  
• Feb. 28: Confrontation with Kendall at the Neptune Grand  
- Kendall admits to break-in, seeking proceeds from Phoenix Land Trust she presumed was in Keith's possession  
- Kendall admits to her conspiracy with Liam, siphoning funds from Richard Casablancas Sr.'s REIT  
- Kendall discloses that she and Liam had a joint bank account  
- Kendall claims she was running a con on Duncan and would blackmail him if necessary for additional funds  
• Mar. 1-15: Crawfords leave for annual vacation in Bonaire  
- Crawfords' housekeeper, Bridget Mulvaney, tied to Fitzpatricks through her nephew, Daniel  
• Mar. 7: Duncan witnesses Kendall talking to Griffith in playground  
• Mar. 9: Gardener sees the Crawfords' SUV in the garage  
• Mar. 10 or 11: Crawfords' SUV is stolen: the alarm is bypassed, and the car is taken without incident, despite the keys still remaining at the house  
• Mar. 11: Wallace and Eli call in a tip, and the Fitzpatricks are busted for receiving stolen goods  
• Mar. 11, between 10pm-1am: Kendall murdered in Waterside Park  
- Approx. 9:00pm: Ratner picks up Kendall, in disguise, at the Neptune Grand employees' entrance  
- 9:30pm: Ratner witnesses Kendall getting into a black Lincoln Navigator at 729 Main St., downtown Neptune  
- Kendall appears to know the driver  
- Traffic cameras confirm Navigator drove route heading to Waterside Park  
- Kendall doesn't return for her 10:00pm appointment with Ratner; he waits until 10:30pm and leaves  
- Liam, Padraig, and Ciaran Fitzpatrick and Daniel Mulvaney in police custody at the time  
- Carney working on FBI business in San Francisco at the time of Liam's arrest; unable to respond to Liam until the next day; solid alibi for Kendall's murder  
- Griffith's whereabouts at the time of the murder unknown; wife claimed they were home all night, alibi unverified  
• Mar. 12, 1:13am-2:07am, from Neptune Grand computer log: Kendall's suite at the Neptune Grand is thoroughly searched; Kendall's laptop is missing  
• Mar. 12, 7:45am: Kendall's body discovered in Waterside Park, shot through the head with a .45 caliber handgun; cash, credit cards, and keycard for the Neptune Grand are missing but identification is intact; Kendall's cell phone, assumed to be a prepaid disposable phone, also missing  
• Mar. 14: Oswaldo Cortez tells Sheriff D'Amato about Kendall's previous affair with Logan Echolls and that Logan and Veronica were at the Neptune Grand on Feb. 28  
• Mar. 15: Crawfords return from vacation and report the car theft  
• Mar. 17: Kevin Bray offers false testimony, telling Sheriff D'Amato that he saw Logan with Kendall in Waterside Park on Mar. 11  
• Mar. 18: Jeff Ratner tells Sheriff D'Amato that Kendall bribed him with sex to get him to drive her to a meeting with an unknown person  
• Mar. 20: Stereo from Lincoln Navigator turns up in San Diego pawnshop  
- Pawnshop obtained stereo from Paddy's Used Car Emporium (Fitzpatrick chop shop) in Neptune  
• Mar. 21: Seats from Lincoln Navigator located in Paddy's lot  
- Hair matching Kendall found on seats  
- No other forensic evidence recovered, either at the crime scene or on the remnants of the chopped SUV  
• Mar. 21: Sheriff D'Amato interviews Padraig Fitzpatrick  
- Padraig unaware that Kendall had a connection to the SUV  
- Padraig surprised that Liam went to the Caymans in September after Kendall showed up down there  
- Padraig unaware that Dr. Griffith had performed plastic surgery on Kendall  
• Murder weapon not recovered

Deputy Sacks had really come through and provided Keith with most of the details of Leo's investigation; Cliff had added a few more details gleaned from the courtroom gossip about the inquest. Keith ponders the break-in into Kendall's suite so soon after she was murdered and wonders about the timing:_ did someone really murder her, dispose of the vehicle, and get back to the Neptune Grand within a few hours? Cutting it awfully close, but possible,_ he decides. He scribbles a note to himself: '_check hotel surveillance logs, midnight to four am.'_

Despite the apparent truce between himself and D'Amato, Keith is reluctant to talk with Leo about the case. When asked his opinion about approaching the sheriff to trade information, Sacks had said, "I don't know if that's such a good idea, Keith. The sheriff is still kind of touchy, especially about an open case." However, the deputy had been willing to discreetly share Leo's impressions with his former boss.

Sacks had said that D'Amato was certain that Padraig wasn't lying: the seasoned criminal had been completely surprised to find out that Kendall was in town—or even alive, for that matter. _So how did the vehicle that she was last seen in end up in Padraig's chop shop? Especially when Padraig and most of his employees were sitting in a cell at the Neptune Sheriff's Department while Kendall was being murdered?  
_  
Keith thinks, _I feel like I'm missing something...something I should know. Why did Kendall stay in Neptune when she must have known how dangerous it was with Liam on the loose? Did someone else hate Kendall enough to kill her?_ He hears a noise from the outer office and walks out to see Veronica doing something with her back to him. "Veronica?"

Veronica jumps and whirls around. Slightly breathless, she says, "Oh hey, Dad, you startled me. I didn't think you were here. Your car's not out front, and the door was locked."

"I'm getting the air conditioning fixed. It hasn't been working right lately. And I gave Susan the day off and didn't want someone just wandering in. I've got a difficult case that I need to concentrate on. Do you need something?"

_What difficult case?_ Veronica thinks. "I need to borrow your copy of the California Penal Code for my Criminology paper. I'll bring it back on Monday."

Keith shrugs. "Sure. It's in my office." He walks into his office and goes to his bookshelf, searching for the correct text. Veronica follows him into the office and surreptitiously attaches a bug underneath the client's chair when Keith's back is turned. "Here you go. Keep it as long as you need." He hands the book to her, and she smiles gratefully.

"Thanks, Dad."

"You guys heading up to Los Angeles for the weekend now?" Keith asks.

"Yeah, Logan's double-parked out front, waiting for me. We'll see you on Monday." She turns to go.

"Uh, Veronica?"

Veronica turns back around. "Yeah, Dad?"

Keith asks hesitantly, "How's it going with Dr. Friedman? Are you feeling...I don't know, better?"

"Maybe. A little more in control," she admits.

"You know you can always talk to me. Wait, let me change that. Veronica, _please_ talk to me," he amends carefully. "I want to know what's going on with you. No surprises. Even if you think I won't be happy about it."

"I know, Dad."

"On Monday, can we talk about you moving to Los Angeles?" he presses. "I promise not to get upset."

"Okay. I better go, Dad. We're probably going to hit traffic," she replies.

He steps toward her and hugs her, kissing on the top of her head. "I'm proud of you and I love you, Veronica. Don't ever forget that."

"I love you too, Dad."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Adrenaline and Nausea**  
Veronica works with Dr. Friedman; Logan  
and Veronica discuss the future; Weevil  
hears from Oswaldo; Veronica is tempted  
again and struggles with her resolutions.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Mac: Tina Majorino. Eli: Francis Capra.  
Dr. Friedman: Lorraine Bracco. Oswaldo:  
Frankie Rodriguez. Tim: Trevor Donovan.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FORTY-SEVEN: "ADRENALINE AND NAUSEA"

Fri. 4/17/09: late afternoon, Dr. Friedman's Office, Los Angeles, CA

Veronica is staring out the window in Dr. Friedman's office. The therapist frowns. "Did something happen, Veronica?"

"What?"

"Where'd you go just now? You were lost in thought."

Veronica smiles wanly. "I don't know."

"Tell me about your week."

"I thought we were going to talk about the first time they took me down at Briar Hill today...the first time Logan had to hurt me."

"I think something happened this week, and you don't want to talk about it."

Veronica shakes her head ruefully. "Logan said you were sneaky."

"Is it sneaky to be concerned about what's going on in your life?"

"He also said you're genetically predisposed to answering a question with a question." Veronica sighs.

"And I think you might be genetically predisposed to concealing your true feelings."

"Ooh, that was a zinger, doctor."

"Out with it, Veronica. I can't help you if—"

"I'm going crazy, okay? I don't know what to do with myself. I tried to make up with Mac this week, but it's still so screwed up."

"What's screwed up, Veronica?"

"Mac says she's not mad at me, but how can that be? She tried to send me a message, and I was too oblivious to notice...and instead I almost got us all killed by insisting on running up to Rio Linda to investigate. Hell, even before that...what I did with Gory, putting her in jeopardy. Putting _all_ of us in danger," she repeats in a quiet voice, avoiding looking at the doctor.

Dr. Friedman frowns. "You mean blackmailing Gory? Didn't you do that to protect Logan?"

"Not at first...I mean, when I found out about the video, I couldn't just let it go. I was too humiliated, and I had to find out who made it and punish them, no matter the consequences." She stresses bitterly, "I couldn't just let it go. It cost my dad his job...and eventually Norman Phipps his life."

"How were you supposed to react to a sex tape of yourself being put on the internet without your knowledge?"

Veronica shifts her gaze to the doctor, completely flummoxed. "What?"

"How would a normal person react? You're telling me you had an abnormal reaction."

"I guess...maybe they would go to the cops. I don't know."

"Even if the cop was their dad?"

"I guess it'd be hard for anyone to do that," Veronica admits.

Dr. Friedman leans forward in her chair. "Veronica, you never told your dad about your rape. Why is that?"

"Oh god...."

"Would you have told your mother if she was still around?"

Veronica blurts, "Do we have to talk about this?"

Dr. Friedman just looks at her kindly.

After a few seconds, Veronica admits, "I probably wouldn't have told my mother. I was always closer to my dad."

"So in the morning, when you woke up and realized you'd been raped, you went to the sheriff and told him what happened."

"That's what you're supposed to do, right?" Veronica retorts bitterly. "The police are supposed to help you." She picks at the fabric on the arm of her chair. "And he didn't believe me. So I left."

"You went home?"

"I sat in the car and looked at the writing on my windshield. S-SLUT," she stutters. "I didn't even have a friend I could call for help. My best friend was dead, Duncan was ignoring me, and Logan was...attacking me, and no one was speaking to me at school any more. I drove home and parked on the street outside our apartment complex, and I waited until I saw Dad leave."

"Why?"

"I didn't want him to see the car."

"With the writing on it."

"'Abel—it should've been her.' It would have killed him," Veronica explains. "After Dad left, I pulled into the lot. I found a tarp in the trunk and threw it over the windshield and the writing. I went in and took a shower, knowing that I was— I was— I was washing away the evidence that would convict my rapist."

"Why didn't you go to the hospital, Veronica?"

"It would have been the same!" Veronica wails. "They wouldn't have believed me either."

"Surely you were hung over and hurting too. Were you bleeding?"

Veronica avoids looking at the doctor and stays silent.

"Go on, Veronica. What happened after you took a shower?"

Veronica swallows. "I got a bucket and a brush and all the cleaning supplies I could find. It took me most of the afternoon to get the writing off my car."

"So your dad wouldn't know what happened."

"He would have been so disappointed," Veronica whispers. "He told me to be careful at parties...never to take a drink from someone I didn't know. He would have been upset that I even went to a party where everyone was drunk or high."

"That's not all though."

"Yes, it is," Veronica protests.

"Wouldn't your dad have tried to find out who raped you and punished them? I've only met your dad once, and I think I can safely say that he wouldn't have rested until he found the boy who did that to you. No matter what the consequences would be of an investigation like that." Dr. Friedman looks at Veronica sympathetically. "You would have been the center of a controversy, all the rich kids aligned against you and your dad, with your dad raising a ruckus and all the kids from the party swearing that you were asking for it."

"He would have killed the boy," Veronica whispers.

"And you thought—?"

"I couldn't let him do that. I couldn't— I couldn't take the chance I'd lose him too."

Dr. Friedman assesses Veronica for a moment. "Let's take a little break." She stands up and gets two glasses of water, handing one of them to Veronica. "I'm sorry this is so hard."

Veronica nods, her eyes welling up. She drinks some of the water and avoids looking at the doctor.

"You know, I'm constantly impressed with how strong you are, Veronica."

Veronica looks up at the doctor, surprised. "What?"

"I think you're a very strong woman. I see why everyone cares about you so deeply." Veronica squirms uncomfortably as the doctor retakes her seat. "Did something happen this week, Veronica?"

Veronica sighs and just says it. "I told my dad and Logan that I wanted to move up here to Los Angeles. Since I'm going to be quitting the business, I think it would be better to have a fresh start, and I think I'm ready to take the next step with Logan and move in together."

"And how did they react?"

"I don't understand! Logan was upset that I hadn't talked to him about moving in together. He's the one who's always pushing the relationship forward, and for once I took the lead and he was all...." Veronica adopts a heavily sarcastic tone. "'Did you even think about asking me what I thought? I'd rather go slow with you and me.'"

"That's what he said?"

Veronica nods.

Dr. Friedman asks, "Can you tell me in your own words what you think he meant? Not what you _heard_. What you think Logan _meant_. Think for a minute before you tell me."

Veronica sucks in a breath and thinks. _Logan had said, 'Did you even think about asking me what I thought?'  
_  
She recalls being completely caught off guard. _'I thought you'd be in favor of it!'_

_His face...so serious and concerned. 'Yeah, in theory. But I also don't want to screw it up with you. We've both been through a lot lately. I'd rather go slow with you and me.'_

_Go slow. Why would he want to slow down?_

Hesitantly, Veronica says, "I think he meant he wants to be with me for the long haul, and he should get to have a say in how we go about it. He's worried about making a mistake. ...But Dr. Friedman, he's always wanted me to say that I loved him and needed him, and now I'm saying it all the time...why isn't he happy? I'm doing exactly what he always wanted."

"Are you considering moving in with him to make _him_ happy or to make _you_ happy? Are you worried that you'll lose him if you don't move in with him?"

Veronica exhales sharply. "I need him, okay?"

"What would make you happy, Veronica?"

Wretchedly, Veronica replies, "Nothing, okay? Nothing can really make me happy any more, all right? I'm just barely holding on."

"Did the changes you've made so far make you any happier? Are you looking forward to changing your major and pursuing a new course of study?" When Veronica doesn't respond, the doctor continues, "How about for next time...we do a couple exercises. I want you to write down a description of the last time you felt completely happy, and then I want you to write about your perfect day, what that would be like. You don't even have to show them to me, but I think you might be surprised what you come up with."  
_  
_Sun. 4/19/09: late afternoon, Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA

After relaxing for most of the weekend, Veronica is sitting on the couch in Logan's beach house, scribbling on a yellow legal pad, completely engrossed in her task. Logan comes up behind her and hugs her. He notes that the paper is headed 'MY PERFECT DAY'. "Whatcha workin' on, sugarpuss?" he asks.

She pulls the pad to her chest, hiding what she has written. "Nothing."

"O-kay. I'm going to go out and get us some dinner, all right? Any requests?"

"Anything but 'Woo Too'. I'm sick of Chinese," she comments.

When Logan returns, Veronica is seated in front of the fireplace, burning a multitude of wadded-up pieces of yellow paper. Logan refrains from commenting. She catches his eye and blushes. She stands up, brushing off her hand on her pants leg, and joins him in the kitchen. "Mmm, sushi." She washes her hands and peeks into the bags on the counter.

"All hand rolls, so that a certain independent woman I know can easily eat them left-handed."

She leans against him and says, "I'm sorry."

"Huh?"

"I'm sorry about the moving in together thing," she elaborates.

"Oh. That." Logan dissolves some wasabi in a dish of soy sauce and selects a California roll, dunking it thoroughly.

"What do you think about it?" she presses. "You haven't said a word about it since the restaurant the other night."

"I think...yeah, I want to be with you all the time."

"But?"

He pops the sushi in his mouth and chews it as a delaying tactic. Finally, he looks her in the eye and says, "I'm worried about you. And I'm worried about us. We can't be happy if you're not happy."

"I'm trying to be happy," she protests quietly. "I'm just not doing a very good job of it."

"It's not supposed to be so hard to be happy. What do you want?"

"That's the thing—I don't know."

"Was that—" He motions toward the fireplace.

She nods. "One of Friedman's exercises."

"Ah," Logan replies understandingly. "She loves those little homework projects. 'Therapy is not a car wash...you have to do the work.'"

"She said that to me too," Veronica says, remembering.

Logan leans against the counter and pulls her into him. "Look, Veronica, if there was ever anybody smart enough to figure this stuff out, it's you. You just gotta cut yourself some slack once in a while." He hugs her for a moment. "Did you mean it, Veronica? Do you really want to take the next step?"

Hesitantly, she mumbles, "I think so."

"Yeah, I do too. Let's see what happens the next few weeks, and together we'll figure out how to do it, okay?"

"What about...?" Veronica's voice dies away.

Logan sighs. "I didn't want to say anything yet, but I've been thinking. What about halfway? What if we got a place together halfway between Neptune and Los Angeles? Somewhere on the Amtrak line so we can both take a train to school. Maybe some nights you can still stay with your dad, so he doesn't miss you so much. And maybe you'll want to be on campus in the evenings sometimes, so it would make sense to stay in Neptune."

"Where would such a mythical place be located?" Veronica asks happily.

"San Clemente. Home to some particularly gnarly surf spots, by the way. It's a way to be together most of the time, but it will make your dad happy too. He could even visit once in a while. And you wouldn't have to transfer. It's about an hour and a half by train for both of us."

"Surfing, huh?"

"Yeah, I think by the summer I'll be ready to try surfing again." Logan flexes his knee. "Hardly ever hurts anymore." He kisses the top of her head. "It's just for a year. We can commute for a year, don't you think?"

Veronica sighs, putting her arm around him. "I've been so focused on the problems that I haven't even been able to conceive of a solution."

"I'm not just arm-candy, you know. Humph. I have a brain, if you'd ever let me use it."

She smacks his rear end. In a Southern accent, she says, "What'd I tell ya about wearin' too many clothes, honeybun?" She glances around the lavishly appointed beach house. "Seriously, you'd give up this gorgeous place?"

"There are some bad memories here, Veronica. The night I put my hand through the shower door and the car crash...the paparazzi stalking me after Hannah's murder. You're not the only one thinking about a fresh start lately."

Suddenly Veronica realizes that an enormous pressure has been lifted. Without the looming transfer deadline, she has time...time to figure out what to do next. "Thank you...for finding a solution, Logan," she whispers.

"I was highly motivated," he replies lightly. But he feels the intensity with which she squeezes his hand, and he knows how important this was to her...and to him.

Several hours later, they are lying together on the bed with Logan idling tracing a pattern on her shoulder. Veronica closes her eyes tightly, trying to convince herself that this is all she needs for her 'perfect day' assignment.

But she keeps thinking about the digital voice recorder currently recording everything transmitted by the bug in her dad's office...wondering about just what her dad is investigating that involves Jeff Ratner and what secrets are being kept from her by Wallace and Mac.

Mon. 4/20/09: morning, Hearst College, Neptune, CA

Weevil triggers the send button on his cell phone. "Yo."

An operator's voice says, "I have a collect call from Inmate #3479892 at the Chino Correctional Facility, Oswaldo Cortez. Will you accept the charges?"

"Yeah, go ahead."

Oswaldo comes on the line. "Weevil?"

"Yeah. What you got for me?"

"I got what you wanted. But not over the phone. You got to come up here. And...I'm going to need something from you."

Weevil snorts. "You got a lot of _cojones_, Ozzie."

"Carton of smokes, or forget it, _ese_."

"All right. But I can't come today or tomorrow. I'll be there for visiting hours on Wednesday."

Mon. 4/20/09: afternoon, Hearst College, Neptune, CA

In the hallway of the Social Sciences building, Mac sees Veronica walking just ahead, and she hurries to catch up. "Hey, Veronica."

"Hi, Mac." Veronica's smile is still a little uncertain, but genuine.

"How was your weekend?"

"Actually...really good. We didn't do much."

"Something's different," Mac guesses.

"Well, I think Logan's come up with a solution to something that's been bothering me. I want to think about it a little before we tell anybody."

"Okay."

Veronica thinks, _It almost feels like we're normal friends. _"What'd you do this weekend?"

"A little hacking. Kind of felt good to get back into it." Mac interlaces her fingers and pushes her hands out backward to crack her knuckles, smiling slyly. "You know what a rebel I am."

"For my dad?" Veronica asks, suddenly nervous.

Mac admits, "Yeah. Are you okay with that? I mean—"

"It's none of my business," Veronica replies quietly. "You can work for him. Just...be careful, okay?"

Mac is about to respond when a boy unknown to either of them comes up and asks, "Hey, are you Veronica Mars?"

"Who's asking?" Veronica retorts sharply, expecting some comment about the recent events in Monterey.

"I'm Tim. I hear you do favors for friends. I can pay. Something about a friends' rate?" Tim looks at her pleadingly.

The words echo in her brain, jumbled with memories of old ultra-confident, snarky Veronica. _ 'I do favors for friends....It was my friends of friends' rate which I have now extended to friends of friends of friends.'_ She suddenly is incredibly tempted to find out just what Tim's problem is, but then she glances at Mac by her side and pictures her crying and shaking on the boat. Veronica shakes herself and says firmly, "Sorry, I don't do that anymore."

"But what am I going to do?" Tim whines pitifully.

"I don't know. Come on, Mac." Veronica tugs at Mac's sleeve and takes off down the corridor.

Tues. 4/21/09: late afternoon, Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Veronica casually suggests to Logan that she needs to drop off that book she borrowed from her dad, and he swings by Mars Investigations and waits for her in the car while she runs inside. She checks her watch: 5:15pm. She knows that her dad has a dinner meeting with the representative from one of the insurance companies which contracts out personal injuries investigations to the agency, and the temp usually leaves by five o'clock.

She lets herself into the darkened office. "Hello?" she calls, remembering that her dad surprised her the last time. _You were really off your game, letting your dad get the jump on you that day. Stupid, stupid Veronica._ But the office is deserted. She checks the bug first; it's right where she placed it underneath the client's chair. She takes the opportunity to replace its button battery, cursing her clumsiness because of the sling, and puts the device back under the chair. In the reception area, she swaps out the compact digital voice recorder she hid behind the credenza for a new one that will give her another sixty hours of recording time.

Veronica quickly looks around the office..._just like I was trained._ She casts a longing eye at the file cabinets, tempted to dig into the files. But with no clue as to who the client is, it could be hours of fruitless searching...and she's betting her dad's keeping this particular client under wraps in the office safe anyways. Still, she uses her keys to open the R-S-T drawer and checks to see if Ratner himself is the client..._nope._ She slams the drawer shut and performs a final check; nothing's out of place, and she shuts off the lights and locks up.

Back in the car, Logan looks at her strangely before leaning over to kiss her fervently. "Whoa," she breathes when he finally pulls away. "What was that for?"

"I don't know," he muses. "You just looked really sexy all of a sudden."

Veronica wonders if he can somehow hear her heart pounding in her chest. "Hmm," she answers noncommittally. She thinks about the recorder in her purse and wonders how she's going to be able to listen to it with Logan around. _He wouldn't understand what I'm doing,_ she thinks. _Hell, I don't even understand what I'm doing._

"Your dad has that dinner tonight, right?" When she nods, Logan whispers, "I have a sudden urge to ravage you." He puts the car in gear and takes off with the tires squealing. As he drives, he rests his hand on her knee, stroking sensuously, and Veronica realizes to her confusion that she's incredibly turned on. Logan keeps glancing over at her, with that expression that means he's picturing her naked.

At the first stoplight, he leans over and kisses her again before dipping down to kiss her neck the way she likes. "How's that shoulder feeling, Veronica?" he murmurs into her ear before sucking lightly on her earlobe. He takes her hand and puts it on the crotch of his jeans. "Because I kind of don't want to be gentle tonight if you're up to it."

She exhales at the feel of his hard cock straining against the fabric. "I think...we could try to be a little more...adventurous," she pants. "The light's changed, Logan."

Logan leans back and hits the gas. While he drives, he begins to caress further up Veronica's leg until his fingers are brushing up against her center through her pants. "Feels good, Veronica? We're almost there." He sees a light turning yellow up ahead, and he guns it to sneak through just before the red.

"Nicely done," she laughs, and he grins at her. Shyly, she puts her hand back on his cock, stroking gently, and he groans loudly.

"Veronica, those jeans are coming off the moment we get in the door," Logan swears. He takes the turn into the Sunset Cliffs complex a little too fast, and Veronica laughs again. For just a second he wonders what's going on with her, but it's lost in his primitive excitement. He stops the car, throwing it into 'Park' almost before it ceases moving. He walks quickly around the car and grabs her backpack and his laptop and circles her waist with his arm. Logan slides his hand into her back pocket, feeling that luscious ass through the material, and propels her along to the apartment's front door.

She fumbles a little with the key, and he takes it from her and slots it into the lock. He opens the door, throws the keys on the counter, and puts the two bags down on the floor. Before she can say a word, he has his left arm around her back to protect her shoulder, and she is pressed up against the front door with his knee between her legs. He slides her purse off her shoulder, tossing it aside, and bends down to capture her mouth while his hand works at the button on her jeans. He gets the button undone and quickly pulls down her zipper, thrusting his hand inside her panties.

They both moan loudly when his fingers make contact with her wet slit. "Jesus, Veronica," he growls in her ear. "Fuck, I hate jeans," he complains, trying to move his hand roughly against her but feeling constrained by the fabric.

"Take me to the bedroom," she whispers.

"Put your legs around me," he says urgently, hoisting her up. She holds on for dear life with her uninjured arm and clamps her legs around his waist, and he walks them into her bedroom with his tongue battling hers in her mouth. He stumbles a little as they pass through the doorway, but he catches them before she is knocked into the wall. They just barely make it to the bed before Logan loses his grip on her; she slides down onto the bed, and he wastes no time grabbing the waist of her jeans, pulling them and her panties down her legs in one fluid motion. "Damn it, shoes," he mutters, struggling to get her shoes off while her clothes are bunched around her ankles. He looks up and loses his breath, seeing her already pulling off the sling and undoing her shirt and bra. He stops what he's doing for a moment to push the fabric aside and plant his lips on her breast, sucking hard on her nipple while his fingers seek out her center again. He can feel her pushing at her pants, trying to free her legs, and he reaches down to help her. Finally, one leg is free and her legs open for him.

"Oh Veronica," he breathes, dipping his mouth down between her legs. He laps at her nub. She's kicking, trying to free her other leg; he looks up and growls, "Stop moving!" He pushes her backward down onto the bed and slips his arms under her thighs and around her pelvis, holding her firmly in place as he begins to tongue-fuck her.

She feels the electric charge of his tongue's assault on her and loses her breath, giving herself over to the unbearable and exquisite tension of the stimulation. His tongue probes deeply; she hears the wet sounds of him gorging himself unashamedly on her most intimate flesh. He suddenly stops, and she raises her head to look down. His pupils almost completely dilated, he fixes her with an intense gaze as his thumbs deliberately pull back her hood to expose her clit. He stares at her as he sucks her nub _hard_ into his lips, and then flicks his tongue unrelentingly against her. Veronica thinks, _He can't keep this up,_ but he does...she feels the heat from his breath...his saliva mixing with her arousal, coating his face and her loins, oozing between her legs but she doesn't care...she can't think, it's all instinct and hormones and smells and vibrations and helpless writhing beneath his tongue. Her hand twines in his hair, grasping at him, urging him deeper, as she arches and trembles in thrall to his insistent onslaught.

Logan heaves himself up from her; he stumbles to the nightstand, trying to kick off his shoes and pull down his jeans as he goes. She's frantically shedding the rest of her clothes as well. Veronica protests, "No, Logan, we don't need to...it's been five weeks now, it's safe. I don't want you to—"

"Dammit, don't tempt me!" he growls. "I'm not fucking this up, Veronica." Logan stares at her, almost angry, and she nods her acquiescence, slightly frightened by his vehemence. He shucks his t-shirt and moves back to the end of the bed, his hand assuredly smoothing the condom on his stiff cock. He leans down and licks her one more time before lying down between her legs. He covers her with his body and sucks on her neck as his penis thrusts implacably, trying to find her entrance. She lifts her legs and angles her pelvis for him and, with a deep moan, he slides in. "Never get tired of how you taste, Veronica," he pants before locking his lips on her and thrusting his tongue in her mouth as his cock slips in and out. He angles his head, almost sucking the life out of her with his kiss, bruising her mouth and abrading her delicate skin with the slight scruff of his beard.

Logan slips his arms beneath her shoulders with only a hint of caution for her healing shoulder...but she's not afraid of the pain, she trusts him, for a moment she doesn't care, doesn't worry, doesn't think. And then without warning, he rolls her on top. "Yes?" he asks...no, he _demands_. She nods, exhaling, and he helps her to sit up, her knees coming underneath to brace herself as his hands steady her hips. Tentatively she tries to lift herself, supporting her weight with her strong left arm, and then he thrusts up aggressively as she maneuvers downward. "Yeah, Veronica, that's it," he encourages. She moves more confidently, raising herself with her thighs, and he puts his thumb on her clit, staring into her eyes. "Yeah, Veronica, fuck me. Fuck me," as he pumps upward into her. "Feels good, baby, don't stop," he pants, pushing forcefully on her nub. She leans down to trap his mouth with hers and tries hard...so hard...to speed up, to slide, to slam against him, anything to keep this going, _please_ keep this going.

Suddenly he gasps, "I'm going to come...come for me, Veronica," grabbing her ass and pulling her down hard onto his cock. She feels him thrusting, his cock pumping and shuddering inside, and she lets it happen, relaxing into the blackness of surrender, with every sensation concentrated in the feel of his thumb pressing violently against her. She collapses, spent, onto his chest, and he rolls her onto her uninjured side.

They lie there panting and breathless, with Logan's arms wrapped around her. "Yeah, Veronica," he mumbles, brushing his lips on her hair. He strokes her arms, gently caressing her healing shoulder. "You're going to be okay...you're going to be _okay_."

Later that night, she retrieves the digital voice recorder from her purse and plugs it into her computer. She drums her fingers lightly on the desk, waiting for the files to copy, and then adds track marks and adjusts the sound levels. She loads the sound files onto her iPod, determined to try to listen to her surveillance during her physical therapy the next day.

She steals a glance at Logan, slumbering easily in the bed. She still feels aroused, weak-kneed even, at the memory of his intense, almost animalistic, physicality and their erotic abandon together. Every time she thinks that she knows everything about him, he manages to surprise her. For a moment, she allows herself to wonder about her own reactions...but she shies away, pushing her questions far down in the recesses of her consciousness.

Veronica conceals the digital recorder in the back of her desk drawer and joins Logan in the bed, assiduously ignoring her guilt about bugging her dad. Annoying, rational Veronica mocks her: _Why don't you just ask him again? Tell Dad you...._ She can't finish the thought, and she dismisses it, unable to make sense of her confused emotions.

* * *

_**The conclusion will be posted in a few days. See you then.**_

**_-VanessaGalore_  
**


	41. Chapters 148 to 151

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?" The institution discussed in this fic is not a real institution. No harm or insult is intended to any real-life organizations or to any participants in the meetings of these organizations. Again, this fic is not intended for those under the age of 17.

**A/N: **Beta-ed by Poniesforall and Kazy. Any remaining errors are my responsibility.

* * *

_Previously on 'The Year of Living Dangerously': Veronica vows that she's quitting the detective business so she'll never cause one of her friends to be hurt again; Logan worries that she'll eventually hate her life and despise him for letting her do this, and maybe even blame him for all their old arguments about her taking risks. He's tempted to try to push her back into investigating, but Keith counsels him not to, and Logan reluctantly agrees. All her friends are concerned that Veronica is making permanent changes in her life while she is still recovering from her trauma, but they reluctantly accede to her wishes. Veronica herself admits that she's not being rational and can't even figure out what would make her happy._

_When a reporter starts nosing around the story of Duncan's affair with Kendall, Duncan hires Keith to find out who killed her. Keith enlists Wallace and Mac's help. Veronica suspects something's going on, and, instead of just asking, she snoops and plants a bug in her dad's office, still insisting to her friends that she's intent on changing her life. When she retrieves the recording device from her dad's office, Logan responds to her adrenaline buzz, and they have wild sex, with Logan encouraging Veronica be on top._

* * *

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Gut Reaction**  
Logan has a nightmare; Veronica goes to  
physical therapy; Veronica reacts predictably.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Wallace: Percy Daggs  
III. Eli: Francis Capra. John: Brian Hallisay.  
Aide: Janelle Velasquez.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FORTY-EIGHT: "GUT REACTION"

Wed. 4/22/09: very early, Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Logan wakes up suddenly. The light is dim in the bedroom; it's still very early. It's quiet...too quiet. He rolls over, but she's not in the bed. "Veronica?" He gets up and walks to her desk. _No note. Where is she?_ He grabs his shorts from the floor and stops dead. The closet door is slightly ajar. He rushes over and throws open the door: the closet is completely empty. Every item is gone, except for a couple of his shirts and a pair of his jeans hanging from a hook. He pushes the shirts aside, and the wire hangers jangle loudly.

Suddenly it seems really important to get dressed. He puts on his jeans and a T-shirt and shoves his feet into his sneakers. He checks the bathroom; all that's left is his shaving gear and toothbrush. Out in the kitchen, he pulls open the drawers...empty, except for some crumbs...a butter knife...a box of matches. There's a jar of mustard and some moldy olives in the refrigerator. He whirls around. There are sheets draped over the furniture in the living room.

"Veronica? Keith?"

He walks outside. It's dazzling and brilliant, the sun shining high in the sky. People are going about their business in the apartment complex, ignoring him. He nods at Veronica's neighbor—_fucking old biddy, always giving me the evil eye_—and she scuttles away as if afraid. In the parking lot, he finds Veronica's Saturn and pops open the locks. There's a fine layer of dust on the dash, and the car smells like old dirty socks.

He starts the car and heads up the PCH to Los Angeles. It seem like he's driving forever...he passes the same car three times. _What the fuck?_ When he finally gets to Venice Beach, he drives around the block looking for paparazzi. The coast is clear, and he pulls into the driveway of his house.

Once inside, he calls out again, "Veronica? Are you here?" The house is immaculate, every throw pillow in perfect position, every framed and matted photograph square and even. He walks out onto the deck; his surfboard is leaning against the wall next to the outdoor shower. The beach is deserted, the waves crashing at a high tide well above the usual high water mark. He kicks off his shoes and wades in, ignoring the water soaking his jeans. The tide runs out, the shifting sand dissolving beneath his feet. He squints over the water at the setting sun partially obscured by clouds. The ocean is dark and turbulent as far as the eye can see.

He turns around and walks back to the deck and into the house, his jeans tracking in a trail of wet sand on the perfect white carpet. He sits down on the couch. On the coffeetable is a neat stack of DVDs: he looks through them...every one a porno flick with a hardcore image on the cover. There is another pile of PSP and XBox games, with Grand Theft Auto XIX on top. And in the center of the table...splayed open with the spine broken from hard use, a hardcover book: "My Life as a Modern Day Mata Hari in the FBI" by Veronica Mars. He turns to the inside front cover and reads, "To Logan. Best wishes, Veronica."

Veronica shakes him awake. "Hey...hey...you're dreaming. Logan?"

He tries to smile as he looks nervously around the room at the accumulation of stuff...their folded laundry on the chair, her school work messily piled on the desk, her favorite picture of them slightly askew above a stack of books. And Veronica right in front of him, her warm body pressed against his. "Wow. Really bad dream."

"Gonna tell me about it?"

"Zombies," he lies. "Just like '28 Days Later'."

"Ooh, scary. Sandra Bullock always creeps me out." Then she laughs, making him smile despite himself. Veronica adds, "Sorry, couldn't resist."

"You're in a good mood," he comments, grabbing her and pulling her on top of him.

"Don't tell anyone, but...." She pretends to look around before continuing in a conspiratorial whisper, "I got laid last night."

"Anybody I know?"

"Some guy." Veronica shrugs dramatically.

"Gonna call him?"

"We'll see."

He pretends to sigh. "You broads, with your callous love-em-and-leave-em attitude."

"Breaking hearts wherever we go," she agrees.

"You don't know the half of it," he says.

Wed. 4/22/09: noon, Neptune Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation, Neptune, CA

A few hours later, Logan stops the car, idling at the curb as Veronica grabs her stuff for physical therapy. "You sure you're okay today?"

"What?"

"You're not upset with me about last night, are you?" he says nervously. "I'm sorry if I was too rough—"

She leans over and kisses him hard. "Are you kidding? That was incredible."

"You seem different today, Veronica. What's up with you? Did something happen?"

"I just have something on my mind." _Like...what could be on those recordings sitting on my iPod._ Veronica had fidgeted her way through two lectures this morning. She's quite sure that her notes from the classes will be nonsensical, and she hopes that she didn't miss anything important while she was doodling. Twice, she pulled out her iPod and thought about sneaking the earbuds into her ears...but Professor MacAvoy's policy on students caught listening to music during lectures had been demonstrated to her several times.

What's crazy is...she _wants_ to tell Logan exactly what's going on. Veronica is dying to tell him what she's done, but even she knows this is insane. _What the hell am I doing?_ The temptation to confess to bugging her dad is killing her.

"You're sure?" Logan is still a little unnerved by the visions from his desolate nightmare that morning. He touches her shoulder, almost as if to reassure himself that she really is right in front of him. At her smile, he compulsively pulls her into a tight hug and whispers, "I just loved seeing you look so strong and sexy last night."

"What you're saying is you liked letting me do all the work," she teases.

"Yeah, that's what I meant," he says agreeably. "I'll see you in a couple hours. Work hard on your exercises, sweetcheeks. Listen to the nice physical therapist."

"You mean my torturer, right?" she says wryly. "No pain, no gain. See ya."

He watches her walk up to the front door with eyes narrowed. She's moving much better today, with a spring in her step that he hasn't seen since before Briar Hill. _Maybe she's just hurting less. What possessed me to throw her around like that yesterday?_ He drives off to run a few errands Keith had asked him to perform while she works on her rehab. As he spins the wheel to exit the parking lot, he catches himself tapping nervously on the steering wheel and forces himself to stop.

The aide checks Veronica in and gets her set up on a treatment table in a private room with a heating pad and 'stim', an electrotherapy pain modality. The electrodes attached to the painful points in her shoulder begin to jump with tiny jolts of electricity, and Veronica snuggles the earbuds in her ear and turns up the volume on her iPod.

The bug is sound-activated, so almost every useful track begins in the middle of a word. Once activated, the bug keeps recording for ten minutes before shutting down to save battery life and disc space on the digital voice recorder. She hadn't dared to put the bug actually on her dad's desk, so she had had to put the sensitivity level to its highest setting, which meant that every car horn, ambulance siren, or even the occasional cholo lowrider blasting Mexican top forty passing by the building had triggered the device. She fast-forwards through four or five such useless tracks.

_Phone call. A deadbeat client, sounds like._ She hits the 'forward' button. _Dad's calling Wallace...no, leaving a message. Something about the 'live-out' staff, a cook and a personal shopper...two names, Sharon Taub and Joannie Larang...a suggestion to try to talk to Sharon at her gym and Joannie at her favorite bar over the weekend. Guess Dad ran their credit card bills. 'I'm emailing you their photos...let me know what you find out.'_ She listens again but can't discern any more information on what Wallace is working on.

There is a long stretch of simple ambient noise punctuated by an occasional soft shuffle of papers. A loud thunk—the stapler?—the soft whir of a file drawer being opened, a pause, the drawer being closed; then a few minutes later, the same sequence again. _Dad's working on paperwork._ She randomly checks a few seconds here and there and skips ahead. _Aha, here we go_..._a client meeting...a messy divorce, three kids, the wife suspects an affair with the neighbor. Sordid, just the way we like it._

And then..._jackpot. Mac meeting with Dad._

MAC: —ster Mars.  
DAD: Mac. How are you doing? How are your classes going?  
MAC: Better every day, Mr. Mars. The professors are being really cool.  
DAD: How are your mom and dad holding up?  
MAC: They like the new house a lot, but I guess there's some hassles with the insurance. They were arguing the other night. I wish ...[garbled]...

Veronica rewinds and listens again, but the section is still garbled. She frowns.

DAD: Let me know if I can help. I'd be happy to help your parents look over the paperwork and negotiate with the insurance company for them. I've learned a few tricks over the years. Maybe I even know someone at their carrier.  
MAC: That'd be great. Mr. Mars, I took a look at the server files at Neptune Alarmco, and I found...[garbled]...interesting.  
[silence, sound of papers rustling]  
DAD: What am I looking at?  
MAC: Someone was accessing the server repeatedly right here. On March 7. ...I think they were running an algorithm to replicate the passcode...[garbled]....  
DAD: That's even possible?  
MAC: It's pretty slick. High level programming. Someone was aware of a security vulnerability ...[garbled]... system.  
DAD: Can you trace the hacker? You know this is completely out of my area of expertise.  
MAC: There was a security patch, pretty recent it looked like. And there was a flaw in the coding of the patch. And then the hacker had a way in.  
DAD: I'm not sure I understand.  
MAC: I think the security patch deliberately created a gateway for someone to access ...[garbled].... Mr. Mars, this was not an amateur hacker, not ....[garbled].  
DAD: Or they paid someone who was a pro. Someone who owed them something. Maybe there was more involved ...[garbled]...we're talking five million dollars, you know?  
MAC: Yeah, you might be right. I want to keep working on it, see if I can learn anything else.  
DAD: That'd be great. Thanks for coming in, Mac.

_Damn it. Half the conversation is unintelligible. What the hell is causing that interference? Maybe Mac's laptop emitting a Bluetooth signal?  
_  
Veronica listens three more times to the conversation and manages to pick up a few more words. _Something about a sophisticated computer scheme. Mac should know, I guess. She sounded impressed._

The physical therapy aide touches Veronica's shoulder, and she jumps in alarm. Veronica pulls the earbuds from her ears. "Ooh, you startled me."

"Must be some good tunes. John's ready to work with you." The aide busies herself detaching the electrodes from Veronica's shoulder and then leads her to a therapy table.

"How's the pain today?" the therapist asks. He palpates the most tender areas, and Veronica tries not to wince.

"Generally better, but that—ah!—hurts right there."

"Okay, we'll take a look at that. How about strength, flexibility?"

"Actually...think that's significantly better," Veronica muses, thinking about her sexcapades with Logan the night before. "Yeah...I'm definitely better," she adds with a smile.

John grins. "You look better. Your color's better, you're moving a little more freely today. Let's see how far we can stretch that shoulder."

After the therapist contorts her shoulder in every direction and massages the surgical adhesions, he releases her to the aide, telling Veronica to increase the weights by one-half on every machine. The aide sets up Veronica on the first therapy machine. "Three sets of ten."

"I know," she replies. _It's always...three sets of ten._ "But I can try to go four sets, right?"

"Of course, if you're not hurting." The aide tucks a small block under Veronica's armpit and puts the handle attached to a pulley system in her hand, and Veronica begins gently rotating her forearm out and back in while holding the block in place.

Every exercise seems ridiculously simple...until she tries it. The first couple weeks the aide had to stop Veronica from trying too hard, explaining that her impatience to get stronger was going to hold her back by ramping up her pain levels. She grimaces her way through all the shoulder exercises.

"Let's get you set up on the treadmill. Fifteen minutes, right?" the aide suggests.

"Can I go twenty? Maybe even thirty? I hate feeling so weak. I want to push it. I was running ten miles a day before I went undercover." It's not a lie—Veronica feels like a cripple having to walk, not run, on the treadmill to avoid jarring her shoulder—but the real reason she suggests lengthening the time is the opportunity to listen to more of the surveillance.

"Let's see how you're doing at twenty minutes, okay?"

Veronica puts the headphones back on and begins pacing steadily. She smiles reassuringly at the aide and tries to walk easily so that the aide won't stop the exercise at twenty minutes. She hits 'play' on the iPod and begins skipping through tracks.

DAD: —lo, Lloyd, it's Keith Mars.

Veronica racks her brain. _Lloyd...Lloyd.  
_  
DAD: What do you hear? This reporter...Tom Chilton.

Veronica realizes: _Lloyd Blankenship, at the Neptune Register._

DAD: I think he's doing a hatchet job on my client...really, he's got a source? Hmm....Any way you could ask your editor to hold off on the story—...Yeah, I know. Newspapers are hurting these days, anything to get a bump in circulation. But it seems like you're hanging him out to dry, and it's not just my client who will get hurt. His daughter is the one who will suffer.

_His daughter?_

DAD: [heavy sigh] I know. I appreciate it. Thanks.

The aide comes over and says something; Veronica, still walking steadily on the treadmill, hits pause and says, "Sorry...couldn't hear you."

"Feeling okay? John said you could try to go all the way to thirty minutes."

"Awesome!" Veronica replies, slightly sarcastic. "That's almost as good as Mrs. Donager."

The aide chuckles; Mrs. Donager is eighty-five and uses a walker. "Try to be a little more patient with your body, Veronica."

"Patience is not my strong suit."

"Yeah, we know. Ten more minutes."

Veronica smiles and hits 'play'. She hears a door closing on the track and listens intently.

DAD: What you got for me, Wallace?  
WALLACE: They went to a party on Feb. 21, at the Banks. The cook remembered, because she had the night off.  
DAD: Catered affair?  
WALLACE: Yep. Elite Catering.  
DAD: You need to talk to Martha—  
WALLACE: I'm on it. I've got an appointment with her later today. I'll try to get the guest list and the employees who worked at the party. We can see if the Crawfords talked about their upcoming vacation. Any word from Weevil?  
DAD: He said he should have something by Wed. afternoon. He's got to go up to Chino in person.

_The Crawfords? Are they the clients? What the hell is Dad working on? How does Ratner connect to the Crawfords? And Chino? Weevil's working for Dad now too?  
_  
The next track begins abruptly. _Another phone call._

DAD: —Keith Mars...have you heard from the reporter?...hmm, I agree, that's not good....No, don't give him a quote. You don't want to do that. Just say 'no comment'....Hold up a sec—are you thinking about running? Talk to me...You can't give up hope. Even if the article runs—...No, I haven't said anything to Veronica; she's pretty fragile right now, I don't think she can handle any additional stress....We have until the copy deadline. For the Register's Sunday edition, that's eleven p.m. on Friday....Promise me, Duncan. You can't run again. If you—

Veronica hits the iPod's pause button in a panic, almost stumbling on the treadmill. _Duncan? Duncan?!!_ She stops the treadmill, standing on the rubber mat and gripping the side rail, oblivious to her surroundings. She hits rewind and listens again, her exercises completely forgotten.

DAD: —Keith Mars...have you heard from the reporter?...hmm, I agree, that's not good....No, don't give him a quote. You don't want to do that. Just say 'no comment'....Hold up a sec—are you thinking about running? Talk to me...You can't give up hope. Even if the article runs—...No, I haven't said anything to Veronica; she's pretty fragile right now, I don't think she can handle any additional stress....We have until the copy deadline. For the Register's Sunday edition, that's eleven p.m. on Friday....Promise me, Duncan. You can't run again. If you run this time, there won't be any chance of an amnesty again; you'll spend the rest of your life on the run....I understand that you're angry and scared. It's unfortunate that she targeted you, but I think it will be obvious to everyone, including the judge, that you were in the wrong place at the wrong time and vulnerable to a con artist....Don't do that to your daughter. Try to keep your spirits up. I'll call you later. [sound of phone hanging up]

[long silence]

DAD: [under his breath, barely audible] That fucking bitch.

Veronica recoils at her dad's uncharacteristically ugly, angry words. _Fucking bitch...con artist...fucking bitch...oh my god. It's Kendall. Someone's threatening to write an article about Duncan and Kendall, his affair with her...or worse. Maybe somebody is planning to say that he killed her. Oh my god. Oh my god! Duncan!_

The aide has hurried over. "Veronica? What's wrong? Did you hurt yourself?"

Veronica snaps out of it. "I'm sorry. I need to cut this short today."

The aide looks at her in confusion. "You have a few more exercises—"

"I need to get out of here."

Her therapist walks over. "What's going on?"

The aide explains, "She says she needs to stop."

John explains in a soothing voice, "Veronica, if something hurts, you have to tell us. We can modify the exercise. It's the movement of the muscles rather than the intensity that matters."

"John, I'm sorry. It's nothing to do with my rehab. Something's come up. It's really important." Veronica heads to the locker room to retrieve her purse. She pulls out her phone and hits speed dial '3'. "Logan, can you pick me up a little early?...Yeah, as soon as possible. I'll explain when you get here."

When Logan pulls up out front fifteen minutes later, she is pacing back and forth in agitation outside the building. Veronica yanks open the car door angrily and gets in. She glares at him, and he asks, "Veronica, what happened?"

"Did you know?" she says accusingly.

"Did I know what?" he replies, utterly confused.

"Did you know that Duncan hired Dad?"

"How did you—" Logan breaks off.

"That's your response? How did I find out? I bugged Dad, okay?" She fumes, breathing hard.

"You bugged your _dad_?"

"How about you stop answering me with questions and give me some actual answers?" she replies furiously.

"Your dad mentioned it on Thursday. I don't know the details. He asked me not to tell you," Logan responds. "What would you have wanted me to do?"

"You should have told me!"

"Because you're reacting so calmly," he comments, attempting unsuccessfully to keep his voice steady and unemotional.

"Damn you," she exhales. She turns to stare out the window. "Take me to the office. I want to talk to Dad."

"I think you need to try to calm down, Veron—"

"Take me to the goddamn office, Logan," she says bitingly. "Or get out of my fucking car, and I'll drive myself. How could you do this to me?"

"Really. That's how you're going to treat me? 'Get out of my fucking car'? Nice." He tries to resist reacting to her anger, but his rage suddenly bubbles over. "I wanted to tell you, you know. And Veronica, you are NOT being fair. You told us you wanted out of the business. So you're out. You _know_ that I told you that I thought quitting was a mistake and you were going to regret it. But I tried to keep my mouth shut and let you do what you wanted. I _knew_ you'd find some reason to blame me. Like you always do. I can't fucking win with you," he concludes bitterly.

"What exactly is this reporter going to write about Duncan?" Veronica asks anxiously.

"Yeah, let's make this about Duncan."

"What is _that_ supposed to mean?"

"If Duncan needs help, you swing into action. You put your whole fucking life on the line for him...you fucking _kidnapped a baby_, Veronica...in what world is that okay? And somehow it's always my fault." Logan puts the car in drive and exits the parking lot, turning towards Mars Investigations.

Veronica glances at his angry face. She tries to calm herself and says quietly, "Logan, I'm—"

"I don't want to hear it, Veronica."

"Logan—"

He stares straight ahead at the road and ignores her. They drive in tense silence to Mars Investigations. He parks the car, and they both get out. She turns toward the office door, but he goes the other way, walking down the sidewalk to the corner. "Where are you going?" she asks.

"I need to get away from you."

"Logan!"

He calls over his shoulder, "Call me when you're ready to go, and I'll take you back to the apartment. I'll pack up my stuff tonight and be out of your hair in the morning."

She hurries after him and grabs his shirt. "Logan, stop. I'm sorry. You can't—"

Logan turns around. "Listen, your dad can get someone else to drive you around and carry your books for you. What the hell...I'll pay for it. It'd be worth it." He plucks her hand off his shirt and starts walking again.

"Logan, please, I'm so sorry. I love you," she says, beginning to cry.

He stops. Without turning around, he says quietly, "You love me, or you need me?"

"I love you and I need you," she replies tearfully.

"Go take care of Duncan," he answers.

"I don't love him. I love you."

"Right. Hey, if you save his ass again, maybe he'll carry your books for you. Right now, I think I need to go find my backbone, see if I can salvage my life. You know what they say about abused kids...after a while, they start to think they deserve it. I guess I always took your _shit_ because I thought I deserved it, Veronica."

Veronica flinches overtly, and the tears stream down her cheeks.

He continues bitterly, "Everyone's been so afraid to upset you, you know? Veronica's been through a horrible experience. Veronica's messed up. We got to protect her. We got to take care of her." Logan takes a deep breath. "Well, I needed you to take care of _me_ too. Do you know what it did to me to hold you down at the school? I turned into my fucking father for you, Veronica," he says with deep revulsion.

Veronica backs up away from him until she is leaning against the building. She doubles over, clutching her stomach.

He sees her stunned reaction and closes his eyes. "Fuck. And now I did it again. I can't ever do a single fucking thing right. I can't even fight fair. Maybe I am like my dad."

As he walks away, he flings over his shoulder, "Try to remember I always loved you...even when I hurt you."

Veronica sinks down to the sidewalk; she hugs her knees to her chest and sobs.

Wed. 4/22/09: afternoon, Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

Keith picks up the phone. "Wallace—...She's _what_? I'll be right there." He cradles the phone. "Eli...come with me." He and Weevil hurry out of the office and down the street, where Wallace is hugging Veronica, who is huddled on the sidewalk in tears.

"What happened?" Keith asks anxiously.

"I saw her sitting here on the sidewalk when I pulled up. I think she had a fight with Logan," Wallace explains.

"My fault, all my fault," she sobs incoherently. "Daddy, why didn't you tell me about Duncan?"

"Shit," Weevil comments.

"What did he do?" Keith asks angrily. "How long have you been here, honey?"

A woman watching from the doorway of a nearby store comments, "It happened just a couple minutes ago. He walked that way." She jerks her head toward the corner.

Veronica is crying soundlessly. Her dad pulls her up from the sidewalk into his arms and starts walking her to the office. Weevil says, "I'll kill him," and starts to walk down the block.

"Weevil, no," Wallace protests, grabbing Weevil's sleeve. "I'll go. You go with Mr. Mars, see if you can help with Veronica." Weevil stares at him balefully before acquiescing and following Keith.

Wallace walks down the block. At the corner, he looks left, then right. _Joe's Pub...shit._ Wallace pushes open the door. Logan sits at the bar, barely visible in the dark room. There's a large glass in front of him filled with an amber liquid. Logan is spinning the glass on the bar, a few drops escaping the rim when he turns it a little too violently.

Wallace sits down next to him. He pulls out his wallet and calls over the bartender. He puts a ten on the counter and says, "Take that away, okay?" The bartender looks at Logan questioningly.

Logan shrugs. "Whatever, man." The bartender takes the glass and walks away.

"Not whatever. So you had a fight. What the hell are you doing in here?"

"Leave me alone."

"What. Happened." Wallace says strongly.

"She bugged her dad. Can you believe it?" Logan replies incredulously.

"Yeah, actually I can. Sounds like Veronica."

"She blamed me for not telling her that Duncan was in trouble again. And I blew up at her."

"That boy's a mess," Wallace pronounces. "He's completely pathetic."

"Yeah, right? But she always runs to help him."

"Do you have any idea what she was like when _you_ ran away?" Wallace asks. "She made all of us help find you. I got real sick of hearing your name. I must have watched that stupid video from Madeira a thousand times with her. She didn't rest until she located you in Texas. And then she made sure you were okay...and she left you alone, like you wanted. Almost killed her to do that."

Logan glances at Wallace.

Wallace adds, "I really don't know what she sees in you, anyways."

Logan scoffs. "Yeah, thanks, man. Fuck you too."

"Don't fuck this up. She's in her dad's office crying right now. She said it was all her fault, and she blew it with you. Let's get out of here and fix this."

"Can't fix it," he mutters morosely. "I'm a raging asshole. Not only is it genetic, it's terminal, apparently."

Wallace chuckles. "Huh. Listen, she is a _pain_ in the _ass_. You know it, and I know it. But we'd both walk through fire for her. And I'm pretty sure despite all evidence to the contrary that she's totally in love with you." He makes a face. "You guys have been completely repulsive lately. All that lovey-dovey shit. That is _not_ Veronica Mars. I can't wait 'til she charges up her taser and starts chasing after motherfuckin' bad guys again."

"Oh, so you don't believe she's quitting either?" Logan asks facetiously.

"Not a chance in hell. But you know it's a lot easier to just agree with her. Damn, boy. Haven't you learned anything in all these years? The trick is, you gotta make her think it's all her idea."

"She bugged her _dad_, Wallace," Logan repeats.

"Sounds like she's feeling better, right?" Wallace observes. "Coming out of retirement, you might say."

"Yeah."

Wallace stands up. "Come on, let's go. You need to talk to her."

"She's with her dad?" When Wallace nods, Logan adds, "You think you can go first, make sure he's unarmed?"

"Yeah, no problem. He's upset, but he knows her too. I think you'll be okay. And you think he's gonna be happy to hear she was bugging him?"

At Mars Investigations, Keith has helped Veronica lie down on the couch in reception. He sent Susan to buy some Tylenol, mostly to get her out of the office so they could talk freely.

"Veronica, what was the fight about?

She shakes her head, keeping her eyes closed. "What's going on with Duncan?"

"What did Logan say? Did he do something?" Keith presses.

"It doesn't matter what he said. It's my fault. I treated him terribly."

"Let me be the judge of that."

"Dad, please tell me what's going with Duncan."

Keith sighs. "Veronica. Some reporter got wind of his affair with Kendall. There's going to be a big exposé in the Sunday Register. It sounds like the reporter's going to suggest that Duncan might have been involved in her murder. How did you find out—"

"What are you doing about it?" Her eyes are still closed, almost as if she's expecting a blow.

Keith stares at her. "Veronica, honey, open your eyes."

She looks up at him warily.

"I'm trying to figure out who killed Kendall. If there's a big break in the case, no one will care about Duncan and who he slept with. I'm betting she was running a major con of some type, and if I can prove it, everyone will see what she's like."

Veronica asks, "What do the Crawfords have to do with it? And Ratner?"

"How did you—"

Wallace and Logan walk into the reception area; Logan hangs back a little, obviously unsure of himself. Wallace says, "She had you bugged, Keith. Vee, I can't believe you."

"She did what?" Keith asks incredulously. "Veronica, is that true? Here I've been worried sick about you—" He breaks off, realizing that he's getting truly angry.

Veronica sees Logan and struggles to sit up. "Logan! Are you—" She swallows and stands up. She walks to him and throws herself against him. "I'm so sorry." Keith watches for a moment before disappearing into his office.

At first Logan stands completely still, uncertain what to do. Tentatively, he puts a hand on her back and says quietly, "Me too." She whimpers a little, and suddenly more confident, he strokes her back and pulls her tight against him.

"You didn't mean it, did you? Please...you're not really going to leave—"

"I'm not going anywhere. I'm sorry I got mad at you."

Weevil blurts out, "You should be. What the fuck's wrong with you?"

Wallace glares at him. "Shut it, man. Stay out of it."

Keith emerges from his office tossing the bug up and down in his hand. "Where's the recorder, Veronica?"

"Behind the credenza," she mumbles.

He walks over to the credenza and runs his hand behind it, removing a small electronic device. "Veronica—"

"I _know_," she protests. "You don't have to say it."

"Veronica, you asked us to respect your wishes. You told us you were quitting the business, changing your major, leaving Neptune. We've all been so worried about you."

"I know," she whispers. "I couldn't help it. I had to know."

There's a moment of silence, and then Keith starts chuckling. Wallace joins in immediately, and eventually Logan and Weevil begin to smile as well.

"Stop laughing at me!" Veronica cries in aggravation.

"You're very predictable, honey," Keith says.

"Not so broken after all," Wallace comments under his breath to Weevil.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Dénouement**  
Veronica puts it all together (and you thought  
I wasn't going to wrap this up!)  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Wallace: Percy Daggs  
III. Tina: Anna Campbell.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FORTY-NINE: "DÉNOUEMENT"

Wed. 4/22/09: afternoon, Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA

"Are you going to tell me what's going on with Duncan?" Veronica asks. "What have you found out?" She pulls Logan over to the couch, and they sit down together. Tentatively, he puts his arm around her, and she leans into him.

Keith looks at Logan, who shrugs. Keith clears his throat. "We've been pursuing the vehicle that picked up Kendall the night she was killed. Jeff Ratner gave her a ride—"

"You're kidding. That's how Ratner's connected?" she interrupts.

Keith explains, "She convinced Ratner to give her a ride from the Grand to a meeting downtown. She was picked up by a black SUV. Ratner identified the make and model, and the sheriff matched it to a vehicle reported stolen by the Crawfords. Don't you remember?...Leo told us about the SUV before we went up to Rio Linda."

Logan comments, "I think she fell asleep before that part. Remember? Leo was surprised...he thought she was superhuman and never slept."

Veronica looks pissed and embarrassed. "Damn it. I don't remember him telling us about an SUV."

Keith tries to soothe her ego. "Veronica, you were still recovering from your infection. Leo confirmed it was the vehicle by checking the traffic cameras around the area where Ratner dropped her off."

"Where was this?" Veronica asks curiously.

Keith replies, "729 Main Street, the Rose Office Building. Ratner said she seemed to know the driver."

"And then what?" Veronica presses.

"Ratner was supposed to meet up with her again at 10:00. She didn't show, even though he waited until 10:30, when he finally took off. The sheriff put the SUV, a five-year-old Lincoln Navigator, on a watch list. Its stereo turned up in a pawnshop in San Diego. The pawnshop got the stereo from Paddy's Car Parts and Used Car Emporium. Leo got a search warrant, and they found the seats from the Navigator in Paddy's lot, and one of Kendall's hairs on the seats."

Veronica frowns. "So what's the problem? Fitzpatricks, case closed. That's pretty solid evidence."

Wallace interjects, "They were all arrested that night, remember, Vee? Weevil heard that Liam was accepting a shipment of stolen cars that night; we called a tip in to the sheriff, and they were all arrested. Everyone spent the night in jail, except a few low-level flunkies."

"And you remember Liam said he didn't know who killed her," Logan reminds her.

"Yeah, except that he's a lying sack of shit," Veronica observes. "So one of his employees showed a little initiative and took care of his boss's problem for him, while Liam had an iron-clad alibi. Why are we taking Liam's word for anything?"

Weevil says quietly, "Because someone was setting them up, that's why. Oswaldo Cortez told me that the Navigator was sitting unlocked in front of the River Stix when the bar closed down at two a.m. The Fitzpatricks aren't ones to look a gift horse in the mouth; it was chopped by morning."

"You mean..." Veronica muses.

"Only thing it was missing was a sign that said 'Steal me,'" Weevil concludes.

"Wait a second, I thought you said it was stolen from the Crawfords," Veronica says.

"Who have a housekeeper named Mulvaney, related to Daniel Mulvaney who had a little publicity last fall when he gave false testimony against you, Veronica."

Veronica thinks for a moment. "So of course it looked like the Fitzpatricks used the housekeeper to get a car."

Keith says, "Right. She had the alarm code, she had access to the car keys and could have had a set made, she has a nephew who's a known criminal...any idiot could see that there's a connection. But Mac asked me: why would the Fitzpatricks bother? Why not just steal a random Toyota or your basic older GM car that's simple to hotwire? This was a distinctive car that a witness would remember, with easy-to-trace high-end parts that would end up in a chop shop for sure. And it was locked up in a garage with an alarm and a security system."

"It's too smart," Veronica concludes. "Too much planning."

"Exactly. It's not a methhead crime," Keith agrees.

Logan glances at Veronica's face. She looks _alive_, ridiculously happy as she's pondering all the possibilities and struggling to understand just what happened. He suddenly realizes just what was going on with her the evening before when she had seemed so vibrant and excited...and he also understands just what it was that he had been responding to. She catches his eye and returns his gaze quizzically. "Later," he whispers.

Weevil is theorizing out loud. "So if they didn't get in with the housekeeper's help, how did they steal the car?"

Keith says, "They hacked into the security company monitoring the alarm system. Mac said there was a security patch uploaded about the week before the car was stolen, and the hacker used a weakness in the patch to generate the alarm code by tracking all the times the system was activated or deactivated."

"And?" Veronica asks.

"And what?"

"How did they steal the car itself? That car has a computer chip in the ignition and can't be hot-wired, right? Did the thief have a transponder key?"

Keith shakes his head. "We haven't figured that out yet. Wallace discovered that the Crawfords went to a party about three weeks before. Did you get the guest list from the party planner?"

"And the cater waiters who worked the party," Wallace says smugly, handing several sheets of paper to Keith.

Veronica snatches them from his hand and looks at them. "It's like a who's who of Neptune. Everybody who's anybody was there. Politicians, socialites, corporate executives." She shuffles the pages. "And about a hundred people who were working the party, not just waiters: cooks, bartenders, musicians, parking attendants, security, and a cleaning crew after the event. I see a few names here who I know have a record. What did the party planner have to say?" She passes the sheets to Keith, who thumbs through the sheaf of papers.

Wallace shrugs. "She didn't remember anything in particular. But it stands to reason the Crawfords might have mentioned that they were going on vacation soon, and anyone could have overheard them."

Veronica says, frustrated, "We need to talk to the Crawfords. Find out who they talked to, and who would have a set of keys or a way to get access to the keys. Unfortunately, the Crawfords hate me. Remember? The Boatloads of Fun Corp."

"It's okay, honey, lots of criminals hate you," Keith offers with a smile.

"Oh, that makes me feel much better," Veronica retorts as Logan struggles mightily not to chuckle.

Weevil says, "But why? Why was Kendall killed?"

"Kendall was probably running a con on somebody else, and they decided not to play along," Keith surmises. "And the Fitzpatricks were convenient patsies."

"Maybe," Veronica says thoughtfully. "You know, I'm wondering why Kendall was so foolish as to stick around Neptune when she knew Liam had a very good reason to kill her. I don't think she came back for the Phoenix Land Trust money after all...or even the five million she and Liam skimmed from Casablancas Enterprises."

"Then why?"

"A much bigger score. Something worth taking the chance of a lifetime. I think Kendall was lying her ass off when we talked to her. Well, mostly."

"What?" Wallace asks incredulously. "When did you talk to Kendall?"

Veronica explains, "Dad, Logan, and I questioned her before we went to Briar Hill. She was screwing Duncan, and he was suspicious of her. And then we caught her breaking into Mars Investigations. Logan recognized her as Kendall, despite all the plastic surgery."

Logan mutters, "Her profile was still...impressive. Hips don't lie, as they say."

Weevil snorts. "Or boobs."

"What else?" Veronica asks. "What else have you found out?"

Keith gets his notes from his desk. "Kendall's suite was searched that night. The hotel computer recorded the time of entry as 1:13 a.m. The killer would have had to hustle to get back to the Grand by then. Sacks said that the security cameras from the Neptune Grand parking lot didn't show any Lincoln Navigators coming into the lot that night. But whoever broke in was searching Kendall's room until 2:07, according to the hotel's computer log. So even if somehow the SUV got into the lot without being recorded by the cameras, they didn't have time to get it over to the River Stix before the bar closed at two a.m."

"Maybe they dumped the car and took a cab? Can I see that?" Veronica requests, extending her hand for his notes. She looks over his summary. "Kendall bribed Ratner with sex? Oh, that's _awesome_. I would have loved to have seen that....Here it is. The time of death was estimated between 10 p.m. and 1 a.m."

"Originally, they said nine to one, but with Ratner's testimony...." Keith shrugs. "She was still alive at 9:30."

"And it's about twenty minutes to Waterside Park from downtown. All right, let's say she was killed right at 10:00pm. The killer dumps the SUV at the River Stix...that brings us to—"

"Say 10:45, maybe 11:00, allowing for time to clean up any evidence from the crime scene after he shot her," Keith suggests.

Veronica says, "Then he takes a cab to the Neptune Grand—say a half an hour at least. Yeah, it's possible for the killer to have gotten back to the Grand in time to enter her room at 1:13, with time to spare. Even if he killed her at 11:00, he could have made it."

"I'm sure the sheriff examined all the cab records and tracked down every fare to the Grand that night," Keith muses.

Weevil says, "They probably got a ride from someone. How the hell are we ever going to figure that out?"

"Why do you think it was so important to search Kendall's room?" Veronica asks thoughtfully.

"Her laptop, I guess," Keith offers. "But they tossed the whole room."

"Spent almost an hour searching," Veronica muses.

"Sacks said that according to housekeeping all the cosmetics and toiletries were dumped down the sink too."

Wallace proposes, "Sounds like someone was looking for a key to a safe deposit box."

Keith nods. "Or something else small...a flash drive, maybe. We'll probably never know."

Veronica tries to remember everything Kendall said that night at the Neptune Grand. _We're missing something. Why did Kendall come back to Neptune? She made it clear she was still up to her old tricks, bedding rich older men and running scams. If she came back just because Liam was in prison, she would have left the moment he was released. Something made it worth the danger to be in Neptune. Something worth a lot of money. And the Crawfords, telling their friends at the Banks's party about their upcoming vacation...their 09er friends...._

_FLASHBACK:_

_Kendall laughs and mocks Logan. "Yeah, Aaron promised me $200,000 to get one of Duncan's hairs out of the shower drain...from that shower right over there. I think his sleazebag attorneys planted it on his Oscar trophy. Then, after the trial, Aaron got shot before I could collect. We were sealing the deal that day, and I went to take a shower. When I came out, he'd been shot, and I got the hell out of there."_

_Then later...Kendall says, "I've been watching you. This fall, when Veronica was arrested, you didn't bail her out. You had to get Echolls to put up the bail money."_

_(END FLASHBACK)_

Veronica thinks, _When I was arrested...there was a lot of publicity about that case...and about the murder victim, Clarence Wiedman._

_It was always about money for Kendall. Follow the money.... _"Let me see that guest list again," Veronica says suddenly. She studies the names for several minutes, lost in thought. She murmurs, "The payoff of a lifetime." She turns to her dad and explains, "I think an accomplice searched the room. Can we get the surveillance footage from the hotel? Will Leo let you look at it?"

"I doubt it. He's not gunning for us anymore, but he's not going to go out of his way to help us either. You have an idea, Veronica?" Keith asks.

"Just a wild theory," Veronica replies, shaking her head. "And if I'm right...the murderer didn't dare show his face at the Neptune Grand, so he had an accomplice. I need to see the surveillance footage." She addresses Logan. "What about your friend Tina—the manager? Would she let us watch the security videos?"

"Worth a shot, I guess. But wouldn't she have turned over everything to the sheriff's department?" Logan replies.

Keith says, "Maybe not. They probably kept a copy for their own insurance purposes."

"Let's go. You'll have to be your most charming, Logan."

"When am I not?" he responds wryly.

Wed. 4/22/09: early evening, Neptune Grand Hotel, Neptune, CA

With a broad smile, Tina, the manager, says, "Mr. Echolls, how good to see you again. And your friend Veronica...and former Sheriff Mars, correct?" She nods at Veronica and Keith.

Logan says carefully. "We're hoping you can help us. We'd like to look at the security footage for March 11." He leans in and whispers, "It's for a very important case that Mr. Mars is working on."

"But that's the date..." Tina protests. "Oh, I see."

"We're quite certain we can prove who killed Ms. Casablancas, but we need your help to do it."

Tina confides, "We did save all that footage just in case. Our insurance company was quite clear that we needed to keep two sets of duplicates in case there was a lawsuit."

Keith interrupts, "Can we take a look at March 11? All the security feeds."

"Actually, we only need the registration desk," Veronica says quietly. "Starting from about March 4th, I'd say."

Keith looks puzzled.

"Follow me," Tina says. "I'll have the chief of security set it up for you."

A half hour later, they are seated in the security office watching video of one guest after another checking in or out of the Grand. They watch intently for almost an hour; the time code flashes by, 03/04/2009 turning into 03/05/2009 and then 03/06/2009, with the figures moving jerkily, one frame for every six seconds. There are long stretches with no activity, and the security guard speeds up the video, slowing down again when another guest approaches the desk.

"Who are we looking for, Veronica?" Keith asks, puzzled.

She smiles inscrutably as they keep watching. The time stamp reads 03/06/2009 10:18:36 when a young woman, with her blonde hair severely pulled back and sporting thick glasses, approaches the front desk to register. Veronica keeps her expression neutral. When they've watched all the footage from the security feed, she announces, "You know, I must have been wrong after all. Thanks, Joe," she says to the security guard.

Once outside the office, Keith queries, "What was that all about?"

"Astrid," Veronica explains. "She checked in on March 6th."

Wed. 4/22/09: late, Sunset Cliffs Apartment, Neptune, CA

Veronica and Logan are lying together in her bedroom. Logan is staring up at the ceiling, lost in thought, while she cuddles against his side. His hand strokes her head absently. She asks quietly, "Are you okay? It's a lot to process. I'm sorry I never told you before."

He shrugs. "It's not like anything's really different."

"Still, now you know..."

"Yeah, now I know. I don't blame him. He was trying to do the right thing."

She tries to hear the meaning behind his words. "Are we okay? I mean...are _we_ okay? I'm sorry I lashed out at you today. Logan...I'm so sorry."

He turns his head and looks at her. "Why do you always do that? And christ, Veronica...Duncan...you jump into action whenever he needs you."

"Duncan and I...we're always going to have a connection because of Lilly....Our Lilly, I mean," she rushes to explain. He nods that he understands. "I've never said it...but I wish I hadn't helped Duncan with the kidnapping. It made everything worse. I swear I tried to talk him out of it. But he was so determined, and I didn't think he'd be able to get away with it without my help. And now...I guess I feel responsible for him. Maybe I feel guilty, that I should have stopped him. But you know I don't _love_ him, right?"

Logan brushes the hair from her forehead. "I don't really care about Duncan. I'll probably always be a little jealous of him, but I believe you when you say you don't love him. But Veronica...why do you always lash out at _me_ when you're upset? We can't keep doing this. And I hate how I reacted to you. It always escalates to the nuclear option right away."

"I thought I lost you. But you came back."

"Yeah, I can't stay away from you for long. You know I love you, Veronica."

"It's never been easy for us," she muses. "I know that I really hurt you today. I know you need me, too, and it's true, I haven't been great about taking care of you lately. I swear that I'm trying to do better, Logan. You've got to know...I can't imagine a life without you. Yeah, it's intense, sometimes too intense. But I think I'd rather be fighting with you than loving anyone else."

Logan huffs a laugh. "You are seriously messed up, Veronica."

"You're just figuring that out?"

Logan replies, "You know, we better get some sleep. It's going to be a hard day tomorrow."

"Tell me about it."

He thinks, _She doesn't sound scared. She knows she can do this. _Just before they fall asleep, Logan whispers, "I'd rather fight with you than love anyone else too. Guess I'm messed up too."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Veronica Mars Is Smarter Than Me**  
As if there was any doubt.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Wallace: Percy Daggs  
III. Mac: Tina Majorino.

And...some other people. You'll see....  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FIFTY: "VERONICA MARS IS SMARTER THAN ME"

Thurs. 4/23/09: morning, Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Veronica walks into the Neptune Sheriff's Department. "Hi, Jerry. Is the sheriff available? I need to speak to him." She brushes past the reception desk without waiting for permission.

Sacks protests, "Uh, Veronica, let me see if he's—"

Veronica smiles beatifically. "I'm _sure_ he's available for me." Suddenly, she realizes, _Damn, this feels good._

Deputy Sacks hurries to catch up with her. "Veronica...just hold on one second." He knocks on Leo's door. "Sheriff? Someone to see you." He whispers to Veronica. "What's this about?"

"It's a secret," she whispers back slyly.

"Uh, Sheriff?" Sacks repeats, knocking again.

Leo flings open the door and barks, "What is it, Sacks?" He spies Veronica behind Sacks. "Veronica."

"Sheriff. I'd like to make your day."

"You're confessing? That would truly make my day," he retorts skeptically.

"Not quite. Can we have some privacy?" she asks.

Leo purses his lips, assessing. "What's going on?"

"I'd be happy to explain in your office."

"Sacks...hold my calls. You've got ten minutes, Veronica," he says, opening the door so she can enter.

Veronica sits down; he notes that she seems confident and purposeful, not the half-broken girl he last saw before the Rio Linda debacle. Wondering what the hell she's up to now, he shuts the door and takes a seat at his desk.

She takes a deep breath and announces, "I'm prepared to give you Kendall's murderer. I heard the indictment against the late Liam Fitzpatrick was dismissed for lack of evidence...and for good reason: he didn't do it."

"Okay, spill it, Veronica. What is it you think you know?"

She raises a single finger, wagging it back and forth. "Not so fast. I need two things from you first."

Leo leans back in his chair. "And now the scam begins. What do you want, Veronica?"

"The first thing is I need to see the stolen car report on the Crawfords' SUV. It's just to confirm my little theory."

"Why should I?"

"Because I'm going to get the murderer to walk in to the station and give you a confession."

"You're unbelievable."

"I know," she says, smiling broadly. "It drives my dad crazy. Come on, Leo."

"It's 'Sheriff', please."

"Sheriff D'Amato, may I _please_ see the stolen vehicle report? What's the harm?"

With a sigh, he shuffles through some folders and extracts a piece of paper, handing it to her.

Veronica skims the paper, stabbing with a finger at a particular line. "I thought so. Equipped with a remote starter." She passes the report back. "Now here's what I need you to do. You're going to announce that an arrest in the Kendall Casablancas case is imminent. You're not going to say who it is, but you are going to say that the evidence is substantial and incontrovertible."

"Who am I arresting?"

"I told you, the murderer is going to walk in to the station and give you a confession. Don't worry so much, Sheriff!"

Leo stares at her, trying to gauge just what game she could be playing. As much as it pains him to admit it, he's well aware Veronica has an excellent track record for solving cases. "All right, you got a deal. When do you need me to make the announcement about the arrest?"

"About 1:00 would be _perfect_. I'll try to have your confession for you by the six o'clock news," Veronica announces. "Thank you so much, Sheriff." She leans over the desk and whispers conspiratorially, "And when you're considering a gift to thank me, I really like..._cash_."

"I think you should leave now, Veronica," Leo responds, rolling his eyes.

"Ta-ta," she says, smiling and waving as she walks out of the room. She stops suddenly and turns back. "One more thing, Sheriff. I was never here today...officially. I think it would work better if you received an anonymous tip."

"All right," he agrees, begrudgingly.

Outside the station, Keith and Logan are waiting in Veronica's Saturn. She jumps into the front seat. Keith says impatiently, "So? How'd it go?"

"Exactly the way I thought it would. I was right about the car, too," she muses. She turns slightly to smile at Logan in the back seat. "I guess I still got it, huh?"

Logan snorts. "Yeah, you still got it all right. Like you could _ever_ give this up." He reaches over the seat to give her a hug. "Veronica Mars is on the case."

Thurs. 4/23/09: morning, Kane Mansion, Pemberton Estates, Neptune, CA

Jake Kane opens the door. "Keith. Veronica...Logan," he says finally, noting their somber expressions.

"May we come in?" Veronica asks.

Jake leads them to the living room and motions that they should sit down. Celeste is reading a magazine and looks up sharply as they enter.

"Mrs. Kane," Logan acknowledges as he sits down next to Veronica on the couch.

"Veronica, thank you for helping Duncan with his custody hearing," Celeste says in a brittle voice.

"Of course," Veronica replies. "So was it your idea to kill Kendall?"

"What are you talking about? Do you _ever_ make sense, Veronica?" Celeste stands up and moves to the bar.

"I'm sure I'll never be able to prove it," Veronica continues. "But I believed Liam Fitzpatrick when he said he didn't kill her."

"Are you wearing a wire, Veronica? Trying to finish the job your father couldn't quite manage to make the Kanes pay for my husband's indiscretion with your mother?" Celeste asks as she pours herself a drink. The bottle clinks loudly against the glass, and Veronica wonders if Celeste is a little more rattled than she appears. Celeste pours a second drink and walks it over to her husband. "Would you like a drink? Some wine, perhaps? We're all adults now."

"No, thank you, and I'm not wearing a wire," she replies.

Jake says abruptly, "Do you really want to know, Veronica? Yes, Veronica, when Kendall threatened to tell the sheriff that she had seen my head of security at the Neptune Grand the day Aaron Echolls was killed, I had to do what was necessary."

Veronica explains, "Kendall recognized Clarence Wiedman when she read in the newspaper that I had been arrested for killing him. All of a sudden, she knew who was responsible for executing Aaron."

"Well, not quite," Jake muses. "She assumed that _I_ hired Clarence."

"He was your employee after all," Veronica states.

Jake swallows half of his drink in a single gulp and stands up to pace around the room. "Kendall didn't seem to have considered that Duncan might have been behind the execution, and I didn't disabuse her of the notion."

"Everyone always did underestimate the guy," Keith comments. "But when he had to, he stepped in and took his kid to protect her, and he made sure that Aaron paid for his sins when the state didn't."

Veronica says matter-of-factly, "So you stole a car and lured Kendall with the promise of money. A lot of money, I'm assuming."

"You're doing well so far. You tell me," Jake says.

"How did you actually steal the car, Jake? I know you used a security patch on the servers at Neptune Alarmco to get the Crawfords' alarm code, but I'm guessing you don't have much experience with a slim jim."

"But I do have experience with computer software. Kane Software has been working with car manufacturers to develop stronger encryption software to prevent hackers from opening remote car locks wirelessly. So of course I have a copy of the program that car thieves use to steal cars with a wireless signal. I just made sure to select an older model vehicle which has no encryption. And the Crawfords told a funny story about using their remote starter during a snowstorm the last time they were in Aspen."

"At the Banks's party, right?"

"Very good, Veronica. It was child's play to generate a radio signal to trigger the starter mechanism. I bought a kit, tinkered with it for a few hours, and reverse-engineered its signal generator. It's really quite simple if you know the algorithms. It's not anywhere near as difficult as, say, streaming video."

"And after you killed her, of course you dumped the stolen car in Fitzpatrick territory, unlocked."

Jake shrugs. "It was a pretty safe bet that an unlocked car would be chopped up within an hour. And the car would point right at the Fitzpatricks...I remembered that Crawfords gossiping about the nephew of their housekeeper being involved in the case against Veronica last fall. D'Amato's not as incompetent as Lamb: I knew if they found the car, they'd make the connection with the Fitzpatricks."

Veronica comments ruefully, "It was really quite clever. Too clever, in fact, which is what made us think it wasn't the Fitzpatricks. And it probably would have worked if most of the Fitzpatricks weren't sitting in a holding cell the night was killed."

"What?" Jake says nervously.

Keith says, nodding his head, "Yeah. Liam and his brothers were in custody that night, arrested for receiving stolen goods. I have to admit, it was a pretty good plan, Jake. What happened to the gun that you used to shoot her?"

Jake, still processing the information about the Fitzpatricks, says without thinking, "I threw it off the Coronado Bridge the next day."

Veronica adds, "And you had Astrid search Kendall's room at the Grand. You didn't want to take the chance you would be caught on a security camera."

"Astrid checked in under an assumed name a few days before. She didn't leave for several days to avoid raising suspicion. She owes us...and of course she's just as guilty of abetting kidnapping as you are, Veronica. She does as she's told."

"How did she get into Kendall's room?" Logan asks.

"I borrowed Duncan's key card to make a master key that would open any door in the Neptune Grand. Secure magnetic coding technology is another area of research at Kane Software."

"But it was still incredibly foolish. With Duncan not having an alibi–"

"What are you talking about?" Jake interrupts. "Kendall assumed that I had hired Wiedman. There was no need to protect–"

"Duncan was having an affair with her."

"What?" Celeste exclaims.

"Yeah, your precious boy was sleeping with Kendall. He didn't know who she was, of course," Veronica explains. "I'm not sure if Kendall knew at first who he was either. She wasn't exactly chaste, if you know what I mean. She claimed she was lonely and didn't know who Duncan was until the press conference. Then she probably decided to hedge her bets, and she took the affair to the next level."

Jake says angrily, "How do you know all this? How do I know you're not just making all this up?"

Logan says quietly, "I recognized her. She hadn't changed that much after all. And we confronted her and told her to leave Duncan alone."

Veronica adds, "But when Kendall turned up dead, Leo began investigating her lover Duncan. He's assuming Kendall was blackmailing Duncan; she had been videotaping their...sessions together. Pretty racy stuff, I hear. I'm surprised none of the tapes have leaked onto the internet yet." She sighs loudly. "It sounds like he's going to arrest Duncan today."

Jake and Celeste stare at her in shock.

Impatiently, Veronica says, "So are you going to do the right thing?"

"Excuse me?" Celeste sputters.

Keith says, "You have to confess, Jake. You can't let your son go to prison for this."

"This is completely ridiculous. Duncan hasn't said a word about this to me."

"Call him," Veronica urges. "Make sure he's okay."

Jake withdraws a cell phone from his jacket pocket and hits a key. He puts the phone to his ear.

Thurs. 4/23/09: morning, Duncan Kane residence, Neptune, CA

Wallace and Mac sit in a nondescript car outside Duncan's house, slumped down out of sight observing a device with an antenna and several LED readouts. "Are you sure it's working?" Wallace asks for the third time.

"Yeah, I'm sure. It jams all cell phone calls, in or out, within two hundred feet," Mac says impatiently. "We tested it, remember?"

"Okay. So we wait to hear from Veronica, right?"

"Right. And if Duncan goes out, we follow him."

Thurs. 4/23/09: morning, Kane Mansion, Pemberton Estates, Neptune, CA

Jake listens to the phone ringing and finally going to voice mail. "Duncan...call me when you get this." He hangs up and glares at Veronica.

"I have a feeling Duncan's a little busy with the sheriff right now," Veronica suggests.

"I don't believe you," Jake says. "Duncan would have called."

"Check the television...see if they're announcing an arrest."

Jake picks up a remote from the coffeetable and hits a button. A flatscreen TV rises impressively from a wooden recessed fixture.

"Fancy," Veronica mutters. "Bet that cost a bundle." She turns to her dad. "A little nicer than our rabbit ears, huh, Dad?"

"I didn't want to spoil you, Veronica," Keith replies.

"That's why I love you, Dad."

Celeste is not amused at the exchange. Jake hits another sequence of buttons, and the local Neptune channel appears on the screen. There is a newscrawl at the bottom.

_SHERIFF LEO D'AMATO ANNOUNCES ARREST IN KENDALL CASABLANCAS MURDER. DETAILS TO FOLLOW...TUNE IN TO ACTION NEWS AT FIVE._

Jake, furious, tries to call Duncan again with no success. "Damn it!" he curses loudly when there is no answer.

Keith says offhandedly, "You know, it's possible that you felt threatened when Kendall blackmailed you."

"What are you saying?" Jake asks distractedly.

"I don't think you want to tell the world that your son had Aaron Echolls executed, do you? Perhaps Kendall was blackmailing you about her affair with your son. She threatened to use the videotapes she'd been making to destroy Duncan's chances of getting custody of his daughter."

"That's ridiculous," Celeste says sarcastically.

Veronica snipes, "Most grandparents would be motivated to help their son in that situation. Of course you and I know you would have been thrilled if Duncan lost custody of Lilly, but it's a plausible theory for anybody with a shred of humanity."

Jake frowns. "So you're saying...."

Keith says carefully, "Kendall and an accomplice came here to your house and threatened you with a gun. You were in fear for your life and your wife's. There was a struggle, the weapon went off, and Kendall ended up dead. The accomplice fled with the car. You panicked and disposed of the body because you were afraid Duncan would lose custody of his daughter."

Under his breath, Logan says, "After all, it's what you did with Lilly. They'll believe it."

"Involuntary manslaughter. I'm sure your attorneys could work with that," Keith concludes. "If you're smart, you'll spin it as a tragedy."

"Accomplice? What accomplice?" Jake asks, finding his voice.

Veronica says impatiently, snapping her fingers, "Tom Griffith, of course. Try to keep up! He's dead...he can't testify against you. He was photographed with Kendall the last week before she died, and he worked with the Fitzpatricks. He had his lowlife friends dispose of the car for him."

Celeste says, frowning, "I thought he left a letter confessing...."

"Trust me, Dr. Griffith's self-serving confession won't exclude him from this scenario," Keith comments. "If you get your stories straight."

Jake and Celeste exchange a glance. Jake sputters, "What about Astrid?"

Veronica replies, "What does she really know? I'm assuming you asked her to break into a particular room at the Neptune Grand, to deliver the laptop and anything else she found. Does she even know you killed Kendall? And I don't think she'll be volunteering any information. She isn't going to take the chance that she'll be charged as an accessory in the Manning babynapping."

"Why are you doing this?" Jake asks. "Why didn't you just take this to the Sheriff? You certainly hate us enough."

Veronica answers intensely, "We don't want Duncan to go to prison for Aaron's murder, and we're hoping that he can still adopt Lilly. You'll need to stress that Kendall was a ruthless con artist who targeted your son in order to get your billions, and you were desperate to help your son and your beloved granddaughter." Her voice is dripping with sarcasm.

"You might serve a year, Jake, if that. Isn't it worth it to spare your son from life in prison?" Keith asks. "We'll help you with your story. I trained Sheriff D'Amato in interrogation techniques when he rejoined the force, and I remember how he questioned me when I was under arrest. I know exactly how he'll interrogate you. And I also remember how you screwed up when I was investigating your daughter's murder. I won't let you do it again."

Thurs. 4/23/09: late afternoon, Neptune Sheriff's Department, Neptune, CA

Jake Kane, accompanied by his attorney and his wife, walks into the Neptune Sheriff's Department and asks to make a statement. The sheriff hides his surprise and escorts the billionaire into the interrogation room, where he takes Jake's videotaped confession. Several times, the attorney halts Jake's recitation; after whispered consultations, he continues with his tale. At the conclusion, the sheriff puts Jake in a holding cell and speaks to Celeste Kane, who confirms all the details of her husband's story. She is detained as well, in a separate cell.

Leo returns to Jake's cell. "Mr. Kane, I'm going to arrest you now. We won't be able to have an arraignment until the morning, so I'm afraid you're going to have to spend the night in this cell." He unlocks the cell door and motions that Jake should proceed him to another area of the department.

Leo supervises as Sacks fingerprints and photographs Jake Kane. Jake seems to have something on his mind. Finally, he says, "You're going to release my son now, right?"

"Excuse me?" Leo asks.

"I've confessed to Kendall's murder. You can release Duncan now."

"Duncan's not under arrest," Leo replies.

"But Veronica said—" Jake suddenly stops speaking.

Suddenly Leo gets it. Nodding thoughtfully, he says, "Veronica Mars stopped by this morning and asked me to make an announcement that I was arresting somebody today. She claimed that somebody would walk in and confess to Kendall's murder. We go way back, you know, so I tend to believe her. And what do you know...she was right." Leo smiles.

"Veronica Mars...." Jake says through gritted teeth. "Veronica Mars!"

"Did you want to change your statement, Mr. Kane?" Leo asks.

Jake, seething, shakes his head 'no'.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••  
VERONICA MARS  
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA  
**Tilting At Windmills  
**Getting on with their lives.  
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.  
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Wallace: Percy  
Daggs III. Mac: Tina Majorino. Eli: Francis  
Capra. Dr. Friedman: Lorraine Bracco. Dick:  
Ryan Hanson. Rebecca: Paula Marshall.  
Peter Klein: Clancy Brown. Maria: Gina  
Mantegna. Nurse: Suleka Mathew.  
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

EPILOGUE: "TILTING AT WINDMILLS"

**Four weeks later...**

Sat. 5/23/09: very late, Camelot Motel, Neptune, CA

VERONICA

So here I am, back at the Camelot motel, spying on creepy Stuart Fuller. When Mrs. Fuller came in to Mars Investigations saying she suspected that her husband was sleeping with their new baby-sitter, my dad didn't even have to say a word. I immediately said, "I'll handle it, Dad."

It's my first official case since I came out of 'retirement'.

I'm still trying to catch up on my classwork at Hearst—that twenty-page thesis for my 'Ethics in the Criminal Justice System' seminar isn't going to write itself—but it feels good to be slumped down in the Saturn with my telephoto lens pointed at the second floor balcony.

Duncan is still barely speaking to me. He was furious when he realized what I did. But when I saw the 'People' magazine pictures of him and Lilly playing together at the playground, I decided I don't regret a thing. Jake will serve six months in a cushy minimum security lockup and do a thousand hours of community service, and Celeste will do five hundred hours as well. I had to laugh when the court assigned her to work with children at the South Neptune homeless shelter.

Duncan will come around. With his dad in prison, he's had to take a seat on the board of directors at Kane Software. Apparently, he's learning the business from the top down, just the way his dad always wanted him to. The stock price took a hit and Duncan lost millions overnight, but word on the street is that Kane software's new line of educational software for toddlers is going to revolutionize the industry. In the 'People' magazine interview, Duncan stressed that Kane Software needs to diversify from its core business of security and encryption software if it's going to continue to be an industry leader. Maybe he has a knack for the business after all...who cares if he still has to get his secretary to show him how to force-quit when he crashes an application for the hundredth time.

We're still nervous about the adoption hearing, but the publicists that Jake hired have spun the story very well, and I think for once the justice system in Neptune is going to do the right thing. The same judge who presided over the custody hearing was assigned to the case, and the buzz around Family Court is that he'll make sure that Faith Manning's adoption goes through without a hitch. No one has suspected Astrid's part in Kendall's murder; the Kanes quietly let her go, with an extremely generous settlement and excellent references. I heard she moved to the East Coast.

Logan took the news about Duncan's...involvement...in his dad's death harder than any of us thought he would. As much as he hated Aaron, learning that his best friend paid to have him killed was a shock. I'm not sure that Logan will ever be able to be friends with Duncan again. It was already so difficult between them.

My phone buzzes on the seat next to me; I glance at the display. "Hi Dad....Yes, it's going just fine....I promise to check in on schedule....I won't stay too late. Bye, Dad."

It's a new era for me and Dad. No more secrets. Two adults...he even told me just what it was he did for Vinnie. Damn Vinnie to hell...I saw the shame in Dad's face when he admitted that he helped cover up a murder to keep me out of prison. Dad committed a felony for me and swore he'd do it all over again if he had to. I know where Dad hid Vinnie's gun, the bullet, and the license plates from the car so if anything...happens...to Dad, Vinnie can never open his mouth.

Oh, you didn't hear? Vinnie's back in town. I guess he thinks it's safe with Liam dead and Ciaran and Padraig sentenced to life in prison. He waltzed into Mars Investigations as if nothing had happened and tried to get my dad to help him with a particularly difficult bail jumper who's been eluding capture for months now. "Eighty-twenty split, what'dya say?" Vinnie suggested, and my dad just laughed.

You would have thought my dad would be upset about Vinnie showing up in Neptune again, right? You would be wrong. Dad just said, "We're okay. That's all that counts." You know what's crazy? I think he's actually looking forward to a little friendly rivalry between our agencies.

And what about my future? For now, I'm just taking it as it comes...a few cases that won't interfere with my classes. Nothing too dangerous, and Logan and Dad always know what's going on. It's a strange feeling, to be glad when they check up on me, but I'm getting used to it. The FBI called and asked me to resubmit my internship application, but after thinking about it for a couple days, I said 'no thanks'. The FBI will be there for me if I want it later on...but for right now I want to spend a lot of time with Dad and Logan...and work on the Briar Hill case.

We had a family meeting after Jake's arraignment—yes, we're a family, Dad, Logan, and I—and we talked about what we wanted. We each gave up so much for that undercover operation, and all of us felt that we wanted to make a difference, so we've decided to proceed with the lawsuit. I'm working hard on my therapy with Dr. Friedman so I can testify against Klein in his criminal trial. I won't deny that I wake up some nights in a cold sweat after dreaming about facing him in a courtroom, but I won't let him intimidate me. Logan rocks me back to sleep, and twice a week the three of us talk about everything...and it helps. I know he's talking about what happened at Briar Hill to Dr. Friedman as well. Sometimes Logan spends hours writing, processing...and one of these days, I'll read what he's written. Not yet. But soon. He's consulted with a top plastic surgeon to try to have a few of the scars from Aaron's beatings lasered from his body, starting with that cigarette burn on his shoulder.

Epstein is working on expanding the class for the civil lawsuit against Klein and Briar Hill Academy. This summer, we're going to travel around the country talking to graduates, trying to convince them and their parents to join us in our class action suit. Professor Kinny has been recruiting his colleagues to testify about the long-term effects of attack therapy, forcible imprisonment, and psychological manipulation.

And an anonymous benefactor contacted Dad and told him he would take care of any monetary judgment in Klein's countersuit against us...so we told the Briar Hill attorneys: bring it on. The publicity can only help the criminal case against Klein; Dad told Klein's lead attorney that we'd introduce every single surveillance recording as evidence in the suit. Carrie's done her part: her series on the abuses of the tough-love industry ran in Newsweek, with just a small sidebar interview of me talking about the undercover operation. She seems to have changed since her half-brother's death, and I hear she's working on a new series about government corruption. We've contacted Speaker Pelosi, hoping she'll sponsor a bill in Congress that makes a hearing mandatory before a minor child is committed by their parents or guardians to a rehabilitative facility and establishes minimum requirements and federal supervision of the therapeutic boarding school industry. We're not so naïve as to think that a new law will stop evil people like Klein for long, but it's a start.

Michelle Weisz has already sent two students to us...Dad told us he offered to help with her mission. He got them identification and found other tough-love survivors to house them until they turned eighteen. Logan and I drove them to Arizona and Nevada to their new homes. A boy, around sixteen, with haunted eyes, and a girl, only fourteen, who stuttered when she tried to talk...Logan gave both of them a duffel bag full of cash and an emergency contact email if they needed to be relocated again.

There's just a few things that still need to be taken care of.

Tues. 6/2/09: late morning, Bennington County District Court, Bennington, VT

The court services officer says, "Case adjourned in the matter of State v. Echolls, misdemeanor assault."

James Epstein turns to Logan and says, "We'll have that no contest plea expunged from your record as soon as possible."

Logan nods. To Veronica and Keith he says wryly, "More anger management classes...I could practically teach the course at this point."

"One year probation and a thousand dollar fine," Veronica sighs.

"I told you, it was worth it," Logan says firmly, kissing her forehead.

"Ms. Denenberg insisted on taking care of your fine," Keith reminds him. "Let her do this for you, okay?"

'Yeah. You want to get some lunch?" Logan suggests.

"Actually...." Veronica muses. "I'd like to go to the State Mental Hospital in Burlington. Maria Frazzino's being held there."

"Veronica—" Keith starts.

Veronica says quietly, "Did you know that Maria's mother has refused to talk to her? In fact...I'll bet she hasn't had any visitors at all since the hearing when the state remanded her to custody in a mental health facility for a period of one year."

"Maria voluntarily signed the commitment papers rather than face criminal charges," Keith reminds her.

"Ironic, right? After all the girls she convinced to sign the forms at Briar Hill?" Veronica adds.

"What are you thinking?" Logan asks.

"She's refused to talk to law enforcement about Klein and what was going on at Briar Hill. In fact, Jim told me," she nods at the attorney, "Jim said she's refused to participate in therapy and hasn't talked about her dad or Briar Hill at all to anyone. I'd guess she's being forcibly medicated. She's a victim, too. I have a feeling that she was Klein's special project...the way I was."

"Frazzino probably paid Klein handsomely to twist Maria's mind," Keith comments.

"If we could convince Maria to testify against Klein..." Veronica suggests hopefully. "And even if we can't, I don't like to think of her rotting away in some psych ward without any visitors."

Tues. 6/2/09: afternoon, Burlington Mental Health Facility, Burlington, VT

A burly female attendant leads Maria into a common area, where Veronica sits patiently. Veronica left her purse, her phone, everything except for two manila folders with Logan and Keith, who are waiting outside in the reception area outside the locked ward. The two folders, stuffed with papers, were turned over to the head nurse on duty to be checked for contraband; they were sealed with a sticker, signed and dated by the nurse, before they were returned to Veronica. Veronica has also purchased a few food items and two cans of soda from the vending machines, hoping that Maria will appreciate the gesture.

Maria is wearing jeans and a T-shirt; she moves slowly, almost shuffling. When she turns to Veronica, she looks confused at first before recognition dawns on her face. "You." Her pupils are inky black, and her voice is husky; Veronica has to fight to focus on her face. It's scary and abnormal; Maria is obviously heavily sedated.

Taking a seat in the opposite corner, the attendant says quietly, "I'll be over here if you need me. Maria, you're okay, right?"

Maria nods hesitantly.

"How are you doing?" Veronica asks. "Do you need anything?" She pushes the soda to Maria. "Do you want a soda? Some chips or a candy bar? I can get you something else if you prefer."

Maria looks puzzled. She says, "Connie."

"Right. That was the name I was using. My real name's Veronica. I know they told you what we were doing."

"Trying to shut down the school," Maria says, the words a little slurred. "Bitch."

The attendant interjects, "Maria."

"No, it's okay," Veronica says quickly. "I know...this is tough."

Maria whispers, too quietly for the attendant to hear, "Stupid slut. Couldn't mind your own business. Always choosing out instead of working on your program."

Veronica flinches and closes her eyes. Gathering her courage, she says, "Can I tell you a story?"

"Don't have a choice, do I?" Maria mumbles faintly.

Veronica tells Maria about Meg: the saintly girl who held off her horny boyfriend Cole; her plot to marry Duncan when she discovered she was pregnant by her dad; the bus crash and Meg surviving, but lying for months in a coma; Duncan running with the baby he thought was his daughter; and finally Duncan returning to Neptune, determined to adopt the baby and make a life for himself and his daughter.

"Why're you telling me thish?" Maria slurs. "What the fuck is your problem?" She wipes at her mouth, and Veronica realizes that the medication is making her drool.

"Meg's dad was evil. I think your dad was evil too. He gave you to Peter Klein, told him to keep you locked up and brainwash you into believing you were a juvenile delinquent, when you and I know you were probably trying to get high so you wouldn't think about what was going on when your dad came into your bedroom at night. And Klein turned you into his enforcer at Briar Hill." Maria stares at her impassively, and Veronica adds, "Did you know that they weren't going to let you graduate?"

"Bullshit," Maria sneers.

The attendant looks over, and Veronica lowers her voice. "You know that guard Roger...he was working for us too...he heard Klein and Tony talking. They were going to transfer you to Serenity Bay...on your dad's orders. They didn't want to take the chance you were going to tell the world what your dad had done."

Maria looks confused.

Veronica breaks the seal on the top folder in front of her. It contains surveillance photos and police reports concerning the Jamaican facility, and a first-person account by a survivor, telling of beatings and long stretches in solitary confinement in cages infested with roaches and rats. The last document is a copy of the letter from Serenity Bay, approving Maria's transfer there on 6/1/09 just before her eighteenth birthday. Without further comment, she lets Maria look at the documents.

Maria glances at a few of the documents; Veronica notes that her hand shakes slightly when she skims the letter from Serenity Bay. Maria closes the folder. "I don't believe you. I worked hard on my program. I was going to graduate."

Veronica shakes her head. "I know your mother has refused to see you."

"Fuck you," Maria replies.

"Don't let them do this to you. Talk to the counselor. Maria...my god...I was only there a week, and I was— I can't imagine how hard it was for you."

"Go away," Maria mutters, standing and walking to the door.

"Maria...do you know what Klein has said about you? He's going to blame you for everything that happened while I was there. In fact, he's given a sworn statement that he prohibited you from hurting me or any of the other girls. He said you'd been disciplined repeatedly for forcing girls to undergo strip searches against school policy."

Maria stops for a moment before continuing out of the room.

Veronica stands up and calls after her, "I've printed out some interviews that Klein's given. You need to know what he's going to say. There's going to be a criminal trial, Maria, and I think you're going to be the scapegoat. You should work with your psychiatrist and your attorney." When Maria doesn't stop or turn around, Veronica adds, "I'm coming back tomorrow to visit you again. Think about what I told you. I'll leave this here for you to read."

Maria suddenly stops and turns. She says with a smirk, "Love you, Connie."

Veronica wills herself not to react as Maria stares at her. Finally Maria walks away. Veronica hands the folders to the attendant, saying, "Please make sure Maria gets these." She goes to the locked door leading to the reception area and leaves the ward.

Wed. 6/3/09: afternoon, Burlington Mental Health Facility, Burlington, VT

The nurse says, "I'm sorry, Maria said she didn't want to see any visitors."

Veronica's face falls, and she turns away.

The nurse hurries to add, "Wait...Ms. Mars, I thought you should know. She talked to her doctor this morning. It's the first time she's participated in her treatment since she's been here. I think you got through to her."

"Can I maybe...write to her? Or call her?" Veronica asks hopefully.

"You can write to her, of course." The nurse scribbles on a card and passes it to Veronica. "I'll tell her you came by."

Fri. 6/5/09: afternoon, San Clemente, CA

"So what do you think?" Logan asks nervously.

"It's so small. Not ostentatious at all. How are we going to throw lavish parties and get our names in the tabloids?" Veronica asks flippantly. She walks around the one-story house, noting the unfashionably small kitchen and simple styling.

Logan nods. "Just two bedrooms, one for us and one for your dad when he visits. It does have the most important feature."

"What's that?" Veronica leans against him.

"Walking distance to the beach and an outdoor shower."

She snorts.

"I told you," he replies. "I'm ready to start surfing again. I need to get back out there on a board; it's been too long."

"And it's a rental," Veronica comments, still surprised.

"Right. It's not a huge commitment; we can even rent month-to-month at first. But the realtor said she thinks the owner could be convinced to sell if we decide we like it."

"Month-to-month? You must not have much confidence in this arrangement."

"Come on, Veronica. It's an experiment. We're figuring this out together, right?"

"I know," she agrees. "It's perfect."

Fri. 6/12/09: afternoon, Dr. Friedman's office, Los Angeles, CA

"Ready?" Logan asks, holding her hand tightly.

"Yeah, I am," Veronica says quietly.

The therapist asks again, "Are you sure—"

Veronica shakes her head. "I don't think I need a tranquilizer. I can do this. I know it's going to be hard."

"Just put your hand up if you want to pause or ask a question," Dr. Friedman reminds her. "You too, Logan."

He nods. "I think we're ready."

"We'll pick it up where we left off last time."

"When Klein put me in the circle," Veronica notes.

The doctor presses a key on the remote, and the TV screen in front of them comes to life. They've watched a few other selections from the surveillance footage in past sessions, so Veronica knows that the video will look a little skewed from the angle of the camera in the ceiling fixture. It always seems to make it a little more unreal to have the shot framed that way. And the audio is subdued. The first time when they listened, it struck Veronica how calm it seemed, when in her mind that whole experience was adrenaline and nervousness. And watching herself...the curly red hair and tough attitude, smarting off to them...it's eerie yet familiar.

Klein is stroking her hand, leaning towards her. She remembers suddenly the way his breath smelled, not the sour stench of evil and bile she had expected, but...spearmint and a hint of coffee. The memory is still nauseating, and she breathes out suddenly. Veronica sees Logan turn to her in her peripheral vision, and she whispers, "I'm okay. Don't stop."

Klein begins speaking, and they can't make out the words. "Stop, go back. I need to hear it louder," Veronica says, forcing her voice to stay steady. Friedman hits rewind, and they watch in silence as Klein's hand moves backward on Veronica's.

The therapist resumes the video, and they hear Klein say, "Connie...I wish I could make you see that there's nothing to be frightened of. We truly love you here....We want to restore you to sanity. Your life has been one lie after another until now, and we want to help you get honest. The first step is to admit that you have a problem. Connie, can you at least be that honest with us? Can you admit that you have a problem?"

She remembers thinking, _I can do this. I know what he's looking for._ She listens to herself saying, "I have a problem," and remembers _ohmygod, so scared._

"Good girl. Tell us about your problem....Come on, Connie." The fucker won't stop stroking my hand, _hate him, hate this, why isn't Daddy coming, say California again._ Klein says, "Connie, do you think you might be an alcoholic? You've been learning a lot about that disease here."

"I'm an alcoholic. I'm a drug addict."_ God. Can't breathe. Tell him what he wants to hear._

Klein's voice is probing, insistent. "What do you think about God? Do you believe in Him?"

"I...I'm not sure what I believe." Suddenly Veronica realizes,_ I'm REMEMBERING this. I'm not just watching this, I REMEMBER this. I remember thinking frantically, 'what do I say, what do I say.' I remember what I was thinking._

Klein keeps droning on. "Okay. Well, we talk a lot about a Higher Power here...." Veronica fades out, the memories taking over instead of the video in front of her eyes. She stopped listening, she recalls, she just tried to breathe and think, _breathe and think. I know Dad loves me. Something's wrong...no, maybe...no, can't be...could Dad have left me here...Logan's mad at me. Roger. Logan told them. He told them I was undercover...no, can't be._

Veronica puts up her hand, and Friedman pauses the tape. She closes her eyes and remembers. _So scared. Roger told them I was undercover. No...where is he?_ She remembers carefully looking around the room, afraid to see him, and afraid not to see him.

Dr. Friedman says quietly, "You're okay, Veronica. We're here in my office. You're completely safe. That's Logan holding onto your hand."

_Logan, holding onto my hand._ She squeezes it hard, and he returns the gesture._ Logan, not Roger._

Logan flicks his eyes to Friedman, and when the doctor nods, he says, "I'm right here, Veronica. We're okay."

Veronica finally mutters, "I'm okay, keep going." She opens her eyes as the video begins again.

Klein pronounces, "We are all just as sick and diseased as you are, and that's why we can help you. We can help you, Connie. We are here for you."

She watches as he releases her hand and stands up. Veronica suddenly knows what's coming, and she starts to shake. She watches as he puts his hands on her shoulder; she sees herself flinch. She doesn't hear what he's saying, she feels it...her shoulder aching and burning from his hand pressing hard. He starts to massage her shoulders on the video, and she tenses. _Hurts...doesn't he see how much I'm hurting...fuck._

She tunes back in to the video and hears herself saying, "He started kissing my neck, and it was...I felt so relaxed and I wasn't scared at all and it just seemed...I don't know. I was out of it, I know." It sounds completely fake. _No wonder he didn't believe me._ She looks at the other girls; Megan is scornful, almost bursting with the impulse to stand up and tell Connie she's a liar. Maria is watching Klein closely, and suddenly Veronica wonders. She puts up her hand again.

Veronica says, "Go back a little, turn the sound down...I want to watch something." The doctor rewinds, and Veronica peers at the muted video. When Klein removes his hands from Veronica's shoulders, she motions 'stop', and the doctor complies. Hesitantly, she explains, "I think...I never really thought about it. Klein was like a father to Maria. She never takes her eyes off him. She would have done anything for him."

"A substitute father?" Friedman asks.

"Yeah. Showing off for him...making the new girl behave."

"Seeking approval," Friedman comments, nodding.

"Keep going...put the sound back up," Veronica says.

They watch as Klein keeps pressing Veronica to 'let go of the bullshit.' He screams at her, "I bet the people around you have no idea how good you are at telling lies. But I'm sure they know that there's something deeply wrong with you. They just haven't been able to penetrate your FUCKED-UP BULLSHIT! You live your life resenting everyone and everything. You think you're allowed to do whatever you want because the whole world has treated you badly. Well, guess what? Addicts and alcoholics can't afford resentments. You need to get it through your head that you can't trust your thinking. Stop thinking and start talking. Let's go!"

Logan watches, terrified, as Klein grabs Veronica by the shoulders and starts to shake her. He exhales loudly when he hears her audible groan of pain. Klein says viciously, "Are you hurting, Connie? That's what it feels like to everyone around you who loves you when you use them and lie and cheat and drug your way through your life. Even your dad can't love you anymore. He can't stand to see what you're doing to your life."

"Oh god," Logan moans aloud. "Stop it, please stop." Veronica turns to look at him. He closes his eyes.

"Logan, do you want to take a break?" Friedman asks quickly. She puts the remote down and goes to him.

He murmurs, "God, he's hurting you on purpose...oh my god. Veronica, why didn't I—" He lets go of Veronica's hand and leans forward, clutching his stomach in distress. "I knew they were...I knew it." His eyes open, and he looks at her, beseechingly. "Why didn't you say the code words? God, Veronica."

She replies anxiously, "I couldn't remember them. I hurt so much...and I was so confused. I couldn't understand why you didn't come the night before. It was just like my nightmare...I couldn't decide if I was awake or not." They stare at each other, both of them anguished and upset.

"Let's take a little break," Friedman announces.

Veronica gazes into Logan's tormented face. A tear rolls down his cheek, and she reaches up to wipe it away with her thumb. "It's okay," she whispers. "I'm okay."

He laughs quietly without humor. "I'm supposed to be comforting you."

"I've already been through it. It's new for you," she says, realizing the truth of this.

Dr. Friedman says, "Let's do a little visualization exercise. Both of you close your eyes. Imagine...you're somewhere completely safe. It's beautiful, calm. Tell me where you are, Veronica."

"Our new house, in San Clemente," Veronica replies quietly, taking Logan's hand in hers and closing her eyes tightly.

"What do you see?"

"Logan's hooking up his video games...I'm making fun of him."

"What are you doing?"

"I'm making dinner...a big pot of chili. Salad. Ice cream for dessert. Dad's coming over...so's Mac. Wallace, Candice, Dick, Weevil...everyone we love is coming to be with us for our housewarming party. Everyone's happy for us."

"Logan?" Friedman prompts.

"Yeah," he replies. "I see it too."

"Breathe in and out. See every detail."

He chuckles, "Keith's bringing Backup to surprise Veronica." He squeezes her hand. "We can do this. We're going to do this."

Veronica adds, "Weevil's joking that there's a pool going on how long until our first fight."

"Foreplay," he whispers.

"What?" Friedman asks.

"Nothing," Logan and Veronica reply together, laughing quietly. They sit with their eyes closed, just breathing together for five minutes, until Veronica opens her eyes and says, "I want to keep going. I want to do this." She turns to Logan. "I'm remembering more all the time. Logan, he's going to twist my arm behind my back now. You've got to be ready. It's already happened. I'm okay. I've got to do this...I want to remember _everything._ Okay?"

Logan nods. "Yeah." Friedman assesses him for a long minute; he finally mumbles, "I'm okay...I know we have to do this." She hits 'play' again.

Klein is shaking Veronica on the video. She is sweating and crying, begging him to stop. Klein screams, "Tell me! I want you to use the pain to help you break through! I want to hear about the first time you really lost control doing drugs!" They watch as he pulls her arm behind her back, and Veronica screams in response.

Logan is completely unable to breathe, his eyes helplessly locked on the horrible images; Veronica's grip on his hand is painfully tight. On the video, Veronica whispers heartrendingly, "I was roofied and raped. That's the first time I...I ever blacked out. Please, I'll tell you, just...please let go of my arm."

They watch as Klein releases her arm and strokes her head in a parody of compassion. "I believe you, Connie. You just took your first step toward sanity. Now we can start our work. Love you, Connie."

They know it's coming, but still...it's creepy as hell when the girls repeat, "Love you, Connie."

Logan is whispering under his breath, "Fuck. Fuck. Fuck."

They watch as Veronica describes what happened at Shelly's party. Veronica frowns...each word slots a new memory into place. It's still jumbled, confused and jagged in her brain, but every word is familiar. She remembers the words.

On the video, she is saying, "I guess I was making out with someone who...who I don't like very much. I really don't remember, and people told me later what happened, I don't really know, I don't really know. Everyone said something different, I don't know what I really did." She sees herself shudder. She remembers trying to recall what was a real memory of Shelly's party, and what was the gossip that people had told her. She knows she was doing exactly what she's doing right now, trying to reassemble the jigsaw puzzle of her memory: what is truth, what is supposition, what is an outright lie. Veronica speaks up. "Go back...I want to watch it again."

Logan glances at her. All at once, he's incredibly proud of her. This is so painful for both of them, but he sees her face, determined and anxious to be strong again, to own her memories, and he resolves to get through it for her.

Friedman rewinds, carefully observing Veronica for any signs of emotional distress. They watch again as Veronica struggles to tell Klein about the party.

Klein says pompously, "We don't do anything when we're high that we don't secretly want to do when we're sober."

_Oh, goddammit, _she thinks. _Yes, I remember that. I remember...so angry. So angry at him...what the fuck does he know?_ She listens to her feeble protests, and then she gasps audibly when she accidentally tells Klein everyone's real name. "It was a mixup. Logan and Luke and Sean got the drugs, and Luke gave it to Dick, and then Dick tried to get Madison to drink it, and she gave it to–"

And then Klein starts interrogating her for real. He's relentless and cruel, barely giving her time to protest, his voice accusing and judgmental. "You were enjoying it....It felt good to be so out of control....Maybe you thought it would feel even better if you had sex with someone....You had a few drinks, because it made it a lot easier to go after what you wanted....You were going to show your boyfriend that he was wrong, that he was a fool to let you go, so you got drunk and had sex with the first willing guy....And then when you realized what you had done, you said 'rape'. You refused to take responsibility for your actions. Come on, Connie, you're never going to get better if you don't admit it....You don't want to admit that you're a slut."

Veronica starts to hyperventilate; Klein's voice echoes in her ear. _Shut up, shut up, you fucker, you don't know me, you're wrong, you're WRONG about me...._

And then...

_She's back in the guest bedroom at Shelly's party. Beaver's pushing her dress up, pulling her panties down. She's mumbling incoherently, trying to talk, but the words seem stuck in her mouth._

Veronica shakes her head, trying to freeze the image, make it stop, make it behave.

_Beaver is fumbling with himself, his fist working up and down...wait...he's crying._

_He's crying. He's sobbing as if his heart is breaking._

_And then he starts cursing...'fuck them, fuck them, I'm not— Dammit, dammit.' He palms her breast, almost as if it's...it's icky. He rips off the condom and tries again, pushing at her between her legs; Veronica is stirring, trying to move, trying to reach for him, trying to figure out what's going on. It's that dream...where she's trying to move, but her muscles won't work, she can't make herself sit up no matter how hard she tries._

Veronica mumbles aloud, 'Beaver, don't....'

Friedman stops the video, and the doctor and Logan stare at Veronica as she screws her eyes tightly closed, breathing in and out, just a little too fast.

_Beaver stops moving with a final curse and begins to cry helplessly, and she remembers finally managing to sit up, clumsily hugging him and asking him, her voice thick and unrecognizable, 'What's the matter, Beaver?' She watches him get dressed, completely befuddled in her memory of it. She remembers thinking, What's happening? What's going on?_

_And Beaver...such a guilty expression on his face...so hopeless...sad beyond description. He tries to dress her, and she just lies there watching...so confused, what's happening, what's happening? He says, his voice choked with tears, 'You're all right, Veronica, just go back to sleep.'_

_The room is spinning around her; she remembers being certain she was going to throw up. She protests, 'Don't go, Beaver...what's the matter?' and as he runs out of the room she collapses back onto the bed and shuts her eyes against the nausea...drifting...drifting...._

Dr. Friedman has moved in front of Veronica; she kneels silently. Without touching Veronica, she whispers quietly, "You're okay, Veronica. You're okay."

"He was crying," she finally responds. "Sobbing."

_Good_, Logan thinks, then he remembers why Beaver was crying. _We pushed him over the edge._ Friedman glances at his pained expression and says strongly, "It's okay. We're all okay here." He swallows and looks away. Friedman repeats, "We're all okay here."

Veronica opens her eyes. "I don't need to watch the rest. I remember. I think I remember everything now." She stares into space, thinking, ordering her thoughts into a semblance of cohesion. Finally she explains haltingly, "Alyssa said that I needed to face up to what I was...she sent one of the girls to her office...it seemed to take so long, everyone just staring at me like they were disgusted...then when the girl came back, they held my face and....." She shudders. "They were so serious, they kept saying I needed to confront my past and admit my mistakes. And then Klein wrote on my forehead...he said I wasn't going to be allowed to wash my face for the rest of the weekend...they made me look at myself in a mirror. And then...there was a commotion." Veronica looks at Logan. "You and Kavner coming in the room. Everyone arguing...you were hugging me, telling me it was okay...then you were punching Klein."

Dr. Friedman nods. "Yes, that's right," knowing from previewing the video just what horrors were coming.

Logan whispers again, "I'm so sorry."

She clutches his hand tightly. "No, please don't be sorry. I don't want you to be sorry. It just _is_, okay? We're _okay_," Veronica stresses carefully. "It's going to be okay. It was ugly and awful but...I'm glad I know. It's better to remember. It's going to be okay."_  
_  
Sat. 6/20/09: late evening, Logan and Veronica's house, San Clemente, CA

Everyone has said their goodnights, and Veronica and Logan are cleaning up from their housewarming party. Veronica thinks about her dad, doing a completely silly dance with Rebecca James watching. Her dad had proclaimed that 'kids today don't know what good music is' and marched over to the stereo. He had changed the music to a Motown greatest hits CD and began gyrating soulfully, dragging Rebecca out into the center of the living room and making an utter spectacle of himself.

Mac and Dick had traded comic barbs all night. Veronica muses that Dick was probably never going to give up, and Mac didn't seem to mind the attention as long as he mostly kept his hands to himself. Wallace and Candice had canoodled in the corner for most of the evening, and Weevil had flitted from one conversation to another, bitching about being the fifth wheel with everyone else paired off. Veronica had carefully reminded him that Mac was definitely not going out with Dick. When he replied, "So you're saying she's free?" Veronica had quickly responded, "Don't you dare," realizing just before the words left her mouth that he was pulling her leg.

When they all left, Mac had reminded her about their next girls' night out—an all-female poker tournament that Mac had heard about—and her dad had said casually, "See you Monday at the office. We got that personal injury case to get going on." And it feels really right, really okay, all her friends and family there with her, with a job that she enjoys and is good at, a new beginning with Logan—a commitment to trying like they've never tried before. Veronica is certain there are still challenges ahead, but she wouldn't have it any other way.

Logan takes her to bed, his eyes dark with lust and his body obviously aching to be with her. He makes love to her, surprising her as he always manages to do, and she thinks..._this is my perfect day._

* * *

**_Thanks very much for reading._**

If you want to know more about the fic, please go to my livejournal, where I've posted some additional material, including author's notes, trivia, and a really cool picspam.

vanessagalore•livejournal•com[slash]131938•html[pound]extras

(Replace "•" with "." "[slash]" with "/" and "[pound]" with "#")

(I'll also post this link on my profile, where it won't get perverted by the ridiculous ff interface.)


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